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“Leaders are visionaries with a poorly developed sense of fear and no concept of the odds against them.” —Robert Jarvik
By Cosmas Omegoh
Osun State governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, 62, is among the happiest men at the moment. There he is, up in the sky, resting his heads in the blue clouds where the air is calm, cold and clement. He cannot count all his blessings in one breath.
The dancing Senator as he is popularly known because of his incredible choreographic prowess even at his age, last Tuesday, stormed to yet another sweet victory, this time at the Supreme Court.
At the apex court, Senator Adeleke defeated ex-Governor Gboyega Oyetola, and for the final time, killed the Osun State gubernatorial election contest. Things swung his way on a night victory was looking to go to the wire.
Recall that the battle for the soul of Osun State had gone up to the Supreme Court after the election that took place on July 16, last year. In that epic contest, Senator Adeleke of the PDP defeated then incumbent governor, Oyetola, of the APC in an election some people believed was going to signpost what was to come in the general elections that followed in the New Year.
Many had hoped that the outcome of the Osun election held fresh hope and gave credence to the rejuvenated electoral process promised by the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC). Those who had this hope held that if the incumbent could be defeated in an election that was supposedly free and fair, there was hope that Nigeria was on the road to recovery. That the people’s ballot would indeed count.
But after the majority had decisively spoken with their votes, the incumbent did not give up.
He alleged over voting, massive rigging, among other infractions, capping it up with the claim that his mandate was snatched and stolen, and vowing for all it was worth to reclaim it. And the legally-sanctioned channel to do that was to approach the court of law. Good a thing, he urged his teeming supporters to exercise restraint, assuring them that he would be back – someday soon.
No one was surprised, therefore, when Oyetola filed a petition at the state governorship tribunal, praying it to restore him as the governor. The tribunal did indeed. On January 27, 2023, when members of the election panel hit their gavels on the table for the final time, their verdict was that Oyetola rightfully won that tempestuous contest.
But Adeleke was not deterred. He did not let matters lying low. He appealed the decision seeking nullification of the pronouncement of the lower tribunal. After some painstaking effort, he, indeed, got what he gunned for. His victory was restored.
But Oyetola would have none of that. He had a joker right in his hands. So, he unleashed it. To the Supreme Court he fared, praying it to set aside the Adeleke victory. And that was how once again, both men got locked up in a dingdong. It was a never-give-up affair.
But last Tuesday it all ended – for Adeleke in praise, for Oyetola in defeat. It was a case of both men swallowing two pills of different tastes.
The final and ‘infallible’ court in its wisdom judged that Adeleke was the rightful winner of the Osun governorship election. It handed him the bragging right on a night Oyetola had his head bowed. And now, it is case closed.
It was learnt that Oyetola has so far congratulated Adeleke over the final outcome of the contest, although the loss was such a bitter one to him. But he had to say something – at least in the spirit of sportsmanship. Whether the words emanated from the innermost recess of his heart is a story for another day.
After news filtered that Adeleke had finally won, Osun went up in raptures. The governor’s coterie of supporters filled out in celebration. No one was deceived by that outpouring of emotions anyway. After all, everyone knows how this is often constructed. Same celebrations could have erupted if Oyeyola had won.
Now, it is easier to understand while Adeleke is in Cloud 9. As one schooled in the rigour of dance, he is dancing the best. It was learnt that a concert has even been proposed to continue his victory celebration from where it was left off days ago. Indeed, Osun is in for the dramatic and the enigmatic.
For everyone, issues of election in Osun State are over for now. Unless the untoward happens, Senator Adeleke is assured of governing the state for the next four years. There are no more “distractions.” They are all over for good. For now, he has the ball, and the court. He must score and must not miss. He also has the dance floor to himself.
To Adeleka, there is no gainsaying there are hundreds of thousands of Osun folks who have no idea of what clean water looks like. They need not just water, but potable drinking water. So, they must look up to Adeleke. There are several thousands of residents of the state who survive on a meal a day – every other thing they eat is mere food to remain alive. They need government presence to empower them to do more for themselves. They need to benefit from various primary health facilities in their areas. Their children need quality education to escape poverty. They look up to Adeleke!
The Osun folks coming from long-drawn years of government by pretence do not need handouts from the Adeleke government. They need action. They need transparency. They need honest government and governance – not rhetoric, not promises couched in deceptive phraseology. Adeleke must avoid all of that.
It needs be said to the Adeleke administration that its time had long started counting. It has by far less than four years to redeem itself. Its remaining years and days are fleeting at the speed of thought.
And what else needs to be said? It is that things are turning around fast. As for the people, a new era of awareness is here. The people now have their own barometer for measuring performance and good governnance. This is the telling truth Adeleke must eminently realise to survive the people. In less than four years from now, he will be back to the people. It is up to him now to determine what value he wants to weigh on their measuring scale when next he comes seeking for their votes.
