•••Allegation petty, laughable – Commissioner
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Osun State has described the rally held in front of the house of Senator Kolawole Ogunwale, a party stalwart in Iragbiji, Boripe local government area by the state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as hitting the panic button when it is not necessary.
The party accused Osun State Commissioner for Women, Children and Social Affairs, Barrister Olubukola Olaboopo of disrespecting their party elder by leading some members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on a rally in Iragbiji town on Sunday morning.
The rally was held to counter the PDP rally held for defectors which held in the town on Saturday, 26th June, 2021. Iragbiji is the hometown of Governor Gboyega Oyetola.
The Director of Media and Publicity of the PDP, Mr Oladele Bamiji in a statement made available to newsmen on Sunday night, said the PDP rally in Iragbiji was held because the people were tired of the system and they yearned for a better platform that will address their problems.
Oladele while explaining that a democratic society required people to make choices noted that the only visible and feasible platform for the people to express this was for them to belong to the PDP which is more like a movement now sweeping across the state and the country.
According to him, “The rally came about when some prominent inhabitants and known relatives of the state governor and ancestral relatives of the APC national leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu decided to decamp from their political party to the PDP. Since politics is not monarchical, they felt it was wrong for some people to continue to deceive them on the basis of affiliation.
“They said they were no more comfortable with the APC and decided to join the moving train of the Osun PDP.”
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“It is uncalled for and awful. Instead of the party to allow people to go and worship their God in peace. This is part of the accusations we have been levelling against the APC, they care more about parochial interest and less of dignity of man.
“They shared brooms around and asked them to go to the house of a prominent PDP leader in Iragbiji, Senator Kolawole Ogunwale who happens to be the Asiwaju of Iragbiji and harass him with different types of abuses.
“This moral deficiency is wrong. There are certain things you cannot do in the name of politics. It is traditional with the Yorubas that you don’t abuse leaders and fathers.
“By virtue of Senator Ogunwale’s position in that town, he is father there and you don’t go out in the morning abusing such a man.
“When we were doing our own rally, it was peaceful and we didn’t not disturb people’s peace and abuse people.”
Speaking with InsightMedia, Commissioner Olaboopo said the rally was not done by her Ministry and she only participated as a daughter of Iragbiji and not as a commissioner, declaring the accusation as laughable and petty.
Olaboopo said the house of the former Senator is located on the main road in Iragbiji and it was not the venue used for the rally. She said they only passed through the front of the house.
“Ordinarily, I wouldn’t have responded to the accusation because it’s petty and laughable. The rally was by the people of Iragbiji and I participated as a daughter of Iragbiji. People who trooped out yesterday were not only APC members, we has Iragbiji people who are not part faithful. If you know the house of this senator, you’ll see that it is on the main road and if ask many people, you will see that the rally passed through many streets. So it’s just funny to say we passed through his house”.
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When asked about the song sang in front of Ogunwale’s house, Olaboopo said, “we only sang praises of our party and not something special. He’s the Asiwaju of Iragbiji and the Governor is his brother. Everyone expects him to put Iragbiji interest first.
“What song are they talking about? I can a man be saying some people sang songs to abuse him? It’s petty. Ordinarily, being a member of the opposition, he would not be happy with praises of the Governor and that our party. So that’s what happened.” The commissioner said.
