How optimistic are you that the PDP will upstage APC in South West, a stronghold of the opposition party?
South West is not PDP zone at all. We have to take that out of our psyche. APC came to south west through the back door. They came into power through Justice Salami’s misjudgment which we contested in the court of law and tribunal.
And Salami paid dearly for it. So we are going to election to know who owns papa’s land. And I want to assure you that PDP will win South West hands down come 2014, June and August alike.
Would you align with agitations for the emergence of a consensus candidate?
Consensus building is part of politics, but where one person dissents to that voice then there is no consensus. The electoral act is very clear on the issue of primaries, that is a candidate must emerge through a process of electioneering and a process of collegiate system.
So consensus candidate is not a bad idea after all but the moment
a dissenting voice comes on then there is no consensus. And PDP we know is second to none when it comes to internal democracy in this country. So we are known for that we are used to it and we are proud of it.
So we are going for electioneering primaries and delegate congress on April 5 and by the grace of God I will emerge the candidate of the party.
Few months ago the state chapter came up with an idea that whoever wants to buy forms should be streamlined properly but in the last 42 hours more aspirants have come to pick forms flaunting the stipulations by the state party, how do you react to this?
The issue of obeying party structure, instructions and guidelines are issue of choice, discipline and obedience. Whoever comes out after the party’s instruction, well that is their own violation but you cannot force people to obey the party. It bothers on discipline, integrity and obedience.
What is your competitive edge? Also, in a post primaries scenario what will you do differently from the serving governor?
I am a party man and I have the main party financiers and backers in the state. And my people in my state are knowledgeable and sensible to know their friends in times of need and in times of want and in times of position seeking.
My capability will speak for me in the time of primaries which will see me pick the ticket of the party. The issue of APC versus PDP is of course a foregone issue.
That is a man that came through the court; he forged police documents, so he is being charged for forgery in a court in Abuja here.
By now, we are ready because of so many things that are going wrong in our state, infrastructural development, debt portfolio, public misuse of governance, lack of transparency in deeds and in thoughts, bastardizing our youths through merging of schools and the same uniform ideas and all sort of Lagos ideas being brought to Osun state.
The debt profile in Osun state has now risen to 413bn with nothing to show for it. The government has in the last two and half years has used some time to do ground breaking and no single project has been completed in that period and we owe so much money and so much money is going under the drain.
He has not paid salary of workers in the last three months, he has not paid pensioners in the last four months, and some days ago there was riot on the streets of Osogbo. The workers are causing crisis, the pensioners are causing crisis. Osun state is prostrate now.
How will you handle the controversy generated by the incumbent governor over the classification of schools?
On the issue of classification, it is so sad and my heart bleeds each time I hear this question because no Osun state pupil can go to school in Oyo. They can’t go to school in Ondo, Kwara or Ekiti because the schools in Osun have been bastardized and have been changed completely.
Uniform which is supposed to be an issue of identity and pride for students has been canceled for financial reasons, for plurality of gains and illegal, penchant wealth accumulation.
So now, religion has been introduced to Osun state. The state has been known to be peaceful. We are a multi-religious state. Every family in Osun state has both Christians and Muslims.
Our last governor and deputy were both Christians. So Osun has no business of religion. So it is lack of intellectual capacity, physical capacity on the part of the governor that has led to the situation in the state now.
In my manifesto my first point is the restoration of dignity of education. We need to return education to his usual place. In the Opon Imo he spent 8.4bn. He promised 150,000 tablets but as we speak today there are less than 1900 in the schools.
There are about 70 subjects in Opon Imo, with 84.7 percent errors. In Opon Imo, in mathematics, there are no graphs, algebra, no photograph etc; in science, particularly in Biology no skeletal drawing at all. In chemistry, no test tube, no cylinder.
He just dumped the project at our backyard and stole the money through his son. So we are in crisis in Osun state. So my program for the state is development and prosperity that will leave no body behind in the state.
I am going to carry everybody so much in the state. I have served as deputy governor in the state 15 years ago, I was senator in the last eight years. I have worked so much for my state.
So I want to assure my people in Osun state that this era is coming to an end in four months time and we will all rejoice in four months time.
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