•Meet The 6 Top Politicians Running
As political juggernauts in Oyo State are getting set for the 2023 general elections, an aspect of the poll which is going to be very interesting are the seats to the 3 senatorial districts of the state.
After the primaries, it became clearer that six politicians from the two major political parties in the state, the All Progressives Congress, APC and Peoples Democratic Party, PDP will slog out with one another at the poll come 2023.
While the former Chief of Staff to Governor Seyi Makinde, Chief Bisi Ilaka, Joseph Tegbe and Wole Akinwale (Wolekanle) emerged candidates of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for Oyo Central, Oyo South and Oyo North senatorial districts, respectively.
A former SSG in the state, Barr. Sarafadeen Abiodun Alli, Yunus Akintunde and Senator Fatai Buhari are the candidates of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Oyo South, Oyo Central and Oyo North senatorial districts.
For Oyo South, the duo of Akogun Sarafadeen Alli of APC and Joseph Tegbe (PDP) will battle each other for the seat. While Bisi Ilaka (PDP) and Yinus Akintunde (APC) are set to proof their political worths in Oyo Central. A third- term Senator Fatai Buhari of APC and Wole Akinwale (PDP) will slug it out in Oyo North.
JOSEPH TEGBE
Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe, the PDP candidate for Oyo South Senatoeial District, is a top-notch at KPMG Nigeria. He is a management consultant with experience spanning over 26 years, in institutional transformation, reforms, strategy formulation and blue print development.
He was the governorship aspirant on the platform of APC for the 2019 gubernatorial poll. Mogaji Joseph Tegbe, who officially defected to PDP some weeks ago, was elected candidate for Oyo South. Tegbe contested unopposed through a consensus arrangement, scoring 296 to affirm his emergence.
Tegbe, 56, has all it takes; he is well educated, exposed and rich. He is also a philanthropist of note. He has a foundation (Tegbe Foundation), through which many lives have been lifted. But there are three major factors some political watchers in the state say may work against him. Number one is his ancestral link. Some say he is from Togo, while some say he is an indigene of Ogbomoso. Though he has severally refuted the claims, and has even went ahead to become Mogaji of Oguntegbe family of Labo Compound. To confirm that he is truly an Ibadan man.
It is also believed in some quarters that being a new comer in PDP may affect Tegbe’s chances. As some people within the PDP are not happy with his emergence as the party’s candidate. They felt he was imposed on them. For some, though Tegbe has the financial capability to contest an election but doesn’t have a formidable structure in place.
SARAFADEEN
ABIODUN ALLI
Barrister Sarafadeen Abiodun Alli, the APC candidate for Oyo South, is an Ibadan chief and a highly experienced politician. He is being described by many as a grassroot mobiliser. In 1991, he became the first Executive Chairman of Ibadan North Local Government. He served two different portfolios under the former governor of Oyo State, Senator Rasidi Ladoja. First, as SSG and later as the Chief of Staff to Ladoja. He is 59.
Sarafadeen Alli was the gubernatorial candidate of Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) in 2019 before Ladoja begged him and other candidates of other political parties to support Engineer Seyi Makinde who later won the election on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Alli, however, abandoned the alliance and defected to APC when it appeared that his interest is not being protected under the coalition. But despite his rich political C.V and Ladoja’s structure to fall back on as a bonafide member of the group. What Sarafadeen seems to lack is the financial wherewithal to tackle Joseph Tegbe in the contest.
BISI ILAKA
Chief Luqman Oyebisi Ilaka, the formed Chief of Staff to Governor Seyi Makinde, is a legal and taxation consultant. He is the PDP candidate for Oyo Central Senatorial District. He is 61. The Ladilu of Oyo is not new to the political arena of the state. He contested the same seat in 2015 and lost to former senator, Monsurat Sunmonu of APC. He lost again in 2019 to the current senator from the zone and now APC guber candidate, Senator Teslim Folarin. To some, Ilaka, like Tegbe, has the financial muscle to contest an election but lacks formidable political structure that can make things happen for him.
But based on his past experiences in politics, the fact remains that he must have learnt from his mistakes and loses. Couples with the fact that he now has the full backing of a sitting governor, things are likely to work in his favour come 2023.
YUNUS AKINTUNDE
Dr. Yunus Abiodun Akinrunde is the APC candidate for APC in Oyo Central Senatorial District. The Energy Economist is an Oyo-born businessman-turned-politician. He has been around for a while too. He is former Commissioner for Works and Housing in the state and had also served at a Civil Service Commissioner. He was a governorship aspirant in 2019. Yunus Akintunde celebrated his 60th birthday recently. He has many things going for him; he has been a party man and he is well loved and respected for that. He is also a philanthropist and a grassroots mobiliser. But the major issue is that he will be contesting against another popular son of Oyo, Bisi Ilaka.
FATAI BUHARI
Senator Abdulfatai Buhari, 57, is the current senator representing Oyo North Senatoeial District. He defeated Shina Peller, the federal lawmaker representing Iseyin/Itesiwaju/Kajola/Iwajowa Federal Constituency, to clinch APC ticket of the zone for the 3rd time. He seems to have understood his people and giving them an excellent representation. In fact, Buhari has been adjudged as the best senator from the state. He is said to have attracted several developmental projects to the zone. His empowerment projects are always massive too. All these are what have endeared him to his people and this why it may be difficult to dislodge him. He has been able to use his political expediency to his advantage. He had once served as the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters and later as a member House of Representatives, representing Ogbomoso North/Ogbomoso South/Oriire Federal Constituencies before he won election into senate in 2015. The believe in some quarters, however, is that another town from Oke-Ogun should produce the next senator.
AKINWOLE AKINWALE (WOLEKANLE)
Hon. Akinwole Akinwale aka ‘Wolekanle’ is PDP candidate for Oyo North Senatoeial District. The Ogbomoso-born entrepreneur is one of the new breed politicians in the state. He is quite popular in the zone because of his philanthropic gestures. He is well qualified and as well on a history-making journey if he succeeds in defeating Senator Fatai Buhari in 2023. Wolekanle is said to be relying on his political, corporate and social networks and the full backing of Governor Seyi Makinde. But some say the fact that he is a fresher in politics may somehow work against him.
-Dare Adeniran
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