The main opposition All Progressives Congress in Osun State might be in for a fresh trouble over the zoning arrangement being proposed by some leaders of the party in the state ahead of the 2026 governorship election.
Some groups in the party have been canvassing for the zoning of the gubernatorial ticket to Osun West Senatorial District, which they said have been deprived of the governorship seat.
The zoning agitation reached its crescendo recently when a sociopolitical group, Falex Foundation, unveiled a former Commissioner for Finance and current Managing Director, National Inland Waterways Authority, Bola Oyebamiji popularly called AMBO, for the 2026 governorship election.
Some of the advocates of the zoning included top chieftains of the party such as the immediate past Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Timothy Owoeye and former Managing Director, Osun State Investment Company, Tunde Faleye.
They appealed to party leaders to zone the gubernatorial ticket to Osun West Senatorial District where Oyebamiji hails from.
He had attributed the agitations for the zoning of governorship ticket to Osun West as a clarion call to salvage the state from the shackles of retrogression being plunged into by the current administration.
“We are here for APC and we are here to begin work that will send Ademola Adeleke packing come 2026. This is another opportunity for us to raise the consciousness of our people to the need to work in unison for the success of our party. As we are ready to return to government, it is pivotal to zone our governorship ticket to Osun West senatorial district in the interest of fairness, equity and justice. We all know that Osun Central Senatorial District has done it for 16 years, Osun East has spent 8 years and it is turn of Osun West and the best choice is Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji. The choice is noble and painstaking.
“It is a time for our party to look critically in the West direction in picking the candidate of our party. We are appealing to our party leaders to zone the party ticket to Osun West and consider Bola Oyebamiji for the ticket.
“Unity of the party is very sacrosanct and it is important for us to chase PDP out of power. It is time for us to work together to ensure that the current government is sent packing by 2026.
THE POINT reports that since Oyebamiji’s unveiling, consideration for zoning of the ticket to Osun West has been gaining ground among prominent forces in the Osun APC.
In fact, most of the loyalists and close allies of the party leader, Gboyega Oyetola, the incumbent Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, have been rooting for Oyebamiji to fly the party’s flag at the forthcoming poll.
Oyebamiji has been more closer to Oyetola since he made public his intention to govern the state.
Impeccable sources within the party informed THE POINT that the NIWA boss has been endorsed by the former governor, who arguably is the major decision maker in the party and also has largest stake.
The sources further claimed that the Minister is not pleased with Basiru’s governorship ambition.
But, the seems to be trouble in the party following the rejection of the zoning arrangement by the National Secretary of the APC, Ajibola Basiru.
Basiru, a former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in the state is also eyeing the ticket of Osun APC ahead of the poll.
Sensing that the zoning proposal, if eventually adopted, might make it impossible for him to be party’s governorship flag bearer, Basiru dismissed the proposed zoning arrangement, declaring it unconstitutional.
The former Senator, in a Facebook post on Monday, said zoning is not part of the APC constitution, adding that every eligible party member should have the right to contest.
Basiru argued that insisting on zoning undermines the democratic process and could alienate voters from zones excluded by such arrangements.
“When you insist on zoning, aren’t you going to canvass votes in other zones whose aspirants you have denied?” Basiru queried in his post.
He emphasised that focus should be on competence and unity, not regional division.
He wrote, “Zoning is not in our constitution. People should be free to contest. When you insist on zoning, aren’t you going to canvass votes in other zones whose aspirants you have denied? I’m not in support of zoning.- Senator Ajibola Basiru PhD”
Reacting to Basiru’s comments in a radio interview on Monday, Owoeye admitted that zoning may not be constitutional but it should be allowed on moral ground.
He said Basiru had made the statement, not as the National Secretary of the APC, but in his personal capacity, noting that he wouldn’t decide for the party.
Justifying his demand for zoning, Owoeye, said, “There are certain things we won’t base on constitution. morality might prevail atimes. I believe he “Basiru” said his own mind as his own opinion, not as the National Secretary of the party. We are talking about zoning so that party leaders can consider our demand. It might go our way eventually.”
Owoeye recalled how PDP lost out because they rejected zoning the presidential ticket to the South. “PDP had argued for zoning of President to South and that the chairman should go to North. And you know what happened at the end of the day,” he said.
He remarked that zoning the APC presidential ticket to the South largely assisted the President Bola Tinubu in coming out victorious, saying, “See what APC did with zoning and you can how easy it turned out for our candidate. It is not as if it is constitutional but we can advise our leaders to look at a particular zone that has been deprived of leadership for a long time.”
“Since the establishment of Osun, Central had 16 years, East had 8 years, while West has not had any progressive leading the state,” he stressed.
On whether the conflicting agitation might cause fresh crisis for the party as it prepares for the poll, the former lawmaker said, “We know how we will handle our internal issues. We won’t fight over it. Everyone knows we have elders that will tell us where we are going.”
Source: ThePoint
