WHY did you defect from LP to ACN after losing out at the senatorial primaries in LP?
I was kicked out of the Labour Party. It was like I was kicked out of the party like a ball. It has nothing to do with falling out with the governor. Ten hours before a particular event, I thought I was a strong member and part and parcel of the LP and everything was going on well. But suddenly it just unfolded and I was asked to step down, and I discovered I was alone. It was that suddenness that led to the phrase ‘kicked out.’ It was five days to the primary, 50 days to the screening of candidates and 10 days to the deadline of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to submit nomination forms. Contrary to what many people say, I did not lose the primary.
How will the ACN candidate emerge out of 20 aspirants?
That is not my immediate concern because I believe that the party has the structure to manage the crowd of aspirants. But it is sufficient to say that, at the moment, ACN is the only party that is 50 years old because it has continuously evolved from the Action Group (AG) to the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Alliance for Democracy (AD), and Action Congress and ACN. It has evolved successful ways of selecting or picking candidates. So, I believe that wisdom and justice will prevail and we will pick or select the right person. The reason we have many people coming out to contest is because the wind of change is already blowing in the state and it is not a strange thing to us. The wind that blew the last time is blowing again and now it is the turn of ACN. It is obvious that ACN will win and that is why we see several people coming out to seek the party’s ticket.
What is your chance at the selection process?
Well, personally, I will say my relationship with the people of Ondo is an added advantage. I have made a lot of effort so far in building the ACN in the state and I have the belief that I command respect in the party and among the people. I have a record of long interaction with the progressives and this will be put into consideration. I have spent the last 10 months building the ACN structure in Ondo and it was not only aimed at winning over party members, but also the voting masses. How can violence be averted in Ondo State during the election? Violence begets violence. When there is absence of justice, there will be violence. When change cannot be allowed to take place peacefully, it will beget violence. Nobody has monopoly of violence. So, let people remain calm and peaceful so that they will not provoke violence. On the issue of ego between ACN and LP, it was the same scenario when Governor Olusegun Mimiko wanted to unseat Olusegun Agagu. The issue then was that 18 councils, the Federal Government and probably the military backed Agagu. A similar scenario is unfolding now. Mimiko is pulling all the resources available to any incumbent and the governorship aspirants are having all the support that can be mustered by all ACN people, not only in Ondo, but also across the entire Southwest and beyond. The power of incumbency has never been enough to protect past governors in Ondo.
What is your assessment of the LP government?
Before discussing the issue of performance, I recently went to Irele Council where the people were greeting one another and saying “one governor, one term.” When people of Ondo have made up their mind on one governor, one term, what else do you expect? This is a philosophy that has evolved in Ondo and that can be regarded as one of the basic determinants of election in the state. No past governor ever had more than one term. In terms of performance, the LP performance index is poor. What the government has concentrated on is what they call high mark projects rather than land mark projects. We have a bunch of markets being built and some of them in areas where people cannot use for trading. It does not even matter whether they are in good areas or not, building of markets is just the responsibility of the councils. The government cannot continue to deceive Nigerians with propaganda. Remove the entire road network Agagu constructed, it will be amazing that the LP government has not done much in area of infrastructure. What is the income accruable to the state compared to what the government is doing or has done? They are miles apart and that is why we say his performance is low. More of the things, which we have been doing in the state under Mimiko, are what could be described as wealth cancellation and not wealth creation. There is no sustainable development. If we are to compare what is happening under the present administration with what happened under the late Ajasin, we will be amazed. In those days, the administration of Ajasin, despite the paltry amount that came in, was able to create industries and basic infrastructure for the development of the state. If critical steps are not taken to address the way LP administration is running Ondo, it is going to cause serious problem. This is why many aspirants are coming out. We talk about Mother and Child Hospital, but we do not know who owns it. What is the purpose of having one Mother and Child Hospital when you could have built several Public Health Centres across the state? We just hope that behind all the mega projects, there is no mega fraud.
How will the candidate of ACN emerge?
I consider myself close to the ACN governors. I have met them talking either casually or formally at occasions and they have never given any impression that they are under any pressure from Tinubu. The impression I got from them is that they are not able to repay the man for the things he has done for them. The place of Tinubu to the ACN governors is like that of a father to his sons. No son can pay back what his parents invested on him. It is not about issue of pressure but the integrated development strategy for the South West region this is what Tinubu is devoted to. Any reasonable person in the zone would support and embrace the idea. It is going to bring collective development and improvement to the zone with a positive effect on the entire nation and even beyond. It is also going to reduce over-dependence on the proceeds from oil. It is a good idea and no state can afford to be exempted in the arrangement.I have also heard that Tinubu is likely to impose somebody in Ondo, but the question is where did such a thing happen before?
SOURCE: The Nation Newspaper April 18, 2012.
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