Former Commissioner for Information in Oyo State, Taiwo Otegbeye, has accused Governor Seyi Makinde of betraying him after the 2023 governorship election, alleging that the governor failed to fulfil promises allegedly made to him during the campaign period.
Otegbeye made the allegation while featuring on a live programme on Saturday, Gbangba lasata aired on Splash FM and anchored by Abiodun Adewole, popularly known as Mr Double A.
The former commissioner said he served as the Deputy Chairman of Makinde’s media campaign organisation during the 2023 governorship election but had since been abandoned by the governor.
According to him, all efforts to reach Makinde after the election proved abortive.
“He didn’t fulfil any of his promises. I was the deputy chairman for his media campaign in 2023. He made a lot of promises but did not fulfil any,” Otegbeye said.
“Since March 19, 2023, for two years now, he has not picked my calls. One time he picked, he told me to call back, but after that he stopped answering my calls.”
Otegbeye, who described politics as a divine calling for him, said he ventured into partisan politics after several spiritual encounters and he described what he does as “Godlitics” because God is fully involved.
“We are the light of the world, so we can participate in politics. Politics for me is a call from God. For seven years, people told me God wanted to use me in politics and that I would become a governor,” he stated.
The former commissioner also recounted his political relationship with the late former Governor Abiola Ajimobi, narrating how he withdrew a tribunal case challenging Ajimobi’s 2011 election victory.
Otegbeye had contested the 2011 governorship election on the platform of the Action Alliance before approaching the tribunal over the omission of the party’s name and logo from the ballot paper by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
The petition was, however, withdrawn after a political arrangement with Ajimobi’s administration.
Speaking on the development, Otegbeye claimed he was offered huge sums of money at the time to frustrate Ajimobi’s emergence as governor.
“Someone wanted to give me N500m to spoil their votes so there would be another election, but spiritually I was directed not to do that. That was how I entered into coalition government with Ajimobi,” he said.
Following the withdrawal of the suit, Otegbeye served in Ajimobi’s administration as Special Adviser on Education before later becoming Commissioner for Information between 2011 and 2013.
He further alleged that despite assurances from the former governor that his position was secure after a cabinet dissolution, he was eventually dropped from the reconstituted cabinet.
“After the second anniversary executive council meeting, some issues happened and the cabinet was dissolved. I was told my position was safe,” he said.
“But later, when the names came out, my name was not included. I was told some Muslim groups gathered and said I should not be brought back despite the fact that I was doing well.”
Otegbeye also alleged that Ajimobi later promised him a return to government and a senatorial ticket under the All Progressives Congress ahead of the 2015 elections, promises he said were never fulfilled.
“They begged me to withdraw my case so he could become governor. They promised I would return to government and get a Senate ticket in 2015, but none of those promises happened,” he added.
“As time went on, Ajimobi stopped picking my calls and replying my messages, so I handed him over to God.”
