The outgoing governor of Oyo State, Abiola Ajimobi has implored the incoming People’s Democratic Party (PDP) administration to focus on developmental issues instead of its renewed campaign of calumny against his person, family and administration.
Ajimobi made this call on Tuesday, March 26 via a statement issued by his Special Adviser, Communication and Strategy, Bolaji Tunji, said the renewed campaign of calumny was aimed at rubbishing his eight-year selfless service.
Ajimobi said the incoming administration ought to let the citizens of the state know their plans and blueprint towards developing the state while building on the foundation of development laid by his administration.
The governor said he was appalled by the unprovoked media attacks by the opposition parties, especially sympathisers of the PDP and its governorship candidate, who were still practising politics of bitterness that Oyo State, under his tenure, has since left behind.
Also Read: ‘Inadequate funding is the reason for Police ineffectiveness’ – IGP Mohammed Adamu
The governor appealed to the traditional and online media practitioners to be circumspect in churning out unverified information being supplied to them by their unscrupulous sources, who were bent on spreading inflammatory rhetoric.
Ajimobi said: “Now that elections have been won and lost, there should be an end to acrimonious and incendiary comments. Political discussion has moved from the pre-2011 era. Our focus is on politics of issues and development.
“That is what we expect from them, not personal attacks and falsehood-laced statements indicating their unpreparedness for governance.
“I’m not unaware that during campaigns some politicians adopted the campaign of calumny as strategy believing it would give them undue advantage, but such does not last.
“What the electorate expects is to be educated on their blueprint for the development of the state.”
However, the governor-elect, Seyi Makinde issued a rebuttal saying it would amount to a waste of resources and time to embark on a campaign of calumny against the out-going governor.
He said: “We deny campaign of calumny against Ajimobi. Such won’t be necessary and it is unhelpful.
“Our major grouse is that awarding fresh contracts worth over N30 billion in one fell swoop and under mischievous circumstances will be a disservice to our state if we do not cry out.
“We do not need the outgoing governor to tell us to inform our people what we want to do for them because they already know during the course of the campaign.
“What the people never knew was the extent to which the outgoing government will go to attempt to empty government coffers to leave frustrate the incoming administration.”
