Facts have emerged on what led to last Saturday’s attack on some factions of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who worked for the Alliance for Democracy in the 2016 governorship elections in Ondo State.The Senator representing Ondo North Senatorial District, Prof. Ajayi Borrofice , Commissioner for Regional Integration in Osun State , Bola Ilori and members of the house of representative ,representing Idanre / Ifedore federal constituency, Hon. Bamidele Baderinwa and his counterpart representing Akoko south West / South East federal constituency, Hon. Kolawole Babatunde are leading members of the faction .
According to several sources who were present at a meeting, which held in Akure, the state capital, Prof. Borrofice boasted that the faction will ultimately be known as the “Authentic APC”.
“They met at a location in Akure and decided that a factional congress should be organized. At the meeting, Senator Borrofice told the people that he will ensure that their faction is recognized at the ‘authentic APC’,” one of the sources said.
It was further gathered that the attack at their gathering at the BTO hall last Saturday was not unconnected with the leadership tussle between Ilori who was the Director General of Olusola Oke and AD campaign organization in the 2016 governorship election and Prof. Borrofice who seconded all his supporters and mobilized them to work for Oke against his party, the APC.
Borrofice, who was said to be the major financier of the faction, clashed with Ilori at a meeting where the Osun commissioner accused some followers of the Senator of betraying their “struggle”.
Sources at the meeting said Ilori lamented that some of Borrofice’s loyalists were already romancing some key players in the Akeredolu led government and the real leadership of APC in the state, led by Ade Adetimehin.
It was learnt that Ilori’s accusation infuriated Borrofice who declared that he was also aware of some cunny moves of Ilori to take over the leadership of the faction.
Another competent source at the meeting who pleaded anonymity said: “It was a tug of verbal war that day, everybody poured out their minds, accusations and counter accusations.
“It was at the meeting that we started feeling that the leadership tussle between the two men would lead to something grievous. We were all confused. We knew all along that Senator Borrofice was never happy with Ilori. Both men never really jelled.”
It was learnt that Borrofice was still not pleased with Ilori over his role in the emergence of Oke as the sole beneficiary of the support of some south west leaders of the APC during the last election.
Borrofice was said to have believed that Ilori rated Oke above him politically, which made some leaders of the party in the south west to support Oke instead of him. The Senator, it was gathered, has not forgiven Ilori.
The battle between the senator and the commissioner to outshine each other took a turn for the worse on Saturday when Borrofice learnt Ilori had connived with Baderinwa and had taken over the supposed parallel congress of their faction. Ilori and Baderinwa were said to have mobilized more men than Borrofice who was the major financier of the parallel congress.
Sources in Borrofice camp disclosed that the Senator and Ilori had earlier agreed that there will be equal distribution of offices among their loyalists. The source said Borrofice became angry when he was hinted that Ilori had acted against their agreement by bringing more of his loyalists on board and forcing their names into the list.
One of Borrofice’s lieutenants, Tolu Babaleye was said to have called the Senator and briefed him of the development. Angry Borrofice, it was reliably gathered, called a group of thugs to storm the gathering and disrupt their activities.
Another source, who spoke with our correspondent on the condition of anonymity, said a small meeting was quickly held at their hotel where Borrofice perfected plans to attack the BTO gathering and later take the congress to another venue so that the Senator would have perfected arrangements to ensure his loyalists, Idowu Otetubi , Gani Muhammed and Tolu Babaleye got key positions of the faction .
The source added that the attack was to also be another strategy to discredit the real congress of the APC in the state by blaming the attack on Governor Rotimi Akeredolu and his men.
The source said: “Boroffice and Ilori believed that Comrade Adams Oshiomole will soon be the national Chairman of the party and all aggrieved members will be reconciled. The source added that it was believed that whoever has the control of the factional excos will be called to the negotiation table by the would be Oshiomole led executives.
Even, as the governorship candidate of the AD in the 2016 governorship election had officially defected into the APC, his DG, Ilori, although a commissioner in Osun, he has refused to defect into the APC in Ondo state.
Meanwhile, political observers are wondering why Borrofice has not openly apologized to the leadership of the APC for the role he played by supporting the AD in the last election.
They are also worried that the leadership of the party in Abuja has failed to reign in Ilori, who despite his portfolio as a commissioner in an APC-led government, has consistently worked for the fall of the party by promoting anti party activities
While the congress held by the APC congress committee led by Hon. Mattew Omegara elected a long time progressive, Ade Adetimehin as the chairman , the Ilori / Borrofice faction elected a known PDP member , Idowu Otetubi as Chairman .
