The Chieftain of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and strong man of Ibadan Politics, Alhaji Abdulrasheed Adebisi Olopoeyan has revealed how his started his political journey and the alleged fracas in Southwest PDP.
Olopoeyan who was interviewed by Sekinat Adegoke in a video, discussed how he started politics and the fracas going on in the party.
He said, “I started my journey as a politician in house of Baba Adedibu at Molete, I met baba Adedibu in year 2000, when I was in Ibadan before going to Lagos through a brother fondly called The great Layi and way I saw Baba doing his politics, I felt so much in love with politics because”, he added.
“Adedibu accommodated everyone, whatever he tried to do, he took advice from anybody around him, people far away from him only misconstrued him and thought he was a difficult man. Because he was a fearless man, people tend to think something different about him. His politics is the simplest of all and I enjoyed most”.
“As tough as people said his politics was, check out the number of great people that came into power because of him, governors, senators and so on came out because of him”.
When asked about his early job before venturing into politics, Olopoeyan said he learnt printing design as his early stage job. “I worked with Oodua, Adeniran Ogunsanya, Onward Paper and Iran embassy. I left Iran embassy to join business gurus and the business I did then was as an importer. And still do that till now, when I travel out, I buy cars to sell in Nigeria”.
“What I put into my politics is what I learnt from Baba Adedibu and that is reaching out to the people in need and to be supportive to those who need support whole heartlessly and without compromising”.
“I started my politics as PDP member and never for once defected to any other party. As matter of fact, my first membership card was collected in Lagos before moving down to Ibadan”.
“And to the glory of God, Gov Seyi Makinde is one of those we both have success together”.
When asked by the anchor why he decides to shoulder responsibility of cooking for people at his residence, he answered, ” that gesture of being generous is what I learnt from Baba Adedibu when he was alive, I believe in putting smile on people’s face once there is capacity to do so”.
“We await the date for congress and nobody in the south west can tell the date, the date is being decided from Abuja and when is time, anyone that has interest starts showing it and whosoever emerges a winner is embraced”.
“Nobody can say to the other that he is an enemy of the government because that was not said before the government emerged. Nobody is an enemy, we all contributed to come into power and power is transient. Government has it all, so nobody can become an enemy of it and if there is an enemy, the government must have made the enemy for itself”.
“The enemy of the government is one who speak” ill of the government, who is causing mayhem in the societies”.
Gov Seyi Makinde is my friend, there is no dispute between us, Adebisi says when asked if there is a disagreement between him and the present governor. I’m not in any position in his government and that does not bother me because no one can fight the government. The government has everything but it’s for a while.
“For the meeting the governor had with Gov Wike, I was not among those invited for the meeting and for those invited but didn’t honour the invitation, they have there reasons too. If one calls a meeting intending to settle dispute going on, everyone needs to be in attendance but for that meeting some people were sidelined which made their importance not recognized”.
I’m on Gov Fayose’s side, and Eddie Olafeso is my candidate for the congress he is the one I am campaigning for the chairmanship position.
Any one that wants a leadership position would not call himself a leader, it’s his attitude and character that will make people call him a leader. Leadership position should not be assumed with force. Baba Adedibu never for once called himself a leader, it was people who saw the trait in him that called him a leader”.
“Gov Seyi Makinde does not have a candidate yet, nobody has come to show interest except for Eddie”, Olopoeyan said.
