The Oyo State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged its members not to be bothered by Engr. Joseph Tegbe’s defection to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
In a reaction statement signed by its acting State Publicity Secretary, who also doubles as Assistant State Publicity Secretary – Hon. Shittu Adebayo Mukaila, the Party received the news of Engr. Tegbe’s defection to the PDP through media reports.
“Though no political party will celebrate the exit of a member, the defection of Engr. Joseph Tegbe did not come to us as a shock as he had been clandestinely romancing Engr. Seyi Makinde immediately after failing to get the 2019 governorship ticket of our great party. As a matter of fact, he worked assiduously for the Victory of his real home the PDP in the 2019 election, whilst deriving joy from the electoral loss of the APC.
“In order to prepare ground for his defection and to continue with his Consultancy jobs, some of Engr. Tegbe’s lieutenants like the erstwhile Director-General of his Campaign Organisation in 2018 and a few notable others, have since joined the PDP. The aforementioned assured that Engr. Tegbe would not only get PDP Senatorial Ticket but he would continue to enjoy juicy Consultancy jobs from the Oyo State Government”.
“Going by the official statement confirming his defection to PDP, Engr. Tegbe lent credence to the fact that he indeed is a merchant in politics. He went further to state that he served Oyo State government in different non-political capacities. We wish to put it on record that Engr. Tegbe was just a paid business consultant to our late leader – His Excellency Senator Isiaq Abiola Ajimobi (of blessed memory) and just like any contractor, he got juicy Consultancy contracts in a personal capacity from Governor Ajimobi-led Oyo government. He always put his personal Consultancy above the Consultancy jobs of his employer. We dare Engr. Tegbe to deny that he is a political merchant, then we shall release indisputable documents, revealing his dealings with the immediate past government”.
“Leveraging on his contractual relationship with late former governor Ajimobi and enticement of consultancy fees from the government, Engr. Tegbe signified interest in the 2019 governorship ticket of our great party. Having failed to be imposed on the party, he felt aggrieved and activated an unholy secret relationship with the Engr. Seyi Makinde prior 2019 general elections”.
“There is no denying the fact that Engr. Tegbe was unknown in the political and social arena of Oyo State. The only demographic of Oyo State who will not forget Engr. Tegbe in a hurry are the traumatised Staff members of the BCOS, who know him not as politician but as a consultant who brought untold misery to innocent employees of the State Broadcasting Station. Sadly, the staff of BCOS will never forget him in a hurry for his draconian and convoluted staff rationalisation exercise.
“Engr. Tegbe also singlehandedly cornered the Scout Camp Market Project for his personal gain, using proxy Contractors and he is sad that such opportunities no longer existed in the APC.
“Since he debuted into partisan politics in 2018 and up till the time he exited Oyo APC, Engr. Tegbe wholly relied on the political structure of late Ajimobi of blessed memory.
“Since he joined APC alone, Engr. Tegbe left alone. No single member, not even a gladiator followed him to board the sinking ship of PDP. No wonder there is calmness in APC after his exit.
“In politics, there are types of defection, celebrated and uncelebrated. Engr. Tegbe’s defection to PDP is greeted with unwelcome statements and hostilities. Apart from grassroots and social media negative feedbacks to Tegbe, a founding member of PDP, Hon. Dare Adeleke joined other party gladiators to reject the coming of the merchant politician.
“Hon. Adeleke described Tegbe as a politician without any clout, adding that he has nothing to offer the ruling party in the state, in terms of ensuring its victory in the 2023 elections. This is a move in a bad light! “How could we bring a person of no electoral value to our fold (PDP)?
“It is a pity that Adeleke brought up the controversies surrounding the state of origin of Tegbe as he said he may not be from Oyo State. According to him, ‘he may not be qualified to contest elections, noting that same issue was brought up when he sought to contest the governorship election in the state in 2019. I don’t think Tegbe is even from Oyo State. He is actually from Delta State. I have a friend from Itsekiri called Omotsegbe. I wont be surprised if they are from the same clan. If people of the state challenged his state of origin in 2019, what has happened between now and then? Why is he coming out to want to contest for the senatorial election when his state of origin is still in doubt?.
“Another chieftain of PDP and vice-chairman of the Oyo State Tourism Board, Alhaji Abass Oloko, has said that Engr. Tegbe should not be considered for anything at the moment. According to him, those who brought the former APC chieftain are still in the African Democratic Congress (ADC). If he is considered for any, it may be the beginning of troubles for us. People may begin to revolt.
“Directing his message to Governor Seyi Makinde, Oloko added that ‘Your Excellency, you may not know; people are not happy since they learnt about the defection and reported concession of ticket to Engr. Tegbe. They may not have the courage to say it to your face but they are angry. Those who brought him have already oppressed party members who haven’t benefitted anything.
“Meanwhile, Engr. Tegbe’s claim that he defected to PDP because minority group took over Oyo APC structure is untenable as all tendencies (including Tegbe) have stakes in the composition of party executives at ward, local, state, zonal and national levels. Being a greenhorn in politics, he cowardly left the house having failed to learn and play competitive politicking.
“While urging our teeming members to remain calm as we continue to work hard to reposition our party strongly for the next general elections, we wish Engr. Tegbe good luck, Oyo APC is leaving no stone unturned to dislodge the misruling PDP Government in 2023, therefore, our members should not fidget over the development. We want to assure that with people like Engr. TEGBE in its fold, Oyo PDP will experience massive implosion in the coming days”.
