…says 2019 APC guber result garnered by late Ajimobi
A prominent politician in Oyo state and a political ally of governor Seyi Makinde, Alhaji Adebisi Olopoeyan, has reacted to the outcome of the just-concluded Ibadan North Federal Constituency bye-election.
He described the defeat of Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu’s anointed candidate, Wale Olatunji otherwise known as Murphy, as a confirmation of their “political inexperience.”
In a statement the Bashorun based politician made available to newsmen in Ibadan on Sunday, Olopoeyan said the election result had vindicated his long-held position that “Adelabu and Murphy lacked the political weight to survive in Oyo State’s competitive political terrain.
“Loser plus loser equals failure. I once said Adelabu and his partner were losers, but now everyone has seen the result,” he declared.
The PDP stalwart dismissed Adelabu’s political profile as shallow, insisting that the outcome of 2019 governorship election where he emerged second was tied to the popularity of the late Governor Abiola Ajimobi and the APC influence at the federal level.
He argued that Adelabu’s subsequent moves, including his defection to the Accord Party, had since failed to yield meaningful results.
“Adelabu is just a six-year old politician (2019–2025). He is still an amateur in politics. If we look back at the 2019 election, it was the same Ajimobi 2015 votes he gathered.
“Even when he defected to Accord, he didn’t have votes of his own. It was the support of Nurudeen Faozey of Oyo Central, who had 41,743, Shina Peller and KDD from North and South with over 30,000 votes each, that allowed him to get around 38,357 votes for himself during the governorship election,” Olopoeyan explained.
He further described it as unfortunate for Wale Murphy, “a more experienced politician,” to have submitted himself under Adelabu’s weak political tutelage.
Olopoeyan advised Adelabu to humble himself and learn the rudiments of politics rather than setting his sights on competing with Governor Seyi Makinde.
“Instead of chasing shadows, he is supposed to humble himself, learn politics properly, and stop rushing. He should not think of chasing people like Seyi Makinde.
“They are not mates. Makinde started politics over 20 years ago, and he invested heavily before getting to where he is today,” he said.
The PDP leader stressed that Makinde’s emergence as governor in 2019 was a product of collective efforts by party leaders and not imposition.
He however, noted that Adelabu still had much to learn about coalition building and grassroots mobilization if he hoped to remain relevant in Oyo politics.