But for the last minute cancellation, the shadow election to determine candidate of the All Progressives Congress for the September 22 Osun state gubernatorial election should be ongoing.
The exercise was however hastily shifted indefinitely less than 24hours to schedule.
This was on the heels of the drama of armed policemen takeover of the state secretariat.
And the huge controversy over what voting method to adopt for the shadow election.
Rauf Aregbesola, the outgoing Governor all out to install his chief of staff, Gboyega Oyetola as successor is pushing for a throw away of the rules book for a scheme that favours his agenda.
Aregbesola is pushing for direct voting as against the all-round recognized use of Delegates.
“Direct voting dictates all party members vote and this naturally creates a fertile ground for manipulation for those with deep influence because unlike the numbers of delegates and their identities which is open to all not everybody can really say this is the total numbers of party members and this is who they are” a source disclosed.
Insiders claim Aregbesola – accused of working hand in glove with new national chairman Adams Oshiomhole –appeared to have gotten away with his ploy until popular gubernatorial aspirant Kunle Rasheed Adegoke went all out against the plot.
The leading aspirant widely addressed as KRAD unsettled the leadership of the party at the state and national level with an expose on why the process is compromised and why he won’t boycott it.
societynow.ng learned the move by Adegoke which outrightly fingered Aregbesola as attempting to manipulate the shadow election caused quite a hullaballoo with the APC.
“The unspoken message was that KRAD is prepared to go to court and the decision makers immediately took notice and intervened in the bid to quickly contain the situation” a source disclosed.
Checks by societynow.ng revealed that KRAD is one of the keen legal minds that have helped the political structure that transformed Aregbesola into a Governor secure major victory in court.
And is also one of the lead lawyers of the All Progressives Congress.
“Obviously, based on KRAD’s pedigree, the leadership of the party, especially at the national level, is taking the gubernatorial aspirant’s reaction very seriously” another source disclosed.
Societynow.ng gathered the indefinite shift of the shadow election is aimed at trying to find a “political solution” to the situation on the ground.
Sources disclosed this is in the face of insistence by 12 – including KRAD – out of 17 gubernatorial aspirants contesting for the APC ticket that “voting by Delegates should be adopted for the shadow election”.
