Romoke Alade
Opeyemi Bamidele, on Saturday drew the battle line with the National Leader of his party, the Action Congress of Nigeria, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and the Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, saying that nobody could bar him from contesting the 2014 governorship poll in Ekiti State.
Addressing supporters in Ado-Ekiti at the inauguration of the office of his campaign group, the Ekiti Bibiire Coalition, Bamidele, who represents Ekiti Central 1 in the National Assembly, said only God can stop him from going ahead with his ambition.
The lawmaker, who will turn 50 on July 29, said he had decided to shelve his 50th birthday celebration in honour of Ekiti people, who he said were languishing in poverty, saying “I cannot be celebrating birthday in the midst of poverty”.
Bamidele, who was responding to the last Wednesday’s endorsement of Fayemi by Tinubu and ACN National Chairman , Chief Bisi Akande, said he would not drop his political ambition on the premise of a mere command from anybody.
He said he remained unperturbed despite Fayemi’s endorsement, saying “It is only God that crowns the king”.
Speaking on the peace parley championed by Tinubu and Akande, where Fayemi was endorsed, Bamidele said, “I was invited for the meeting but I got the text message late. But my argument still remains that Tinubu did not endorse Fayemi at the meeting.
“The Tinubu that I know will not take any step that will undermine democracy, so what was reported was not what Tinubu said. Tinubu that I know will want Ekiti people to take their own decision and not
imposing on them”.
The federal lawmaker, however, did not mention the political party under which he would advance his political ambition, saying the platform would be made public soon.
He, however, said he had enormous respect for the ACN leader, under who he served as Special Adviser in Lagos State, revealing that he was not contesting the coming governorship election out of his own personal conviction, but based on the requests of Ekiti people.
He added that he would not be desperate in his bid to become the governor of the state by carrying lethal weapons to haunt his political opponents in the name of politics.
Bamidele, asked his people “Were you not the one that called me to come and contest?
His supporters answered, “We were the one”, and he appealed to his teeming supporters to be civil in their approach in the face of provocation .
He urged Fayemi to stop dropping Tinubu’s names to campaign in the state, saying he should be man enough to carry his own political cross.
“I will always respect my benefactor and Senator Tinubu is my benefactor whom I respect so well, but Ekiti is first on my Agenda. But Tinubu that I know want the best for Ekiti. If I could work for him for eleven and half years to make Lagos State a model, then I know he will want somebody like me to work with the people to make Ekiti a model.
“Nobody can stop me from contesting the governorship election. I cannot fight with Tinubu just like it is not compulsory that we should agree on everything at all times”, Bamidele said.
