By It is no longer news that Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola has been humbled in the Osun political circle where he held sway as governor for 8 years.
The political career of Aregbesola, who has always been at the forefront of Nigeria’s politics since the inception of the Fourth Republic, appears to be hanging in the balance — judging by recent events.
The minister’s political travails began when he reportedly lost grip of Alimosho LGA in Lagos State — his stronghold where he lorded for many years right from his days as commissioner in the state.
The last straw that broke the camel’s back was the disgraceful loss of his anointed candidate, a former Secretary to the State Government, Moshood Adeoti at the governorship primary election of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, held on Saturday.
The minister had publicly declared that his successor, Gboyega Oyetola was undeserving of a second term in office. At the same time, he took a swipe at his erstwhile political benefactor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu who he accused of imposing his cousin (Oyetola) on the people of Osun.
Leading a faction of the Osun APC, the ex-governor deployed all resources at his disposal to work against Oyetola’s re-election bid. Unfortunately for Aregbesola, the incumbent governor — backed by the political structure of the party — won overwhelmingly at the APC primaries, paving way for his second term in office.
Though the minister has since described the exercise as a sham, there are indications that he is making last-minute moves to save his political career from doom.
BlackBox Nigeria had reported that Aregbesola met his erstwhile political mentor, Tinubu at the the palace of Alaafin of Oyo, HRM Oba Lamidi Adeyemi in Oyo Town, Oyo State, on Sunday. The latter visited the monarch to seek ‘royal blessings’ for his presidential bid.
For the embattled minister, what would become of his career in politics is unarguably his biggest concern at the moment, as his hold in the ruling party — especially in Osun State –diminishes.
