A former member of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Hon. Femi Josiah, has described the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in the state, Senator Sharafadeen Alli, as a representative of an old political establishment driven by vested interests and extractive politics rather than good governance.
Josiah, who made the assertion while featuring on Crossfire, a live political programme on Fresh FM, Ibadan, on Sunday, warned residents against returning the state to what he described as the old political order under the APC ahead of the 2027 governorship election.
He alleged that the political establishment backing Alli was already preparing to use money to influence voters, arguing that such an approach reflected its investment in the former lawmaker as a political project rather than a commitment to the welfare of ordinary residents.
“I’ve said it before and I’m saying it again that he is a candidate of the old establishment, and that establishment is all about extractive politics and governance.
“We cannot afford to return Oyo State to them because that era only brought dark memories, retrogression, stagnation,” Josiah said.
Speaking exclusively with Westernmirror.com.ng on Sunday after the radio show, Josiah said: “You can see they are gathering today and preparing to buy voters with money. That is their investment in Sarafa as a political project.
“Anybody who witnessed how the old political order went about politics and governance would never attempt to send us back to where we believe we have left behind,” Josiah added.
The former lawmaker urged voters to consider the long-term consequences of their electoral choices, warning that a return to the APC-led administration in the state, as he portrayed it, could reverse the gains he attributed to the current government of Governor Seyi Makinde.
Josiah said the electorate would eventually appreciate the significance of their decisions if they resisted what he described as attempts to take the state back to an era in which access to government opportunities depended on personal connections with politicians.
According to him, Makinde’s emergence and administration should be viewed as a product of sustained prayers and collective efforts by residents seeking a departure from the state’s previous political arrangements.
“If Oyo ever returned to the old dark political era under APC, then the people will fully understand what it means not to abuse God’s grace on the state’s electoral affairs.
“They will, in fact, realise that Seyi Makinde’s emergence has been a product of endless prayers and fasting for restoration,” he said.
Josiah also advised voters not to allow financial inducements to determine their choices at the ballot box, urging them to separate the immediate benefits of campaign handouts from the broader question of who could best govern the state.
He maintained that voters could accept money offered during campaigns without surrendering their electoral rights, insisting that the final decision should reflect their personal convictions and assessment of the candidates.
“I have also advised voters to collect their money and vote their conscience,” he said.
The former lawmaker argued that the electorate should reject any political arrangement that could make ordinary citizens dependent on the private residences of politicians to secure government employment or opportunities for their children.
He maintained that governance should provide fair access to opportunities through credible institutions and transparent digital channels rather than make public services and employment appear to be favours dispensed by political officeholders.
Josiah’s remarks come on the heels of intensified political campaignsand mobilization by parties and their candidates ahead of the 2027 governorship election in Oyo State, with the contest increasingly being shaped by competing narratives over governance, political continuity and the performance of successive administrations.