Former Oyo State Governor, Otunba Christopher Alao-Akala is now the new bride of the two major political parties in Oyo State; the ruling APC and the PDP. Akala had in December 2015 subtly joined the APC after he contested the governorship election on the platform of Labour Party (folowing his exit from the PDP). Although, since his announced defection to the APC, he has not been a prominent figure in the party.
As the build up to the 2019 election gathers momentum, he has suddenly become a ‘prized’ assets to the APC andhis former family the PDP. Few weeks back, when the PDP caretaker committee was in Ibadan to reconcile all feuding and departed members of the party, he was one of the key individuals visited by the team, which didn’t hide its aim to bring him back to the PDP. While other key figures (who had earlier dumped the party), including Senator Rashidi Ladoja and Engineer Seyi Makinde swifly announced their return to the party, Akala left them all hanging. And few days after that, pictures of his meeting with Governor Ajimobi in London went viral, raising another development. It amazed a lot of political watchers to see Akala seemingly reuniting with Ajimobi, as there seemed to be no love lost between the two of them.
Now, the gist is that both the APC and PDP are romancing Akala, who is seen as a major factor in determining who becomes the next Oyo Governor. Some sources once said Akala himself is still interested in running for Governorship in 2019, but his chances of picking the ticket of either of the 2 parties are slim.
We however gathered that part of the overtures being made to the former Governor is the Oyo North Senatorial ticket. Akala is a very strong force in the area (where his base, Ogbomosho falls) and any gubernatorial candidate he throws his weight behind stands a strong chance in the 2019 election.
So, at the moment, while the APC is doing everything to keep Akala in their midst, the PDP is throwing everything it has to get him back into their fold.
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