WHAT is your perception of Ondo State?
The Nigerian story is the Ondo story and the Ondo is the Nigerian story. I come from a state where less than five per cent of students pass WAEC with five credits. This is very sad. Ondo State has experienced some level of development since its creation in 1976.
The state used to be the envy of other states in educational performance at the national level and the production of cocoa was
one of the main sources of revenue during the old Western Region.
It is shocking that, 40 years after creation, we have lagged behind in bringing development to the grass-roots. Thus, in comparing the past with the present and the future prospects of the state, it is evident from available statistics that there are still more grounds to cover in bringing the dividends of democracy closer to the people and pushing the frontiers of development of the state to an enviable position among the comity of states.
Before now, a lot of those also vying for the number one spot in Ondo had long indicated their interest, why are you coming out this late?
I don’t know how to spell the word “late,” but I know how to spell the word “appropriate.” There is a local proverb that, “The masquerade that dances first, will watch others dance for the longest time.” Leadership for me is not a race for perpetuity; you are provided a place to perform for a period of time, and then you leave for others.
I am not driven by ambition, but I have a vision that is meant for an appointed time, which is now. We are not looking for jobs, none of those working with me is a paid staff; they all volunteered themselves for a cause they believe in. In every race, there is always a David, and there’s nothing that comes after a David.
We started about three-four months ago, but if you check where we are now, then you will ask yourself, “how is it possible for somebody that started three to four months ago to be a top runner for an election where people have been expending all their resources?” When you have somebody who is agile, young and who has exposure, and you have others unlike him in the party and they are also contesting, quality will find its way to the surface.
We’ve been well received everywhere we have been. They see us as a fresh team; we have never lied to them; we have never lost an election in the state; we have no baggage; we are credible, and we come with fresh ideas. Freshness is appealing, as against those who are already at the winter of their lives.
How do think you can win the APC delegates over?
If the race was skewed in somebody’s favour, then you have a problem. But what we have seen so far is that it is a level playing field. Currently, we have over 40 aspirants, vibrant men who are working to be governor. When you have the richness of candidates like that, the only way is to allow them go into the field. The delegates that you are referring to are humans who are approachable, and we like others are approaching them. They are not commodities to be bought, but they are people whose conscience can be appealed to.
We don’t have any financial resources to acquire delegates; everybody is showcasing what they have to offer. We have seen it in this country and elsewhere where people with the most resources end up with the least delegates. At the end of the day, it is not about delegates, but about the state, the country, and the future of the next generation.
But if you look at the average age of the contestants, if it were to be the private sector, they need not apply. In the South-West, it is still a rarity that only people of a certain ilk and demography have been applying to lead, because if you are going for a marathon you need agility, strength, modern ideas, because it is ideas that rule the world now. You can see that in Lagos, in fact nobody that has governed Lagos in the past 10 years were people of my age; they were young when they became governor. At my age, I clocked 52 some days ago, Obafemi Awolowo had become Prime Minister and left.
If you eventually emerge the governor, how would you tackle salary problem?
To me to owe salaries is criminal, and it shows lack of planning. The problem is that we have the culture of going to Abuja every month to collect money. Have you seen in any of those states where salaries are owed, that State House workers are yet to collect their salaries? The first line of deduction is usually with the State House, whereas teachers, doctors, nurses, civil servants outside that structure will be the ones carrying placards, while the ones with fat pays get paid on time.
This has to do with the inability for our leaders to set their priorities right. In Ondo, there’s crude oil on the coastline (at least about 10 per cent of the nation’s crude oil comes from Ondo). Then there is bitumen, sharp sand, timber, cocoa, oil palm, granite, laterite, cashew, among others, and yet you have a situation where they cannot pay salaries. God has given Ondo State all it needs to succeed.
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