Ondo Guber: Tinubu, Aregbesola Seal Deal With Oke, To Nominate Occupiers Of Juicy Positions

SAN FRANCISCO, November 18, (THEWILL) – Days to the November 26, 2016 governorship election in Ondo state, a national leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has reportedly sealed a power sharing deal with the candidate of the Alliance for Democracy, AD, Chief Olusola Oke. ThisDay reports that part of the terms for the deal is that Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State would nominate the Secretary to the State Government, SSG, for bankrolling the election of Oke.

Tinubu is said to be rooting for Oke following the defeat of his preferred candidate in the party primary, Chief Segun Abraham. Also, the power sharing deal involves the distribution of cabinet slots and other strategic positions if Oke wins. But there is a caveat: the APC leaders must mobilise enough resources and voters to first ensure the victory of the AD candidate.

A source close to the deal told the newspaper that Oke had agreed to concede some positions to Tinubu and Aregbesola, which include: SSG, chairmanship of the Ondo State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, OSOPADEC, Commissioners for Finance, Works, Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Health and headship of the Ondo State Board of Internal Revenue. Others include six caretaker committee chairmanship positions, that is, two per senatorial district as well as four special advisers.

The source was reported as saying: “You know that the circumstances that led us to the AD are very peculiar. At first, we wanted Action Alliance but when the national leader suggested that we need to test the ground with AD in lieu of the zone's interest ahead of 2016, we had no choice than accept the AD proposal.

“But what I just told you is not abnormal in politics especially when you view it from the prism of the need to cut down the APC candidate. I can assure you that the arrangement will work perfectly well and we will have no problem about that.”

Earlier on Thursday, the National Executive Committee, NEC, of AD granted waiver to Oke to fly the party's flag in the fast-approaching election as the party’s candidate, after he had been rejected following controversies within the Alliance for Democracy over his emergence.