OSUN 2014: Falae urges electorate to vote for Akinwusi

The national chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Chief Olu Falae, on Wednesday, implored eligible voters in Osun to vote massively for his party’s candidate in the August 9 governorship poll, Olusegun Akinwusi, saying such electoral choice would create leeway for integrity and transparency in governance. Falae, who made the appeal in a message to members of the SDP in the state, said that Akinwusi possess required experience and wealth of knowledge on how to bring about responsive and people-oriented government, which would address social and economic challenges, confronting the citizenry. The former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), affirmed that “our candidate is a distinguished retired public officer. He is a complete gentleman and I am certain that he is the perfect person Osun State needs at this time. So, I strongly called on Osun people to massively vote for him”. Falae continued, “he is not just bringing integrity into governance; he has served the state as Head of Service and come out with clean hands. He was an honest public officer, who knows what to do. Osun people will do themselves a great honour to support and vote for him as a technocrat”. While lamenting that the forthcoming governorship poll in the state was being subjected to grave and uncontrolled money politics, the Afenifere chieftain recalled that that “monetisation of politics was not pronounced at all during the 1999 general elections when I stood as a presidential candidate of the coalition of the defunct All Peoples Party (APP) and the Alliance for Democracy (AD)”. According to Falae, “it is regrettable that due to high level of poverty in the land, parties that control funds at state and federal levels buy election all over Nigeria” He, however, commended the SDP members in the state for their steadfastness and by proofing that politics is not only about money or mere pecuniary gains but about good governance and welfare of the people. “Despite what we see in politics today, in SDP we stand for social democracy with zero tolerance for corruption, stealing and bribery”, Falae asserted, just as he bemoaned the high level of corruption in the nation’s polity, stressing that “dishonest individuals without leniency for the masses are at the helms of affairs in Nigeria”. Meanwhile, campaign teams of SDP continued their mobilisation on Wednesday by canvassing for votes in Olaoluwa and Ayedire Local Governments in Osun West and Ila and Boluwaduro Local Governments in Osun Central Senatorial District.