A stakeholders’ meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, convened by the former governor of the state and Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, on Saturday, was marked by the absence of several prominent leaders of the party.
The meeting, which was expected to provide an opportunity for party leaders and stakeholders to deliberate on the state of the party and its political direction, witnessed what appeared to be a low turnout of key figures.
Among those absent were the APC National Secretary and former senator representing Osun Central, Dr. Ajibola Basiru, as well as his predecessor and former Deputy Governor of Osun State, Senator Iyiola Omisore.
Also absent were former Deputy Governors of the state, Mrs Titilayo Laoye-Ponle and Benedict Adegboyega Alabi.
Two former Speakers of the Osun State House of Assembly, Professor Mojeed Alabi and Adejare Bello, were equally not present at the meeting.
Other notable absentees included Hon. Akintunde Adegboyega, a former Deputy Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, and Hon. Adeoye Adelakun, the APC Osun Central Senatorial leader.
Equally, the party chairman, Tajudeen Lawal and some other members of the state working committee of the party were also absent from the meeting.
The absence of the party’s prominent figures has sparked fresh concerns over the state of cohesion within the APC in Osun, with observers interpreting the development as another indication of the internal disagreements that have emerged within the party.
The development is coming amid lingering grievances over the party’s handling of its recent governorship primary and the subsequent primaries that produced its candidates for the State and National Assembly elections.
While it remains unclear whether the absences were politically motivated, the poor representation of some of the party’s major stakeholders at a meeting convened by a former governor and serving federal minister is likely to fuel speculation about the depth of the divisions within the Osun APC.
The meeting comes at a critical period for the party as it continues efforts to reposition itself ahead of future electoral contests in the state.
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