The Accord candidate for Oriade/Obokun Federal Constituency, Pelumi Olajengbesi, has called on leaders and elites of Ijesa North, at home and abroad, to rise and stop what he described as a plot to extend the tenure of the incumbent, Hon. Wole Oke, to 28 years.

In the third volume of his epistle titled _”Ijesa North, Rise Now — Vol. 3,”Olajengbesi said, Oke believes no one in Ijesa North can challenge him because of his wealth, adding that the people must prove him wrong.

He lamented that politics in Ijesa North had placed money above merit, character, and sincerity of purpose.

Olajengbesi recalled that in August 2016, when he was 30 and expressed interest in running for the House of Representatives, one of Oke’s lieutenants, Hon. Niyi Ajifowobaje told him he must be ready to “throw N500 million into a river” and spend up to N1 billion before he could be taken seriously as a contender in Oriade and Obokun

He said a 16-page report prepared for him on July 11, 2017, by young political strategists concluded that money was the only thing Oke was bringing to the table — “no ideas, no innovation, no inspiration, no storytelling, nothing to inspire the younger people.”

Olajengbesi also alleged that Oke boasted to him of buying return tickets for diaspora challengers and settling local challengers financially, claiming nobody in Oriade or Obokun could spend even 20 per cent of what he spends on elections.

He urged people of character who had kept away from politics to step forward, insisting that a young person from Oriade or Obokun should not need a billion naira before being heard.

“I defeated the poverty of the mind a long time ago. I refuse to believe that a young man or woman from Oriade or Obokun must first find a billion naira before anyone will listen to what they have to offer,” he said.

He added: “On election day, let the self-styled landlord find out who truly owns the mandate. Let’s make his money useless so that we can all say again, ‘Owo ti wo igbo.'”