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Tag: defected

  • Ex-deputy governor: why I defected to LP

    Former Ekiti State Deputy Governor, Dr. Sikiru Lawal, has shed light on the circumstances that led to his exit from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

    Addressing reporters in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, Lawal said he has joined the Labour Party (LP) to actualise his ambition of governing the state.

    Lawal unfolded his four-point agenda for the state, which revolves round agriculture, wealth creation, education and health (AWEH), during the press conference.

    He said: “I did not at anytime adopt anybody as candidate; I was invited to the Government House Pavilion for a retreat on the election through a text message.

    “I went to the place with my jotter because as a PhD holder, I move around with my jotter. But on getting there, I was told that somebody has been adopted.

    “So, I walked out, because I believe that as a person, I am qualified to govern Ekiti State.”

    Lawal said his experience as a former local government chairman, director in the civil service and deputy governor has prepared him for the top job.

    He said it was time voters entrusted LP with the governorship position, saying both the PDP and the APC have failed the people.

    He served as deputy governor under former Governor Segun Oni between 2007 and 2010. Oni, ironically, is now a governorship aspirant in the APC.

    Lawal said he does not see his ambition as a do-or-die affair and that his quest for the number one office is not worth the blood of the indigenes.

  • ‘No APC member defected to PDP in Niger’

    ‘No APC member defected to PDP in Niger’

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Niger State has said that none of its members has defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    Its Chairman, Mohammed Imam, said this when reacting to reports that over 1000 members defected to the opposition party in Mashegu local government area.

    According to him,  the PDP is using the report as a political gimmick, adding that it is a political propaganda.

    Imam said: “None of my members have decamped from APC,  instead,  the PDP are the ones de camping enmasse to the APC. I want those who said 1000 people decamped from APC to give us the names of 10 members who decamped in Mashegu.

    “1000 is a very large number. If 1000 people decamped,  we would have felt the impact but here we are calm as if nothing happened. We do not even know about the event. “

    Imam said there is a difference between members and supporters, adding  that those who were were said to have defected cannot be card -carrying members of the party.

    He stressed: “Those people may be supporters who are being mistaken to be members of APC. “

    The APC Chairman said the party has not received any report of defection from any zone.

  • Why Atiku defected from APC, by Ojudu

    Why Atiku defected from APC, by Ojudu

    Presidential Political Adviser Senator Babafemi Ojudu has reflected on former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s defection to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying that he left the ruling party because he could not realise his presidential ambition.

    He chided the Waziri Adamawa for twisting facts and wiping up sentiments against the Buhari administration and the All Progressives Congress (APC) for partisan reasons.

    Ojudu said Atiku’s departure was not surprising to the APC, stressing that it was typical of the former vice president to call it quits with a platform that cannot guarantee his bid for the highest office.

    He recalled that Atiku has always destroyed the parties that hosted him by turning around to pull it down, following his inability to clinch the nomination ticket.

    Ojudu spoke on Channels Television’s Sunrise on the implications Atiku’s defection for himself, the PDP and the APC.

    Describing Atiku as a serial defector, the political adviser said the gale of defections peculiar to the eminent politician underscored his desperation for power.

    He said the Turaki Adamawa lied about his marginalisation in the APC, recalling that he often declined to make any constructive and useful contribution during the meetings of party’s founding fathers.

    Ojudu said: “Atiku’s defection is not surprising . During the meeting of the G-19, the Legacy Group that formed the APC, Atiku was there. We laid our programmes as a government before the party leaders and asked for their contributions. He was the only person who refused to talk. The second time the meeting was called, Atiku did not attend. We knew that he will leave. Each time he wants to leave a house, he demolishes the house.

    However, the presidential adviser said it will be myopic to dismiss Atiku as a politician without weight, judging by his status and antecedents in politics.

    Ojudu also said that Atiku has the right to defect under the constitution to seek refuge in any party, despite his constrains and limitations.

    He stressed: “It will be stupid to dismiss his weight. He is an asset to an extent that he stays there. His goal is to be the president. If he cannot get the ticket, he will leave.”

    Ojudu acknowledged the complaint by kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai on the alleged marginalisation of party elders, which Atiku also cited as reason for leaving the APC, saying that the situation has been corrected.

    He said: “There is no perfect organisation and there is no perfect government. The Kaduna governor expressed hos mkind and he has joined others to put things right. You don’t jump out.”

    Ojudu said Atiku was fed up with the APC the moment he failed to get the presidential ticket atv the primary, adding that he is now playing his last card.

    He added: “Atiku is playing his last card. He is desperate to be president. If President Buhari get a second term, he knows that the presidency will go to another region. The presidency will not go to another region. Before it goes back to the North, it may take years and he would have become old.”

    Ojudu also dismissed Atiku’s allegation that the government has not done much for the youths, clarifying that efforts were being made to create jobs in many ways, including massive investment in agriculture.

    He challenged the former vice president to list his contribution to job creation in his native Adamawa State.

    Ojudu queried: “What were the contributions of Atiku to APC’s efforts to rebuild Nigeria? What has he done as a godfather in Adamawa to solve the problem of unemployment. What agenda for youths did he take to the president that was rejected?”

    The political adviser gave the Buhari administration a pas mark, saying that it is a government of planning and anti-corruption.

    He said: “There is planning and there is no siphoning of public funds.”

     

  • Why I defected from Lagos PDP to APC , by lawmaker

    Why I defected from Lagos PDP to APC , by lawmaker

    Hon. Jude Idimogu, an Igbo, is a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly from Oshodi- Isolo 2 Constituency. In this interview with Oziegbe Okoeki, he explains why he defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    You left the PDP for the APC recently. what is the mood in your constituency after your defection?
    Of course, a lot of my people followed me. Also, there is a process to be followed, when you decamp. We have done the first one on the floor of the Assembly, we need to do the second, whereby people would follow you to the secretariat of the party, when they ask you to come. That is what we call open declaration. The party you are going to would also want to see your supporters. We have not done that because the state Chairman of the party, Hon. Henry Ajomale is not in the country now. All of us would do it at the same time. We don’t know where it would be done yet, maybe it would be at the party secretariat or somewhere else.
    Concerning  my people, some are happy, while some are not happy. it is a mixed bag. I have dIscussed with them, especially the Igbos, because majority of my followers are Igbos; not that Yorubas are not following me all the same. The Igbos are the brains behind the PDP in the state. We need to discuss and rub minds with them to know that change is imperative and that it is for the interest of everybody. We are in Lagos and the dominant party is the APC. I think it is right for us to work with that party. They understand, and most of them have accepted, while some have not. But, it is a daily dialogue.
    Did you face any hostility from the APC members in the area since you joined the party?
    For now, I am not facing any hostility because I have not mingled fully with the party very well in the area because the process has not been completed. I have not been attending their meetings. Of course, the whole world knows that I have defected from the PDP to the APC and I have started paying my dues to the party as it is deducted from source. So, I am a stakeholder in the party already. I can attend their meetings if I want to because I am now a member of the APC. I have to wait for the state chairman of the party to come back. We must complete the process even before I go to ward meetings. Afterall, I am representing everybody in the constituency. Dialogue is important, I want to win more people to the party. It is not everybody that supported the move, you must learn how to play your cards, and learn how to humble yourself when you get there. Relationship is important, may be by the time they relate with you, they would accept you well.
    Two members of your former party in the Assembly that did not defect see those of you that defected as traitors. What do you say to this?
    People are entitled to their opinions. Everybody has the right to decide his own case. You must know that the crisis in my former party is still there. If the crisis was not there, it would not have been easy for us to move the way we did. Also, you have to look at your future. I felt that where would I realise my dreams and future. Lagos State had never been in the same party with the government at the centre until now, so for the first time, the state is having alliance with the central government, I felt this is an opportunity for me. Moreover, ACN and the APC has always been strong in the state. I have looked at it and I have weighed it and considered it and for me to make impact for the people of my constituency, I have to do what I did. I want to see that after four years, I should have done many things for my people. I might not be able to do more, if I were in the opposition, but I feel happy for what I have done. I have followers and many people are with me, they know I am a grassroots person.
    Many people feel that the federal government has not fulfilled its promises. what do you say to this?
    There is no doubt that things are hard and difficult in the country, but you have to look at the indices. We are in a monolithic economy, there were crisis in the Niger Delta region and it affected us. Also, there was fall in the price of oil in the international market. Moreso, it would take time before the government could solve our numerous problems, it could take two, three or even four years. It is a global occurrence; it is not just about Nigeria. The government has recognised that the economy is not doing well and they are doing everything humanly possible to get it back. For example, foreign exchange is getting better through the intervention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). It is not yet Uhuru, but we will get there.
    What advice do you have for the government?
    Nigeria belongs to all of us. Whether I like this government or not, I have to pray that God should help the government in power to do well. Whatever happens would affect all of us. To do this would take time, so we should encourage the government to do the right thing. They have done well in the area of security and they have also dealt with corruption. If President Muhammadu Buhari had not come to power, all these discoveries would have been buried and it would affect all of us. People that kept foreign currencies are now bringing them out. It is not just about Buhari, our problem has been that we lack leadership. Right from the military government, what have they done for us. I remember in my secondary school days, I used to board train from the East to the North. We should examine ourselves to see if we are doing the right thing, how can someone steal an amount of money that could take care of a whole state.
    Are you saying it is the stolen money that got us to where we are now, with the increase in prices of goods?
    Of course, corruption is part of it. Talking about prices of goods and services, they are being imported with dollars. We must go into production because even the intervention of the CBN cannot last. We should ban certain goods that we can produce in Nigeria to encourage local production. A country like India had to close its borders at a time to encourage local production. If we fold our hands and allow importation anyhow, we will kill the industries and we are complaining that there is unemployment, is it the government that would employ people.
    DSS wrote a report against the Acting Chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu. do you think the senate is right in denying him confirmation, based on mere allegations?
    The Senate is made up of 109 people that are representing all of us, which is why I say we should be careful of what we do today because tomorrow might be a judgment day. Though some people are saying his confirmation was denied because some senators have cases with the EFCC. The fact is that the senate has the right to confirm him or not. I heard Senator Dino Melaye saying that he was not rejected just because of the DSS report, but that he did not answer their questions satisfactorily. DSS brought two reports against him despite the fact that both agencies are under the presidency. May be Ibrahim Magu does not know how to play politics, everything in life is about politics. He ought to have met with the Director of DSS. He should have found out what happened, they came up with two reports against him. May be he felt the President could protect him. Everybody lobbies, even abroad, they lobby. Everybody cannot like you, we also lobby during elections to get what we want. I don’t think he is humble enough.

  • Why I defected to APC, by Gagdi 

    Why I defected to APC, by Gagdi 

    The Deputy Speaker of the Plateau State House of Assembly, Hon. Yusufu Adamu Gagdi, has said he defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressive Congress (APC) to guarantee peace, unity and development of Kanam local government.

    Gagdi, who represent, Kantan Constituency, spoke while receiving the flag of the party from the ward leaders.

    He said: “I am from Kanam local government and my local government is controlled by the APC while I was a PDP member.

    “But, despite being a PDP stalwart, the APC government at the state level was so magnanimous enough to extend development projects to my local constituency in Kanam LGA.

    “The road from Dengi down to Kwalmis, Hakimi, Gagdi was not only included in 2016 budget of the state, it has already been advertised for contractors to bid for its construction.That gesture by the governor, Simon Bako Lalong, was the motivating factor behind my action because that road project is historic and it touches on the lives of people of my constituency.

    “If in spite of this good gesture from the governor I refused to join the ruling party in my state, I will deprive my people of dividends of democracy. I’m in politics for the sake of unity and progress of my people and to achieve that I have to join the party that will help me achieve that objective and I found such objectives in the principles of APC.

    Gadgi added: “My decision to decamp is not for selfish interests. If Governor Lalong gives me the option to resign as legislator in the state to enable him extend infrastructural projects to my constituency and local government, I will gladly do so.

    “Besides, the inclusion of the road project in the budget is something that has never happened in the history of Plateau State. I have lost my moral strength to remain in the  opposition party after the gesture from the ruling party.”

    The deputy speaker also informed  the Emir of Kanam, Alhaji Babangida Muazu, in his palace that he defected in good faith. He said: “I have returned to the mainstream of Plateau politics in response to the clarion call by the people of my local government and I wish to be accepted by the royal palace”

    Addressing party supporters in Dengi, shortly after receiving the party symbols, Gagdi urged his supporters to support the programmes and policies of the APC administrations.

    The Emir of Kanam applauded the decision of the lawmaker to jpin the  mainstream politics, saying it would attract more development to the emirate.

  • Nwaogu: Why I defected to APC

    Nwaogu: Why I defected to APC

    Senator Nkechi Nwaogu has defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). She spoke with reporters at her Okpulo Umuobo country home, Abia State, shortly after she was admitted into the party at the ward level. SUNNY NWANKWO was there.

    Why did you leave the PDP for the APC?

    I decided to leave my former party, the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) for the All Progressives Congress (APC) because the leadership of PDP did not play by the rules; they never moved the party as a political party. A party should not be dictatorial or a mono-party. A political party should be democratic in its decisions for the wellbeing of the party.

    The PDP lost focus and because it lost focus, and up to the time I switched to the APC, it has still not realised that it has lost focus. I felt that that association was no longer necessary; that it was no longer going to fulfill my political aspiration. Part of my political aspiration is to add value to my people, to the work I do through politics; to improve the lives of our people. That was why I left the party, because it have not only lost focus; it has also lost the ideology for which I joined them, which is that power belongs to the people.

    Your supporters had long expected this move. Why is it coming at this time?   

    I thought that my former party would realize its mistakes. I had waited and expected the party leadership to accept that they made mistakes, ask for forgiveness and find ways to rebuild the party. But, rather, they felt they would always get their way.

    Yes, my supporters had expected this move before now, but it is not just the moment something happens that you react to it. I had waited this long expecting they could retrace their footsteps; the footsteps that brought humiliation on the party and since I saw no remorse, I decided to move on.

    But, some Nigerians believe there is no much difference between the PDP and the APC. What’s your reaction?

    I don’t believe so. A typical example is when I attended the inauguration of Mr. President on May 29, I saw something different. If it were in my former party, it could have been a funfair of wastages; financial wastages, by making stupid uniforms for people, whose cost would be inflated at the expense of the nation. I saw nothing like that in Buhari’s inauguration. I saw prudent celebration, I saw sane celebration, I saw sensible celebration and to my mind as someone who is financially-oriented in my background, I said to myself, this party is really conscious of the drain pipes, financial leakages in the nation’s purse and they are very conscious of that; that is why they have done this celebration in the most economic way, in the most prudent manner and yet the celebration went well.

    Abians believe if you had left PDP earlier and contested the Senate seat against former governor T.A Orji, you could have won. Do you regret this?

    No, I don’t regret it because anything that happens in one’s life, for those of us who believe in Christ, I believe it is the way it has been destined to you. For me, this period is a time for sober reflection. If I had jumped over to another party, obviously I know I would have beaten the former governor. If somebody who didn’t do much (campaign) could beat him in the election, how much more somebody like me?

    What should people expect from you now that you have defected to the APC?

    I alone cannot bring about the needed change. Change starts from your attitude; change as a person and from your attitude, it will influence others; change will start from my political ward. You saw what happened in my political ward the day I formally went to declare at that level that I have moved on. You also saw what happened at the local government where we held our meeting and at the state party office the day I was presented at the state. We will be change agents to Abia State and indeed the whole Nigeria. I will contribute in many ways. I’m going to be fisher of men and women and resources into the APC in my state and in Nigeria. I know that by God’s grace I have a reservoir of experience. I am sure at some point in our party life, I will be found useful in one way or the other.

    There is massive corruption in the civil service and the society. I’m not saying we are coming to cleanse everything, but I know where these leakages were coming from and as a person with experience in finance and I can make contribution by identifying and plugging these leakages, so that Nigerians cannot be people living in a country of opulence and at the same time dying in penury and hunger.

    We can do that by being prudent in the way we do our things; we can do that by ensuring that material things are put secondary. My former party was truly capitalistic in nature, I’m progressive and by that I mean how many people are in this high societal echelon, less than 10 per cent population of the country, the rest are living in abject poverty. And this 10 per cent are controlling the resources of the nation; we should begin to make sacrifices.

    I decided to start my journey with the APC from my ward; I could have stayed at Abuja and do whatever I want to do. But, I’m a grassroots woman and I have the fear of the Lord in my life.

    I wanted to be governor to demystify why this art of governance is only remaining in the pockets of the person governing. I believe that if good person stays in there, you will be able to bring about a lot more changes, affect a lot more lives and reduce the art of crime in our state and invariably in our nation.

    So, this change is a process and wherever I have found myself now, I will begin to practice the art of change. Change in the way I do things. Change in not being greedy and change in seeing your neighbour as yourself, helping people where you can that is what people should expect from me.

    You appear to have much confidence in President Buhari, why is it so?

    My confidence is that he’s been somebody who has been tried and tested at some point and found diligent and also found acceptable, although those days were when he was military head of state. We believe that he is the same person that has come here.

    Even since after he had left the military, look at his lifestyle, he is very close to not being blemished; If you look at his lifestyle, you will see that he is a person who is very progressive in nature and one who would want to give even his life for the country. That he contested for four times to be the president of Nigeria shows the level of love he has for the country.

    So, I have confidence that he is not going to derail, despite the fact that this is a democratic set up, where people of different background, different interest are coming together all in the name of politics.

    I’m sure that Nigerians are praying for him to be focused and to put in his mind those things he has promised Nigerians that he will do and that is, leaving an open life, running an open administration, doing things that will be for the benefit of the people.

    If he was able to use good advice to plug a lot of wastages in the system, I can assure you there will be enough money to go around, to touch lives. There will be revival in the private sector which is a great engine of economic development of any nation. Employing people in the public sector; in the ministries, is bloating the overhead cost of the Federal Government and you are not developing the nation.

    You will only develop the nation when we see these privatized entities of the Federal Government doing well. When they will begin to do well, they will employ more people, the economy will begin to bounce back, that’s my confidence in him and I know he will do it.

    If you had your way, will you like to go back to the Senate?  

    As I said, I am not thinking of anything at the moment. All I’m thinking for now is to work for the APC and bring that desired change in the country.

  • ‘Why Edo commissioner defected to PDP’

    ‘Why Edo commissioner defected to PDP’

    Edo State Commissioner for Investment and Public/Private Partnership Denis Idahosa defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the weekend to pre-empt his removal from the State Executive Council by Governor Adams Oshiomhole, it was learnt yesterday.

    Sources said that the commissioner has been under investigation by an administrative panel, following various petitions against him by stakeholders.

    Oshiomhole, who has been inundated with complaints about Idahosa’s activities, gave the committee the mandate to investigate the complaints to clear the name of his administration and reiterate its commitment to transparency, probity and due process.

    At a PDP rally in Ovia Local Government Area, the commissioner, who was received into the party by the Chairman, Chief Dan Orbih, explained that he defected from the APC because of the incessant abuse of President Goodluck Jonathan by the governor.

    He claimed some commissioners will still follow suit ahead of the general elections.

    The commissioner also promised to mobilise for the president’s re-election bid in Edo State.

    However, a source disclosed that Idahosa jumped ship to avoid being sacked from the cabinet by the governor, who was infuriated by the findings of the committee.

    A source said, “The commissioner was being investigated by the government. Many have complained about his activities in their petitions. You know, the commissioner was in Canada before.

    “The governor set up an administrative committee to investigate him and when the report came, he was not happy about the findings.

    “Besides, the commissioner is also being investigated by the anti-graft agency over the petition. His new party, the PDP, is also aware of the investigation. He may have decided to seek refuge in the PDP.

    “You know we have a no-nonsense governor here. The commissioner knew that he was about to be removed. Therefore, he decided to quit to avoid an imminent disgrace.”

    According to the source, Oshiomhole has also been under pressure to relive Idahosa of his position based on the allegation of poor performance by stakeholders.

    “Many have alerted the governor to the danger of keeping a mole or a double agent in the cabinet and the APC. The result of that was his defection on Friday.”

  • Why I defected to PDP, by Orji

    Progressives Peoples Alliance (PPA) chieftain Chief Nnamdi Orji has defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Abia State. He defected in his native Ameke ward, Abiriba, Ohafia Local Government Area.

    The defector was presented to the party by Chief Sunday Ifeigbo, who explained that Orji has returned to the party to join the leaders in rebuilding the edifice.

    The ward chaiman, Prosper Okoro said: “History is today being made in Abiriba politics and every member of the party is happy to welcome Chief Nnamdi Orji back into the fold.”

    Orji recalled the cisrcum-stances th at forced him out of the party. He said that, although he won the ticket for the House of Representatives seat in Arochukwu/ Ohafia Constituency, he was denied the ticket. He said that deprivation was injurious to his supporters in the constituency.

    Orji enjoined the party members to make sacrifice for the party, adding that the party can only survive in an atmosphere of unity and harmony.

    He said the PDP has a brighter future in Abia State, if its leaders can manage their achievements.

     

  • Why I defected to ACN —Iyabo Anisulowo

    Why I defected to ACN —Iyabo Anisulowo

     Senator Iyabo Anisulowo represented the Ogun West Senatorial District in the Senate and was popular for her bluntness. She speaks with Adetutu Audu on her romance with politics and why she joined ACN.

    You have been involved so much in politics in the country, what is your view on the level of women involvement in politics?

    Women are more in politics now, unlike in those days. But there are also categories of women, some are just there to support the men; they sing and dance. While some are activists, agitating for political positions to pull their weight and show that they can also do what the men are doing.

    But because of lack of enough education, the women have not been able to occupy some of these positions. We want more women to contest election, even if they are not going to win, at least people will know that we tried to wrestle power from the men. But we are improving now.

    Politics is also very expensive to play and most women are poor .For instance, when we go for rallies, you have to pay for buses to convey your supporters, cook food, among other things.

    In developed countries, it is not like that. You can interact with your people through the use of technology.

    Women are not also violent in nature. Politics now involves thuggery and the usage of arms, and only few women can withstand that.

    You once said you were not given the second term ticket to the Senate because you were not ready to ‘grace the bed of some old men’ in your party. Don’t you think things like this may be driving some women away from politics?

    I said it, not really to scare people but to encourage women that you don’t necessarily need to grace anybody’s bed to get what you want. There is nobody that is perfect, but one needs to take a stand. We didn’t come into politics to be treated like second class citizens. We came to rub shoulders with the men and we can with our money and our resources, and also have the support of our family.

    It is not easy to leave home and go and play politics. If you have a husband that releases you and he is supporting you, I think the best thing for the woman is to respect the institution of marriage.

    If the man discovers that you are not respecting that institution, then there will be trouble. Many homes have been destroyed because of that. There are more women voters than men. If we have such principled women, we should rally round ourselves.

    And you know I won’t be asking such woman to go to bed with me, except I am a lesbian.

    You have served the country in various capacities. Do you think the country has been fair to you?

    It has not been fair to me. And the country can not be fair to me, when it is dominated by men. Even my own town that I have contributed so much to, I came here early in life with nothing. I turned nothing to something in this place. Men are ganging up everyday that they don’t want the leadership of women.

    The Adele of Olu Ilaro is saying that the struggle we are in now is to liberate the men from the women. It is absurd.

    You have been a strong woman rubbing shoulders with the men. Can you recount your experience with Isa Mohammed at the Senate for example?

    Well, that situation ought not to have happened. I was a strict person and a Christian who used my Bible as my constitution first, before the conventional constitution. What I did was that if as a member of the committee you do not participate in the committee work, you will not benefit in the allowances provided.

    At that time, those who were not around wanted to be partakers in the allowances, against which I took my stand. It was as if you have to appeal to them before they should do their work. But if there is an appointment to meet Mr. President, all of them will be around with one of the best of their wardrobe materials. To me, it should not be so. That was what happened between me and Isa Mohammed. He was a rich man and thought that he could do anything with impunity. But l humbled him. I proved to him that l do not swim in shallow waters.

    Former National Vice Chairman of PDP, Chief Bode George, came back from prison, the kind of reception he was given was unprecedented. What is your opinion?

    I don’t have any view on it. I don’t want to offend Bode George or those who went to felicitate with him. I chose not to go because I didn’t feel like. Maybe those that went wanted to show him that they love him. But I know that many went to see whether he was gaunt, or if he was still okay. But I thank God for him and I know that he will use the experience to be closer to God and know that power is transient. When you have power use it well because it can slip-off you and it is what you did with the power that people will talk about.

    Prior to 2011 general elections, you were a chieftain of the Peoples Party of Nigeria (PPN), Otunba Gbenga Daniel’s party in Ogun State, and now you are in the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), what informed your defection?

    What made me to defect to the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) was the fact that, in the first instance, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had always been in problems, but I was not part of the problems. I left the PDP in 2007. When the case of Senator Ibikunle Amosun was quashed and the PDP-led government was thinking of zoning the governorship seat to Ogun West Senatorial district, former Governor Gbenga Daniel approached me and even sent some people to me.

    He said he was sorry for what he did to me and that apart from that, he was confident that with me on his train, we would achieve this ‘Yewa-for-governor ambition.’ Though I joined, my own choice for a candidate was Gboyega Isiaka from Imeko and the choice of other people within the party was my brother, General Adetunji Idowu Olurin from the same Ilaro with me. I decided to support Isiaka and that was why I had a little romance with the PDP. You should know the relationship between Amosun and I. At the Senate, we were colleagues, we sat beside each other. In my usual self, I don’t really fight people.  So, there was not really anytime we had a quarrel that we could not settle.

    Again, when I joined Amosun, you should remember that I sponsored the entire Yewa land for ANPP in 2007 general elections. And two, I am the secretary to the Senators’ Forum in the Southwest and as a colleague of mine, I couldn’t just leave him like that, other than to wish him well and say, “I am behind you and also, you are one of us.”

    I am a liberal and an activist. I am not particular about any political party, especially when we have several of them without much ideology. Really, here you can not say who you are in politics. What is important is your group interest, where your people will benefit, where they will be able to say, apart from government, they are enjoying government’s patronages and where development is coming to them.

    So, that is the main reason I joined Amosun. Amosun has a global vision of what he wanted to turn Ogun State into, especially the state capital where he has started developing.

    Asides politics, what do you do?

    I am a farmer. I arrange flowers and I am a decorator, though I don’t make much money out of it. I am not too organised but I try to be organised.