A chapter closes in the annals of Ondo State today as Governor Olusegun Mimiko bows out of office. But, a new chapter opens as his successor, Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN), takes the oath of office. Group Political Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU examines the challenges that will confront the new administration.
Akure, the Ondo Stater capital, will be aglow with festivities today as it was eight years ago when Governor Olusegun Mimiko received the mantle of leadership. But, eyes are now on his successor, Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN), who is inheriting the assets, liabilities and the burden of governance for the next four years.
The Owo-born legal luminary is a man of destiny. As he settles down for governance, his attention will not be diverted by protracted litigations, unlike Mimiko, who was in court for 22 months fighting to reclaim his stolen mandate and another six months trying to prove that he really deserved the 2012 second term victory.
The power shift has not heralded the peculiar predecessor-successor crisis. A sort of mutual understanding between Mimiko and Akeredolu has led to a smooth transition. Waving an olive branch, Akeredolu tactically comended his predecessor’s achievements, a far cry from the war of attriction that characterised the partisan campaigns. The reports of the various committees set up by the new governor have trickled in, setting a stage for the implementation of his programmes.
However, governance will not be a tea-party in Ondo State. It is a period of great expectation. Thus, the euphoria of victory would have withered down in the face of the daunting challenges.
Akeredolu’s triumph at the historic poll underscored the audacity of courage. The primary was tough for the former President of Nigerian Bar Association (NBA).Four years ago, he was just a former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice with a limited political experience. The struggle for governorship contrasted sharply with the battle for the NBA presidency. Akeredolu faced many adjustment difficulties. He was derided as an inexperienced, brilliant lawyer, who lacked the skill of political mobilisation and manouvering. His foes described him as a stranger; an Ibadan-based lawyer dabbling into politics in a native state where he had not nurtured a formidable structure. Other critics doubted his understanding of the dynamics of Ondo politics, saying that he will meet his waterloo on poll day as a symbol of imposition.
However, having played his hands on the plough, Akeredolu resolved not to look back. He was bold, brave and determined. Although he was rejected by the electorate in the 2012 election as the candidate of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), he returned to the drawing board. For him, the contest, in part, was also a matter of ego. The agony of being characterised as a failed candidate became a motivation. Therefore, he started the race to 2016, shortly after his defeat by Mimiko. Having inherited the most formidable opposition structure, he fortified the political machinery and swung into intense mobilisation.
Besides, Akeredolu learned some instructive lessons from the mistakes of the past. He sealed a pact with the people across the 18 local governments. He set up his structures in the local areas and paid visits to stakeholders regularly. Whenever he visited, he would remind them about the unfinished business. Since charity begins at home, he rallied his Owo kinsmen to support his bid, unlike when the town was divided over his ambition and voters were indifferent to his presence when he arrived at the polling booth to vote in 2012.
After overcoming the hurdles at the controversial primary, he intensified his campaigns across the three districts. His most formidable opponent at the shadow poll was Dr. Olusegun Abraham, whose aspiration was subverted by impostors claiming to be working for him while actually rooting for another contender, Olusola Oke.
Akeredolu’s loyal foot soldiers were very active on the field. The All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain profited immensely from the protracted litigation, which prevented his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) counterpart and colleague at the bar, Eyitayo Jegede (SAN), from campaigning. With Jegede technically out of the contest, APC foot campaigners invaded Akure, which is often prided as the deciding factor in any election. It was Akeredolu’s advantage that Oke’s far-flung Alliance for Democracy (AD) was also weak, although its candidate appeared formidable on the surface. The Akeredolu Campaign Organisation was almost transformed into a movement. So great was the transformation that a candidate who came a distant third; trailing Oke of the PDP and Mimiko; lifted the crown four years later in a free and fair election.
Akeredolu’s victory has implications for the Southwest progressive bloc. Ondo State has now retraced its steps back to the progressive fold, 14 years after the invasion of the conservative interlopers.
However, as Akeredolu inherits power and the prestige of the exalted office, he also inherits the burden of governance in a highly enlightened and sophisticated state where voters are thirsty for dividends of democracy.
Old politicians in the Southwest are of the opinion that the new helmsman will succeed, if he mirrors one of their mentors, former Governor Adekunle Ajasin, who incidentally hailed from Owo. The eminent politician put the state first in all his actions and dealings. Under his administration, all the sub-divisions-Ekiti, Owo, Akoko, Akure, Ondo, Ikale, Ilaje and Ijaw-were carried along. Appointments also reflected the geographical spread. If the progressive blue-print of the Second Republic-free education, free health, full employment and rural development-is fully implemented by Akeredolu, the state will be catapulted to an horizon of progress.
Noting that public expectation is high about the new government, elder statesman Senator Ayo Fasanmi urged the governor to imbibe the spirit of Awoism.
He said: “I am praying for him to succeed. He did well as the President of the Nigerian Bar Association. There are many challenges that will confront him. God will help him to meet the challenges. He should emulate the Second Republic governors of the Southwest who toed the path of Awoism. He should shun corruption. This is his second attempt. Only people who have Awo’s orientation, in terms of honesty, integrity and transparency, can succeed. Whoever must have wronged him during the electioneering process, he should forgive and forget. Nigeria needs leaders who are focused. I think Akeredolu is focused.”
Fasanmi’s counsel is important, in view of the acrimony that characterised the selection process. From today, the APC becomes the ruling party in Ondo State and the governor the party leader. The party emerged from the controversial primary as a polarised platform. The question is: can the new arrowhead unite the party?
The key to unity, according to observers, is the promotion of politics of inclusiveness, instead of seclusion and sectionalism. Although the buck stops at the table of the governor, governance is a collective effort involving the active participation of stakeholders. A party elder, Senator Olorunnimbe Farunkanmi, said the first assignment is the setting up of a cabinet of talents, stressing that Akeredolu needed a formidable team of commissioners, special advisers and aides. “I see the incoming governor as an experienced indigene, who is familiar with the socio-economic and political problems confronting the state. He should be able to put together an experienced team that will assist him to find solutions to the numerous problems. No matter how hardworking any governor could be, finding an experienced team to work with him is very important to meet the expectation of the people,” he added.
Following his victory at the poll, Akeredolu’s Owo country home has become a ‘Mecca’of sorts. Party men and women seeking for patronage and appointments, big contractor and party leaders have been storming the residence, although the governor has maintained that he did not promise anybody any position. But, the composition of his various transition committees may be a pointer to the composition of his cabinet. The Transition Committee headed by Funso Kupolokun, the former Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), the Inauguration Committee headed by Chief Jamiu Ekungba, a chartered accountant and banker, the Strategic Policy and Implementation Committee, the Information and Media Committee, the Agricultural and Natural Resources Committee and the Education, Science and Technology Committee, are made up of reputable technocrats.
However, a politician, Erelu Modupe Akindele Martins, advised the governor to be gender sensitive. Akindele, the former deputy governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), alled for the implementation of the 35 per cent mandatory right for women in the sharing of political appointments.
Apart from the men of the old order, Akeredolu has examples of model administrations around him to emulate. His proposed cabinet of talent should be a blend of technocrats in politics and credible politicians bubbling with the progressive vision. His cabinet should not be weak in personality, patriotism and fidelity. This was the secret of success in Lagos under former Governors Bola Tinubu and Babatunde Fashola (SAN) which their successor, Akinwunmi Ambode, is building on. In addition, his government should be a government of transparency and accountability, which should mirror the anti-corruption posture of President Muhammadu Buhari. This is in the interest of the state.
The eminent lawyer is assuming the reins at a difficult time. As the government is under intense pressure to perform, it may be handicapped by dwindling revenue. Putting this into perspective, Farunkanmi noted that governance at any level at the moment will be affected by the economic recession, adding that Akeredolu’s predecessor has left me problems for him to tackle. “The governor and his team will have to work hard to find other sources of revenue to run the state,” he added.
Farunkanmi, a pioneer member of the old Ondo State House of Assembly, said the governor will have to contend with the dwindling federal allocation, which has become worse, following the drop in the price of crude oil in the global market. “The governor should work very hard with the advice and assistance of his team. He should package an economic plan that will assist in generating revenue for the state. Every state cannot rely on the allocation from Abuja any longer as the price of crude oil has fallen drastically. The problem started from the non-diversification of the economy into agriculture,” he stressed.
Kupolokun shared the same view with the Second Republic senator. During the inauguration of his committee, he alluded to the futility of relying on the monthly federal allocation, warning that it could be counter-productive. “The era of total reliance on monthly federal allocation has gone. Hence, the need for the state to develop means of generating funds to cater for the needs of the people. It is therefore, important for the incoming administration to look inward for ways of generating money to run the affairs of the state,” he added.
Also, labour dispute may be imminent, unless the six month’s salary arrears are paid to aggrieved civil servants. A critic, Mojeed Jamiu, who highlighted the challenges of governance in Ondo State, lamented that, since government is a continuum, the workers will now intensify their agitation for improved welfare under the new administration. Chiding the Mimiko administration for its failure, he said no effort was made by the administration to pay the arrears after the election.
According to observers, Akeredolu cannot afford to fail the people. In their view, it will be difficult to escape the electoral wrath of Ondo voters, if the promises made to them before the election are not kept. In fact, the position of the aggrieved civil servants, teachers and local government employees on the way forward played a significant role in the achievement of power shift by the APC.
Currently, the internally generated revenue is low. If any tax or rate is to be imposed, it should have a human face, especially in this period of economic stagnancy when the standard of living has fallen. Many income earners, petty traders and transporters have complained that the out-going administration was hard on them in its bid to generate revenue.
Although Ondo is an oil-producing state, the impact has not been felt significantly in the last 10 years. Youth unemployment remains a time-bomb and a trigger for insecurity. The industries that gave the state prominence are moribund. There is no evidence to show that Ondo is attractive to investors. Many critical sectors lay prostrate. Although some achievements were recorded by the out-going administration, many felt that much more could have been accomplished. Although the state has some hospitals, they lacked doctors and nurses. “We need more health and para-medical workers in Akoko,” said Chief Owolabi Abanikanda from Oke-Agbe, Akoko.
Many youths voted for the APC. During the campaigns, Akeredolu wiped sentiments, lamenting the growing youth unemployment, which he also described as a national challenge. Ondo State has a large number of jobless graduates, who cannot be accommodated in the civil service and government parastatals. His promise of employment gave them hope. In four years’ time, a searchlight will be beamed on the administration to see if there will be a gap between expectation and reality.
Farunkanmi said one of the ways to end unemployment is to encourage productive activities through industrialisation. Some industries across the state are moribund. Gone were the days when the Oluwa Glass, Igbokoda, Oil Palm Company, Okitipupa, and Ceramics at Ifon were sources of pride to the state. Also, the new governor should be able to attract investors to the state. This can be done through the provision of an enabling atmosphere for the investment to thrive. “Transformation starts with attending to the ailing industries. The governor should embark on investment drive. That means the environment should be favourable. Therefore, Akeredolu should provide essential infrastructural facilities and amenities,” he added.
In Nigeria, the bane of development is the incidence of abandoned projects. Successive administrations have often distanced themselves from laudable projects of their predecessors. Many expect Akeredolu to maintain a clean break from the past by completing the projects initiated by the Mimiko administration. Many roads across the three districts are bad. The people expect Akeredolu to convert the state into a huge construction site as reward for conferring the mandate on him. The sitting of the projects should also reflect merit, geographical representation and the collective interest of the state. Although Owo, his home town, is one of the strongholds of the APC-and the ancient town overwhelmingly voted for him, Akeredolu should not be perceived as the governor of Owo, but the governor of Ondo State.
The first step in fighting infrastructure battle may be a positive response to the agitation of the beneficiaries of the on-going projects, who are urging the new governor to complete them. For example, Abanikanda urged the governor to complete the Oke-Alabojuto-Ikare-Oyin-Oke-Agbe road flagged off by Mimiko and revisit the Awara Water Project, Ikare Akoko to resolve the water crisis in Akokoland. . A monarch, Oba Olusegun, Atibioke, described government as a continuum. Apart from completing the projects, he also urged Akeredolu to provide welfare package for workers and traditional rulers. Also, he advised him to sustain the religious harmony in the state.
What is worrisome to a commentator, Olujimi Adekanle, is the plight of workers who suffer due to the non-payment of salaries. The governor, should make regular payment of salaries and pensions to retirees a reality. In addition, he called for a holistic staff audit of the civil service to prevent ghost workers.
Some stakeholders want the governor to reposition the Wealth Creation Agency and investigate the allegations of fraud leveled against it. The people of the South Senatorial District want Akeredolu to restore electricity to the area, although it is within the purview of the Federal Government. Some people have called for the reorganization of the Ondo State Broadcasting Corporation. To boost the revenue base, there have been calls for the privatization of the Dome. There is the need to elicit the cooperation of the civil servants to prevent them from offering misleading advice to the governor at the initial stage.
An APC chieftain, Adebowale Akinlosotu, advised Akeredolu to promote agriculture in the new spirit of economic diversification. “It will create jobs and boost revenue,” he said.
The Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) has been agitating for council autonomy nationwide. Some critics have urged the state government to hand off control of the local government. Others have objected, saying that councils are creations of the House of Assembly. An indigene, Alhaji Ibrahim Kilani, said autonomy for council is imperative to foster better service delivery. However, it I expected that, with Akeredolu in the saddle, periodic local government election may be guaranteed.
Ondo State is critical to the collective development of the Southwest in some respects. As an APC governor, Akeredolu has a role to play in the Southwest integration agenda. Although the states of the federation cannot collapse into regions, but in the spirit of federalism and pseudo-regional autonomy, the states in each region can collaborate economically and socially in areas where they have comparative advantage. This is challenging. There should be a sort of inevitable reconciliation between Akeredolu and one or two governors, who had slight political differences with him during the electioneering.
The onus is also on party leadership to reconcile Akeredolu with top party leaders who had cause to disagree with him during the selection process preceding the governorship poll. At the state and regional level, the new governor should also initiate reconciliation with aggrieved members of the political family, who protested the outcome of the shadow election that produced him as flag bearer. A government of vendetta is incompatible with the legitimate aspirations and expectations of Ondo people in post-election period.
Akeredolu’s priority is good governance. Following his victory at the poll, he plunged into a sober reflection. Thanking the people for giving him the mandate, he said: “I will preside over a government that will serve the people.” However, he has an easy task before him.
The governor will work with a House of Assembly that has a PDP majority. His list of commissioner-nominees will be submitted to the opposition parliament. Akeredolu will have to learn the skill of tact and lobbying critical to a cordial legislative/executive relations.
Also, in post-election period, the APC will also be warming up for ward and state congresses. In 2018/19, the ruling party will hold parliamentary primaries. Between now and then, the governor should live up to expectation. Akeredolu’s performance in office will either attract voters or sway the votes from the APC during the polls.
The late Dr. Kingsley Mbadiwe, former Minister of Trade, once pointed out that, in Nigeria, politicians often gravitate towards winning parties.
Many will defect to the APC from the PDP. The defection may not be motivated by principle, but by the desire not to be left in cold. This may make the challenge of harmonisation inevitable in the APC. The governor as the leader is expected to ensure equity, fairness, balance and justice.
Akeredolu is not a new comer. Over two decades ago, he was a commissioner in the state under the military regime. But, the problem of Ondo State may now defy the 1992/93 solution. His party has progressive programmes. The governor is also conversant with the plight of his people. If he can implement his manifestos, which elicited the collective goodwill and solidarity towards his party, all will be well.
It is incumbent on Akeredolu to back his words with actions. On his plan to develop agriculture, he said: “I have promised to create jobs and we will do this through the development of agriculture.” Also, while reiterating his plan to halt the suffering of workers, he said: “Civil servants have not been paid for months. We will revive the civil service and change the orientation of the civil servants to work.”
On education, Akeredolu said: “We intend to promote functional education. Students should also learn trades while in school. We will provide a conducive atmosphere for learning in schools. We have to rebuild the schools and encourage teachers to work.”
Akeredolu acknowledged the health care initiative of the Mimiko administration. He promised to reinvigorate the scheme to make health care accessible and affordable. “There are mother and child hospitals. It is a good idea. But, the health centres must be accessible and affordable. It should be moved to the doorsteps of the people. We need more health centres from where referrals can be made to the general Hospitals. We need more doctors and nurses,” he stressed.
Akeredolu also reiterated his commitment to the proposed school feeding programme, saying that the project will be faithfully implemented. He also said the state will benefit maximally from its alignment with the mainstream politics in this dispensation. “There will be a synergy between the Federal Government and Ondo State because it is the same party,” he added.
In four years’ time, his administration will be assessed, based on how far he has been able to fulfill these promises.
