Rebuttal to Oluboyo’s Misguided Plea: Leadership in Ondo APC Must Be Earned, Not Assumed
By Elder Olusola Agagu
Alhaji Lasisi Oluboyo’s recent write-up urging Minister of Interior Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo to “acknowledge” Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa as the All Progressives Congress, APC leader in Ondo State reeks of sycophancy and lack of honesty.
No one is contesting the obvious: by virtue of his office, Governor Aiyedatiwa is the leader of the APC in Ondo State. Leadership, however, is not merely a title conferred by office, it is earned and sustained by conduct, fairness, and character. As John C. Maxwell says, “A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” The pertinent question is: has Governor Aiyedatiwa truly shown the way?
The Minister of Interior is not struggling for leadership with the governor. Rather, the issue is why party leaders and grassroots members alike find it easier to identify with Dr. Tunji-Ojo than with Governor Aiyedatiwa. If the governor is truly the rallying point, why does he appear abandoned by many of those who once stood by him? Oluboyo would do well to address that.
Why has Governor Aiyedatiwa sidelined loyalists of his late immediate boss, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN? Has he not betrayed those who risked everything to identify with him during his impeachment saga? Was he fair to Chief Olugbenga Ale, the former Chief of Staff, who put his integrity on the line to defend him? Where are Rasak Obe, Akin Sowore, and others who staked their political relevance to protect him in his hour of need?
And what of Chief Olusola Oke, SAN, a respected Ilaje son like the governor, who restrained himself from challenging the sham that was called a primary election simply because of their shared roots? Has Aiyedatiwa reciprocated that statesmanship, or has he chosen betrayal instead?
The division in Ondo APC today is not caused by Tunji-Ojo, but by the governor himself. His media hirelings have turned social platforms into cesspools of attacks against party stakeholders, including the Honourable Minister. How then can he claim to be a promoter of peace? This is hypocrisy at its peak. A pretender may wear the garb of holiness, but his actions betray him.
Were they not Aiyedatiwa’s loyalists who went about boasting that they would “retire all the old politicians” in the state, a category that certainly includes Oluboyo himself? It is surprising that the former deputy governor now plays cheerleader for a man whose allies openly plot his own political irrelevance.
Oluboyo should tell us plainly: did he pen that article in the hope of being rewarded with the chairmanship of the APC in Ondo State? If so, he is on the wrong path. You can not get leadership through flattery; it is earned by service, loyalty, and integrity.
Instead of blaming Tunji-Ojo or imagining phantom power struggles, Governor Aiyedatiwa should look in the mirror and confront the hard truth: respect is not demanded by office, it is commanded by conduct. Until he fixes his broken bridges within the APC family, no amount of propaganda can cover the widening cracks in his leadership.
