THE chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Legislative Budget and Research, Honourable Opeyemi Bamidele has disclosed how he helped the Ekiti State governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi to realise his governorship ambition.
Bamidele in an exclusive interview with Sunday Tribune chronicled how he helped Fayemi to become the governor of Ekiti, when he, introduced him to the national leader of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria, (ACN), Bola Tinubu.
According to him, “I Michael Opeyemi Bamidele to the glory of God most humbly, can lay claim to the fact that I practically dragged him out of the PDP and took him to Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to recommend him because there was a strong geo- political sentiment in Ekiti that the next governor of Ekiti should come from Ekiti North Senatorial District”.
On how he helped the current governor of Ekiti, he said, “Governor Fayemi with due respect joined the party in 2006, six years after I had served as a national director of publicity of the party.
High Chief Jide Awe who has been busy entertaining himself in the media and describing my gubernatorial ambition as a misadventure was recruited from PDP when we were trying to carry out some realignment of forces; we brought him from PDP in 2006 or early 2007 to come and be chairman of the Action Congress of Nigeria, in Ekiti. The same person can accuse me today of being used by PDP to destabilise the party. When Governor Fayemi came to this country, and he was scuttling between London and Nigeria, he wasn’t coming to Lagos, he was coming to Abuja. I encouraged him to interact with us in ACN rather than PDP.
“I practically dragged him down, because, the three of them who were our friends but, were coming home as members of the civil society, were coming into the Villa, the same Villa they claimed was trying to use me now. I am happy Professor Julius Ihonvbere is alive, Dr Oby Ezekwesili is alive. Dr Kayode Fayemi was the third one who was writing presidential speeches in the Villa, writing all sorts of proposals in the Villa. Eventually Professor Ihonvbere got appointment as Special Adviser; eventually Dr Oby Ezekwesili who I respect so much got appointment as Senior Special Assistant and eventually as a Minister”.
Source: Tribune
