By Olanrewaju Ariyo
Ondo State has been in the news for a while now over an untoward development that should have been nipped in the bud before it snowballed out of control. It’s an issue that is antithetical to what the people of the state stand for since time immemorial.
For those not familiar with the meat of the issue, here's a condensed recap of it:
Some youths under the aegis of Akoko Youth Forum were arrested and charged to court for cyberbullying, conspiracy, a threat to life, and conduct that breaches public peace by the police over a recent indecent incident that happened at the Ministry of Justice and Office of the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Dr Kayode Ajulo, SAN.
It is needless to revisit the genesis of the crisis, for it is already public knowledge, but it is pertinent to state without equivocation that Ajulo acted through to type by asking the youths to attach their evidence of registration as an organisation to their letter for assistance. On his assumption of office as the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Ajulo emphatically stated and pledged to be a core professional in carrying out his duty in the promotion of the tenets of democracy. This, to mind, may explain the demand for evidence of registration from the said youth group, but the youth leaders, unfortunately,, acted in a most disreputable manner, which contradicts what the state’s Omoluabi ethos entails and preaches.
In any case, even though these 'youths' did not own up to their actions, realised their folly, or apologised to the AG, he was still quick to let go of the grudge, given his background as a foremost human rights activist. This was despite the enormity of the assault on his staff, his office, and some civil servants, including the Solicitor General of the state, who were affected by the ugly development.
But before any intervention was made to mediate peace, the police had already taken over the issue as it had to do with the disruption of public peace, which led to the youth leaders being arrested and prosecuted. Unfortunately, by the time of their arrest and prosecution, the AG had travelled out of the country; otherwise, he would have intervened quickly through his office.
Although the issue was a case of police versus the youth leaders, the timely intervention of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa prevented it from being exploited by politically motivated professional and career protesters and their satellite enablers, who were ready to plunge the state into another avoidable unrest. The youth-loving Governor, in his wisdom, already knew the ugly trajectory the case might follow if allowed to persist, hence his quick intervention.
Despite the intervention of Governor Aiyedatiwa and the instantaneous concurrence of Dr Ajulo, who returned to direct the Director of Public Prosecutions to take over the case from the police, which enabled the youth leaders to be granted bail (before their expected date of bail hearing) to resolve the issue out of court, there have been relentless campaigns of calumny against the AG by some faceless politicians through their social media hirelings locally called data boys.
Their ulterior plan is to discredit the AG before the people of Ondo State in particular and Nigeria at large, demonise him in Akoko Land, his place of ancestry, and probably put a wedge between him and his principal, Governor Aiyedatiwa. The pattern is clear and unmissable. Only the non-discerning are oblivious to this. Whatever the reason behind this character assassination has not been unravelled yet. Is it about the 2027 elections? Who knows what will happen tomorrow? That was how they planned and plotted against Governor Aiyedatiwa until God showed them that the way of men was not essentially the way of God.
Anyway, it needs to be asked: Can anyone suppress the moon from shining? Impossicant! Long before becoming the number one law officer of the state courtesy of his appointment by Governor Aiyedatiwa, who places value on competence and character in his hiring policy, Dr Ajulo had earned the badge as a respected human rights activist, an impassioned advocate of egalitarianism, a compassionate and quiet philanthropist, and a distinguished community leader whose non-perishable imprints are already in the sands of time and etched in the memories of those who have benefitted from his organic benevolence and justice-centred advocacy.
With the benefit of hindsight now at the disposal of yours sincerely, the face-off between the youth leaders and the AG escalated beyond what had already been resolved as a family affair because of some external forces who wanted to exploit it for cheap political points. Truth be told, Ajulo’s problem started from the day Governor Aiyedatiwa sacked his entire Exco but retained only Ajulo and Mrs Omosunmi Isaac as Attorney General and Commissioner for Finance, respectively, coupled with his financial independence and intimidating profile, as well as the Governor’s public praises of Ajulo and Isaac, their traducers see them as the biggest threat to their political hegemony.
For those who may have forgotten, the state is yet to recover from the ruins of the EndSARS protest in 2020, whereby some unscrupulous criminals vandalised critical infrastructures in the state, in addition to brazen looting. Okitipupa Local Government is yet to recover from the dastardly act.
The state is already being confronted with rising insecurity, which the state government is trying to tackle headlong. It’s, therefore, important for every law-abiding citizen of the state to join hands with the government to ensure peace and stability. Those in the opposition are also enjoined to contribute to the advancement of peace in the state, as politics and meaningful politicking can only thrive in a tranquil environment.
Governor Aiyedatiwa means well for the state. Don’t distract him by targeting those trying to help him to actualise his lofty dreams for the people of the state. Dr Ajulo is one of those people, and so are many youths of the state who have keyed into the transformative leadership of the governor.
Olanrewaju Ariyo writes from Ifon
