When the media was awash with the news of the political alliance that turned former gubernatorial candidate and House of Representatives member, Adekunle Akinlade, to Ladi Adebutu’s deputy governor candidate, not a few observers wondered what could have precipitated such a union that demoted Akinlade came second in 2019 governorship election ahead of Adebutu of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Besides the insinuation that money must have changed hands between the two characters, a secret agreement signed by both Adebutu and Akinlade showing that the alliance was more about sharing the resources of Ogun State rather than for the good of the state has been uncovered.
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According to the document duly signed by both contestants in June 2022, Adebutu agreed to concede the following elective positions to the Allied People Movement (APM) group: The Deputy Governorship Slot, Ogun West Senatorial Ticket, Two State House of Assembly Tickets (Ogun Central).
The document further reads that upon emergence as the winner of the Ogun State Gubernatorial Election in 2023, Adebutu and the PDP would concede the following positions to Hon. Adekunle Abdulkabir Akinlade and his APC/APM Group: Seven (7) Substantive Commissioner Slots, Fifteen (15) Special Adviser Slots, Twenty (20) Senior Special Assistant Slots, Twenty (20) Special Assistant Slot, Five (5) Statutory Board Chairman Slots, Five (5) Local Government Executive Chairman Slots.
Unsatisfied with that, the agreement also cedes to Akinlade, besides his constitutional role as the Deputy Governor, the post of “Honorable Commissioner for Trade and Investment in a ministry that shall be created to drive new investments, improved revenue growth, and development of the state, provided that the Deputy Governor shall report directly to the Executive Governor in accordance with extant laws in relation to his official duties and functions of his office as Deputy Governor and Honourable Commissioner for Trade and Investment.”
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