Osun APC, Reinventing From Emerging Unity.... By ISAAC OLUSESI

For the All Progressives Congress (APC) Osun State, it is now a new beginning, and newest. The other time, a certain number of the members of the state APC were procedurally disciplined, permissible in party politics. Quite a good number of them were suspended, appropriately, driven by explicit reasoning skills and effective responses, competent, warm and utilitarian. 

With my middle finger upward while keeping the other fingers folded downward, the suspension, navel, compelling and sacrificial, and explained or supported by the rule or constitution of the party, practically elicited everywhere enthusiasm, rated high in harmony with the cross sections of the party and applauded against any nuances, and inferences or preferences to the contrary. In the corollary, the party in the state, got secured from the paradigm of brinkmanship that almost barrelled the party so fast to be out of rescue from imminent collapse. To have been otherwise or biased and motivated by moral dilemmas, the today's Osun APC's mobilization, orientation and sensitization (MOS), on- going would have been dead on delivery. At kick off.

The necessity and proportionality of the Hon.Tajudeen Lawal's MOS train tripcocks at the Osun APC local government formations under his watch as the state party chairman is marked off by objectivity and preparedness, simplicity and surprise, flexibility and concentration, and cooperation and administration. Lawal's MOS is aimed strategically at increasing the strength, character and wisdom of the party to the maximal point of winning the next rounds of the governorship and general elections in Osun. The MOS, with its stratagems and tactics has begun, dispassionately, trading off all extant disunity in the party, and command unity to party men and women, excited to the mass of the electorate in the state to stave off electoral opponents in Osun in favour of APC. The results of the party's ongoing efforts as endorsed by the party zenith leadership in the state will be seamless, almost effortless at next polls, overwhelmingly, to be pro APC.

But the frivolities of jamboree or carnival cannot go for the objectives of the Osun APC, moving its mobilization, orientation and sensitization (MOS) train on tracks to the state local government structures of the party. Lawal, the chairman of APC in the state who doubles as the MOS train engine driver, doesn't speak the language of carnival like one from Trinidad and Tobago where Caribbean Carnival originated. He doesn't answer Carny or carnie, neither is he a carnival employee of Carnival Corporation Plc, a British-American cruise operations. Infact, and indeed, Lawal doesn't not belong in the class of shareholders of carnival. He's a politician, erstwhile local government chairman and Hon. Commissioner in the state.

In the Ila and Boluwaduro, Ilesa East and Ilesa West, Ife Central, Ife East and Ife North, Ede North and Ede South, Isokan, Irewole, and Aiyedade as well as Ejigbo and Egbedore local government council areas thus far, visited, the Osun APC's mobilization, orientation and sensitization (MOS) was mistaken by the host party members and enthusiasts for a blowout, also called gala affair, with music, entertainment, dancing, merrymaking, revelry, or jamboree gathering in the city streets as if it were in the culmination of the carnival week before Lent in Roman Catholic countries. All of that, a long mixed programmes of processions of party people and celebrations as in jamboree in the local government council configurations of the party amidst the party's MOS objectives, was an aberration or breach of the business and purpose of MOS. Where does Mikhail Bahhtin's "carnivalization" fit in here in the face of the seriousness of Lawal's MOS?

More than the carnival or jamboree but finer, un-showy or underplayed in Ejigbo, the rest seventeen local government council areas plus Modakeke Area office could get settled to such serious mobilization, orientation and sensitization issues, agenda setting otherwise, as what factors cause the imposition of candidates ahead of elections and how could the factors be nipped in the bud? In what more rewarding ways could grassroots politicians facilitate the grassroots growth and development of the party for increased party membership?  What reasons for the inefficiency and ineffectiveness of the drive or how could the drive be energized? 

How could the funding for mobilization for elections not get diverted? What best ways could the party be protected from anti-party activism and its effect made less devastating? How fast and best, with positive effects, could the party could go at reconciling the least aggrieved or disenchanted party members? How could the party members be made responsible to the party leadership at all levels in the state, and the party leaders made to respect party supremacy? What influence or persuasion to exert to keep the leadership from undue or needless war against one another? And how could traditional rulers, women, youths students, and the physically challenged be mobilized to participate in the revival of the party? 

The Osun APC, currently, not in the instance of electioneering campaigns, but seriously on mobilization, orientation and sensitization outings to get the party reinvented, reanimated and reinvigorated on strongly electoral footings, any sort of jamboree or carnival at this time is an infraction, obstructive to the all-important, thoughtful objectives of MOS with the reunification of the party and reprioritization of its electoral fortunes as far-reaching ends, pervasive. Hear the more serious Lawal: "I enjoin all the stakeholders in the party to imbibe unity, put behind them what might be their grouses with the party or any of its members and work together as a team in the overall interest of the party in the state. I commend the doggedness and high spirit of the members of the party." 

 

And at every turn of the Osun APC's mobilization, orientation and sensitization (MOS), Lawal, with all seriousness of Oliver Twist, spoke pointedly, asking for increased membership propel and membership patronages. "It's the task of all the members and leaders of our party to boost our membership drive by bringing in more members and engage in the reintegration of any disenchanted members of the party who have genuinely sought forgiveness over their past malfeasance against the party, Lawsl stated, adding, "the party remains an indivisible and impenetrable one. The party will look into the challenges as presented by each of the council areas just as I can tell you that everything within the ambit of the law and constitution will done to remove the oddities in the 2026 elections."

The writer's analysis of Lawal and his MOS is, the man spoke with glee and his voice, thumbed up with refreshing pitch and he's not given to flippancy to ride on the wave of angst at the party's painful, regrettable past and despise anyone or splash mud or voice verbal attacks as some are wont want to do, forgotten at all times that "The fault lies not in our stars but in ourselves," the Shakespearean wise saying. Meaning, the party men and women were responsible for the pains or regrets of the past, not fate. Lawal is worth of the state party higher-up that he's; he is a revered Osun APC leader who's very sensitive to party issues and electoral calculations. "Reconcile with the disenchanted party members in your domain and reconcile with anyone of them who's genuinely repentant as politics is a game of numbers.I charge you all, leaders and members of our party to close ranks and operate in unison in the interest of the party," Lawal passionately appealed to the party.

Impliedly, Lawal as Osun APC chairman is asking the party members and leaders, top down in the local government council areas of the state to leave behind them needless embroilement in the mathematics of unsettled issues on some contextual factors with emphasis placed almost exclusively on intra party dynamics. That's Lawal's MOS, springing up party unity and nurturing same, and no battle rages. And for him, no black dog, no white dog; no love lost, no love found; no power broker, no power loser; and no marginalization of anyone or anyone being marginalized. The party, under him is reinventing to stand together, act together and speak together. And never again will the party crawl, or taken to task for any lapses, or to the cleaners to be bested, defeated in any future elections.

There's no failure of leadership in Lawal, the Osun APC chairman. His mobilization, orientation and sensitization train has risen to the challenges of the party's present situation which is the hallmark of true leadership. What's needed now by the Lawal example, is the change of attitude of the party leaders and members to party processes, values and principles that would earn the party leadership the respect of the party members as it's just the best that members should be ready to function at the bell and call of the party leadership. And it's good today, every party man and woman wants to "serve in heaven and no one wants to reign in hell."

Behind Lawal, APC's progress in Osun, showing by the party's decisive match forward to reacquire political power, establish government and act as a link between the governed and government, comes 2026, is the party's state leader, the Osun immediate past Governor Gboyega Oyetola and currently, Honourable Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria who has consistently said, "the party will regain its strength and vitality and very soon, there will be tremendous progress." 

I share the Osun APC leadership concern on crucial niceties of the continued peace and progress of the party and the urgent and concerted efforts towards the renascence or resurrection of the right party culture through a coherent, thoroughly and clearly guided and executed programme of mobilization, orientation and sensitization (MOS). The state APC leadership is convinced that the effectively mobilized party, consciously orientated party and properly sensitized party is the greatest deterrent to bad _'partysim'_, the kind on the ground, preparatory to the last general elections in the state. It's also an assurance that the state APC people would have been so strongly motivated as to acquire an understanding of the party general processes and participate meaningfully.  

Let the Osun APC apex leadership note this. The party in the state, rightly in search of self reconstitution for success at the next rounds of general elections, must re- emphasize mobilization, orientation and sensitization of the party, _ad infinitum_ , on continuous basis and not without corresponding emphasis on party supremacy, party discipline, party loyalty, party patriotism, and party accountability

  *OLUSESI writes via [email protected]*