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By Akintunde Bello Sheriff
Kazeem Akinleye, the Osun State Chief of Staff to Governor Ademola Adeleke as far as I am concerned is a political mystery yet a collosus in politics. I have known this Oga since way back. He supported me aggressively to retain my position as the President of All Ede Students in tertiary institutions across the globe several years ago and inturn gave the necessary condusive environment which saw me installing a successor after my own.
That my successor was the political scion of the late Alhaji Sule Alao, a big opposition figure of political extraction different from ours. Akinleye did not force me to do otherwise because he trusted my judgement and will not do anything to debar the wishes of the majority as a Democrat that he is.
This was a history of some 15 years or so when I was leaving the University. The unbelievable thing was that the candidate that did not enjoy my blessing as a successor was his blood relative, the mother to the UniIlorin Guy being the Chief of Staff’s Elder in the paternal side.
My argument was that Alhaji Alao’s Son had contested twice with me and lost on both occasions before I became National President, and he despite his disappointment did not do anything untoward to truncate my tenure with the modest capacity he had, besides he had trained enough under us to understand how I ran that government and knew where I was stopping this making it easy as he was going to begin where I stopped unlike the greenhorn Comrade who did not know any history of our Union and neither has he rose through the ladder.
Alhaji Akinleye believed me and never exhibited any trait of dangerous favouritism. He appointed me as a Education Board Member earning though paltry sum back then when he was Local Government Chairman in 2008, however, it was not in my wages, it was in the big and first opportunity that my Leader gave to me to serve in Government. I know this Boss I am following. A lot of people confess a Leader they don’t even know, I know my own Leader.
By 2010 after the abrupt end of the PDP era in Osun State through unfavorable court judgement, his own tenure as a Chairman also ended shortly after since a new Sheriff in Aregbesola was in the town. A lot of people in politics believe that the objective of political occupation in power is avarice. I make bold to say that Akinleye’s case is different. He left the Council poorer than he came in.
That was not because he is a spendthrift, but because he uses his whole life and fortunes fending for others around him. He had told us on a fateful day, as we sauntered to his old House at Obalaoye School in Ede, during our days in politcal desert that he did not have up to #200,000 in all his bank accounts on the day that the Appeal Court judgement dislodged the PDP administration in Osun State.
That was a Man who was in office for close to 3 years as Executive Chairman who was elected to administer millions of naira every month in allocation on behalf of the people and Government of Ede North Local Government. He remains the longest serving product of the council political establishments having served as a Supervisory Councillor, and then elected Councillor twice first as Deputy Leader of the House and later as a Leader for all the Councillors in Ede North.
That was the time I knew him from a near distance because he was often coming to my Grandfather’s house in Ede for another mission but he did didn’t take close notice of me until he was contesting for Chairmanship. He was the first elected Chairman under PDP and across boards perhaps to retain certificate of return as a Candidate justling for a second term in office under a highly competitive primaries election held at LA Agbongbe, apparently because the control of PDP at that time was near a sharp division but late Governor Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke CON of blessed memory was still the overall Leader, a leadership particularly consented to 100 percent by our own faction of disciples loyal to Akinleye.
Akinleye swimmed in money, but will not touch it other than to use it to prosecute assignments that may be assigned to him by the De-Guv. I recall how a Leader in our Council who is a Prince and in the party’s hierarchy under late Razaq Landero state’s leadership told me he plotted a secret coup like agenda of replacing the furnitures at the old house of Kolapo Kazeem Akinleye, that was the Man who was caring for peoples’ health needs, fending for the welfare of both young and old, providing succour for the poor from his personal pocket, yet he did not care of what became the ornaments under his roof.
That Leader said after he brought the furnitures unannounced, the Chief of Staff doubled the payment to him despite that he had even put him on his payroll all along on monthly basis. His new house had been ready for a move in or commissioning but Oga was not just ready to leave the old house, apparently because of his simple nature. It was his wife, the pretty band amiable Alhaja Akinleye that first moved to the new house, trust women before the Husband later joined the family. Oga Kazeem Akinleye is a true reflection of spartan way of living.
Born without a silver spoon, he struggled through life to attain greatness. He had been to the Madrasat and bagged the requisite certification capable of answering to the call of a Shiekh but Akinleye will not ooze out pride as a result of his Arabic mastery. The Chief Imam of Offa, the popular cleric of substantial aura in Southwest, Nigeria Alhaji Fadeelat Shiek Al-Imam Salman Hussein was his class mate at the Arabic school in Ilorin. Alhaji Kazeem Akinleye was at Esa Oke in his academic sojourning to bag a certificate from the polytechnic and quest for higher value pushed him to go to the University of Ibadan where he bagged a degree in flying colours.
Talking about his principle of loyalty to the Adeleke Dynasty will be to open a page that can not be ended through any written piece. The world will recall how he nearly surrendered his life without thinking twice when late Governor Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke CON faced a threat to his life in 2014 during a political faceoff at the then popular Ideal Nest Hotel. No wonder why His Excellency Governor Ademola Jackson Nurudeen Adeleke of Osun State had to single this Chief of Staff out first during the Mr Governor’s birthday occasion earlier in the year and His Excellency could not hide his love and appreciation bas he drew Akinleye closer and kissed his cheek openly. That was a reward too important than no currency can buy, the reward of immense loyalty.
A lot of people have attested to the stability roles the Chief of Staff has been playing under the administration of Governor Ademola Adeleke. As I pondered this afternoon, it struck my mind to evaluate and appreciate this great Captain bof ours as a means of our open appreciation for everything he is doing for the humanity even though it is not his birthday today. May Akinleye live long on earth in good health. Thank you for being a great and positive Boss to us Oga.
Akintunde Bello Sheriff ABS, SA to the Osun State Governor on Media Monitoring.
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