I Have No Plan To Run For Senate Yet – Aregbesola

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Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, has cleared the air over reports making the rounds about his senatorial ambition in Lagos State.

The governor told a gathering in Osogbo, the state capital that he has not made any decision yet, to run for political office after the expiration of his tenure in November 2018.

He however, noted that he won’t need to take permission from anybody when the time to decide comes, saying if Nigeria was sincere about regional integration, the question of where any politician chooses to contest for election would not raise any issue.

“If I want to contest, I can contest anywhere. If we are genuine and sincere about regional rearrangement, then why are we concerned about where a man comes from? Rauf can appear when the time comes anywhere in the region.

“But let me tell you that there is no such decision yet. When I leave office, we will still have clear six months to election. In other words, we still have time to decide,” Aregbesola said.

He also debunked claims that the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State is in disarray over who succeeds him in 2018, saying the party is strong and firmly rooted in the grassroots across the state.

Cohesive Political Structure

The governor denied the insinuation of disagreement among party members, stating that there was no form of disaffection among members and loyalists of the party.

“We are united, connected and we are working so well. There is no part of our party’s organisation, administration and management that has suffered in any way. Our party is not in any way being threatened.

“If a party in power for six years is working so well and the opposition is scattered, dismembered and uncoordinated as our opponent is now, where is the fear of threat to our party?

“If there is an incumbent government as peacefully co-existing as we are, then we can brag of such a party. There is no threat from anybody, we have a very cohesive political structure in Osun,” he noted.

Governor Aregbesola further assured the people of the state on Tuesday that the major key to continuation of the milestone developmental programmes and projects of his administration was for them to identify and vote the right candidate to succeed him in 2018.

He said the APC would ensure that its candidate in the governorship election has in-depth understanding of the administration’s six-point integral action plans.