A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, Hon Adeoye Adelakun, has said that Governor Rauf Aregbesola is free to choose his successor in the 2018 gubernatorial election in the state. Adelakun who appeared on a private radio programme monitored by CityMirrorNews in Osogbo on Monday, said Aregbesola has the right to choose the next person to lead the state.

According to Adelakun, choosing his successor will help Aregbesola to build on his legacies as well as ensure continuity in government. The Osun Central Senatorial leader of the APC maintained that the governor as an individual could nominate a candidate of his choice but would be subjected to primaries.

Adelakun who spoke on the chances of zoning to be the decision of the party in the elections, pointed out that strategies would be fine- tuned to make for hitch-free primaries before, during and after. He said: “We are going by due process….That is why we have said that nobody should signify his intention yet….Right now, nobody has told me he wants to contest.”

“Everybody can come out to be aspirants in the party, there is no harm, trust me, we will follow due guidelines.” On whether Aregbesola wants his chief of staff, Gboyega Oyetola to succeed him, Adelakun said “the governor has not told me his choice, so, let him say it first before we know what comes next.” The APC stalwart added that election into the local governments in the state would be conducted before the governorship election, saying that Aregbesola was keen to perform the exercise.

“People have been saying that Governor Aregbesola is a sole administrator of the state with no cabinet, I can assure you that very soon, there will be elections, everybody knew what hampered us not to do it, but I know one thing, the governor is ready to conduct the elections.”

On the formation of Aregbesola’s cabinet, Adelakun said the party is making efforts to conclude issues on the prospective nominees for the state executive council.

Credit: City Mirror News