by Lekan Olanrewaju

A few days ago, an NGO called for the Osun state governor, Rauf Aregbesola, to take a psychiatric examination. According to the letter, this is due to what they describe as his erratic behaviour which has “put his sanity into question”.

While it is almost certainly an exaggeration to say the governor genuinely needs this examination, we can all agree the straight-shooting governor has quite the penchant for statements that lean towards the controversial every now and then.

Check out his top 5 outburts below:

You want to reap where you did not sow”

The governor caused an uproar at the Afenifere meeting in Lagos, resulting in the Lagos City Hall being in turmoil for over 20 minutes as he launched verbal attacks against the Ondo state governor, Olusegun Mimiko. He declared that the governor had done nothing positive in his state, describing him as someone who wanted to “reap where he did not sow” He also attacked former president Chief Olusegun Obasanjo in a similar manner, saying he did nothing to develop Nigeria. He also practically declared a full on vendetta against the Ondo state governor, by  going on to say that he was committed to his removal from his position.

Sour Grapes

In another attack against a fellow governor, he said the former governor of the state, Segun Oni, who he described as “sour grapes”, lacked knowledge of the history of Yoruba political system, and more or less issued a warning to him to “back off” from the ongoing political situation in the south-west geo-political zone of the country. “We are not surprised by the allegation by Mr Segun Oni, who illegitimately occupied the seat of governorship in Ogun state from 2007 to 2010” he said in a statement. “Oni’s allegation that Governor Rauf Aregbesola is championing a secessionist agenda of the Yoruba is nothing more than sour grapes , having been flushed out of the Government House” “Oni represents a tendency  of retrogression, chaos, confusion and electoral robbery and under-development which our people have roundly and soundly rejected.”

If you are not ACN, you are not Omoluabi.

This outburst also took place at the Afenifere meeting, with the governor declaring that Yoruba integration could not take place in the country unless all states are controlled by ACN and he also said  that anyone not in the ACN was an “amulumala and not an Omoluabi”.

Vice Presidential snub

On the 27^th of October, he snubbed the Vice-president of the country Namadi Sambo at the commissioning of a Federal High Court complex in Osogbo. Much to the shock of dignitaries present, he not only failed to show up, but also sent a statement, clarifying that he was deliberately not acknowledging the vice president. “You will notice that I did not salute the person of the vice president in my opening.” he said. “I only recognised his office.”

He cannot preach here!

And finally, who can forget the controversy that resulted from the governor’s refusal to tolerate a particular Imam who he accused of being a traitor.

“No, he cannot preach here!” he said. “He is a PDP member, he can be abusing symbol now, we won. ACN can’t listen to his preaching, no. He is a traitor.”