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Tag: Governorship election

  • Time to pay you back, timber dealers tell Ugwuanyi

    Timber dealers at Kenyatta Market, Enugu yesterday promised to vote massively for Enugu State Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi in next week’s governorship election.

    The traders, whose sheds were gutted by fire on March 5, 2018, recalled how Gov. Ugwuanyi,  the governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), wiped away their tears by rebuilding their burnt shops and providing each of them with the sum of N100,000 as grant to re-establish their businesses.

    The traders told him that they will pay him back with their massive votes at the polls.

    Gov. Ugwuanyi and PDP train were at the Kenyatta Market, and other markets in Enugu, such as Eke Otu in Amechi-Awkunanaw, Garki, and Coal Camp, in continuation of their intense door-to-door campaign ahead of the March 9 governorship and state assembly elections canvassing vigorously for votes.

    The governor told the jubilant and excited traders and supporters to take the message that “PDP is the way to go” to their families and neighbourhood, stressing that “a vote for Gburugburu is a vote for all the candidates of the PDP in Enugu State”.

  • ‘PDP is united for Lagos governorship election’

    Former Deputy National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Chief Olabode George spoke to reporters on the ‘infighting’ in the Lagos chapter and how it intends to win the March 2 governorship election. MUSA ODOSHIMOKHE was there.

    Can you comment on the alleged infighting in your party in Lagos?

    We are here to discountenance the deliberate misinformation running out there. Contrary to the misleading opinion in some sections of the media, our party is not disrupted by any infighting. We are woven in a united vision, summed up in a thoughtful unanimity of purpose. We are emboldened by a well-articulated truth, defining purpose and shared beliefs. We might have had our differences in the past during the strongly-contested governorship primary, but that was in the past. The contest had been won and lost and we have moved forward. We are one, indivisible family. There is no rancour in our midst; there is no bitterness or hatred. We are no longer contesting anything with ourselves. Jimi Agbaje is our unifying governorship candidate. We support him wholeheartedly and with total commitment. The contest is now against the monstrous, dictatorial, reckless, godfatherism that has held the state hostage for the past 20 years. Lagos must be redeemed and unchained from the manacles of the APC and the madness would not continue, because Lagos needed a real, progressive fundamental change. We are moving forward with a view to bring meaningful enlightenment into the lives of fellow Lagosians. No more burdensome taxation. No more brazen looting of our treasury. No more criminal cronyism that has reduced our state to serfdom and helplessness.

    Why should Lagosians vote for your party, rather than the APC?

    Our candidate, Jimi Agbaje, and his running mate, Mrs. Haleemat Busari, are indigenes of Lagos State. I went to my local government the other day and all the young people there have no jobs, I wondered what was going on? As the Englishman would say, you don’t need a second chance to make a first impression. We saw their first outing during the recent APC rally in Lagos, it was very bad. You have heard from our candidate. He comes from a very good home, why will he want to create mayhem in his own home? Lagosians are peace-loving people; even before I was born, that has been the attitude of the indigenes of Lagos. Lagos is a commercial nerve centre in West Africa. Why will you not train these young people, organize skill acquisition programmes, instead of training them only for thuggery. The rally was indeed a show of shame. The governor was speaking and Oluomo and his people unleashed havoc. Instead of showing such rascality, political thuggery and violence, they are going to make sure that skill acquisition will be a number one issue to get the boys back to work. Whether you want to be a mechanic, tailor, you just abandoned these boys and you go and sleep in your kingdom. I am promising you that if you give Jimi and our party the mandate, Lagos will be the real Lagos. The Lagos we knew as we were growing up; they were the best in education and skill acquisition. If you have Lagos where everyone wakes up in the morning and have nowhere to go, of course you will have problems on your hands. We will teach them how to fish and will not give them fish, so that they can feed themselves.

    What are the issues that will determine the voting pattern in the coming weeks?

    You can have the best blueprint in leadership, but if you do not have character, then it is a problem. There two kinds of politicians: those that seek power for service and those that seek power for self. What you have in Lagos today are those that have been in power for 20 years that have power for self. What they are running in Lagos is an oligarchy. You can compare two different governments; you can compare the Jakande era and you will see that it was power for service. You had education addressed, health, works, and housing. You had so much in four years. In 20 years whatever these people have put in place was only to benefit them. We have gone back, our education is worse; we have a Lagos today where in the last 20 years only 20 per cent of our children scored five credits, plus English and Mathematics. I can go on. So, if you ask me, what we are bringing, I will say we will first bring character leadership in Lagos that will be people’s Lagos, rather than one man’s Lagos. It will be about the people, rather one man or a few people. We will address education, health; provide a future for our young ones. Today, it is a hopeless future for them; they don’t see any future for themselves and these are things we must address. If look back at what Jakande has done, that in 30 years after, you can talk of Jakande legacy.  Twenty years from now, I wonder what legacy we will have. There is nothing that I can think and say that they have as a legacy that they can be proud of in 20 years from now.

    Your party complained recently that its billboards were destroyed. Are you well positioned to challenge the ruling party in the elections?

    I hope you can see that they tried to intimidate us, initially when we put up our boards. I think they were intimidated by the quality of our own boards, because what they brought out was some kind of cheap things, compared with the money that they had budgeted for them and it was obvious after that they wanted to silence us. But we have refused to be silenced. The more they removed our boards, the more we replaced them to show that we are ready to match them in any way. I think they have accepted that those boards are there to stay. In the same way, we will go for elections to show them that we are going to match them. We believe that our votes would count this time. We have learnt our lessons from the past. We are prepared and we believe that Lagosians are on our side. We have the goodwill; our job is to ensure that the votes count. We want to assure Lagosians that we are putting a lot of things in place to make sure that their votes count. When we start and the debates start, the character of the candidates will be seen. It is true that there are photographs; but these days photos do lie. We also have a woman as a running mate. It goes to show you that we have respect for the woman gender.

    People are disturbed about the likely violence before and after the elections. What do you think can be done to curb this?

    I want to remind the electorate that when we had our primary at Yard 158 in Oregun, I can confidently say that there was no outbreak of violence. When the PDP had its national convention in Port Harcourt, it was seamless. So, if we were able to do that, why would we now embark on violence in Lagos for the election? Our candidate will move out with the people peacefully to sell our manifesto, so that the people can trust him. When you are going out for political position, you are telling the people to trust you that you will use the resources of their state for their benefit. All these young people that are being used as thugs, we will give them skills, train them at the expense of the government.

  • Oni vs Fayemi: Court sets hearing for Sept 25

    *Okays ex-gov’s amended processes

    A Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed September 25 this year for hearing in the suit challenging the eligibility of Ekiti State Governor-elect, Kayode Fayemi for the last govrnorship election in the state.
    Justice Nnamdi Dimgba chose the date on Wednesday after granting an application by the plaintiff, Segun Oni, for an amendment to the originating processes.

    Read Also: Fayemi: we’ve uncovered Fayose’s plan to sell govt property

    Earlier, Oni’s lawyer, Anthony Adeniyi told the court that his client has complied with the order for substituted service on the defendants.
    Fayemi’s lawyer, Rafiu Balogun said his client was just served with the court processes and needed time to respond.
    He agreed to file his client’s response before the next date.
    Details later.

  • Cross River APC chieftain rejects zoning for governorship

    A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Cross River State, Mr Goddie Akpama, has called for the jettisoning of the zoning arrangement for the governorship position in next year’s election if the party intends to win the election next year.

    The political class appears to have an unwritten agreement that the governorship should rotate among the three senatorial districts and by this arrangement the northern senatorial district still has another four years with Governor Ben Ayade of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) from Obudu local government area, almost concluding his first four years.

    Read Also:PDP buying PVCs in Yobe for N5,000 – APC

    The other two districts are the southern and central senatorial districts which produced former governors Donald Duke and Liyel Imoke respectively, who both served for eight years each from 1999.

    Speaking against the background of the by-election for the Obudu State Constituency of the House of Assembly, where the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Mrs. Abbey Ukpukpen, scored 12,530 to beat the All Progressive Congress’ (APC) candidate, Mr Adah Ishamali who polled 4,349 votes, on August 11, Akpama said the zoning should not apply to the APC.

    According to him, going by what transpired in the by-election, the northern senatorial district does not have what it takes to win the governorship for the APC.

    Speaking with The Nation in Calabar Friday, Akpama, a former governorship candidate of the Progressive People’s Alliance (PPA) in the state, called on the APC to support someone from the south as according to him, this would greatly improve their chances next year, given they have the voting strength.

    Akpama said, “The main lesson from that by-election is very clear, and it is that the northern senatorial district APC aspirants do not have what it takes to win the governorship elections next year for our Party. As a member of the APC, I still stand tall to say, that the governorship aspirants of the north have no political muscle to win elections in 2019 by what transpired during the by-election. We have three governorship aspirants from Obudu and they did nothing to show for the capacity of being governors in the by-election.

    “Even though for the sake of equity, we shout it is the turn of the north, but for the APC to win elections in the state, they must not rely on such a zoning formula if we must win elections in 2019. Again it is not constitutional to limit participation to any unit, constituency or zone.

    “We have approximately 69, 000 registered votes in Obudu. The APC could not even mobilize half of that number to its credit. The by-election was a total failure to the APC. My conclusion is that all of the aspirants do not have the capacity to be able to do or win elections come 2019.

    “I suggest that we the APC begin to look for other options if we intend to win the state next year and not just limit themselves to the issue of zoning. This would be inimical to the party. The party has better materials that would be able to mobilize to win the elections next year, so they should look towards that direction.

    “Let every other party member stand behind whoever would be able to have such capacity to match the PDP, to win the elections come 2019. It is pertinent to reiterate that the PDP has lost popularity with the people and this is the right time for the APC to put themselves together and come up with someone that can win next year.”

     

  • Osun 2018: Issues, factors that’ll determine outcome

    As the September 22 governorship poll in Osun State draws closer, Sunday Oguntola writes on factors and issues that will produce the winner

    WITH the conclusion of primaries by contending parties in the September 22 Osun governorship election, the race for the successor of Governor Rauf Aregbesola has become wholly heightened.

    Chief of Staff to Aregbesola, Gboyega Oyetola, emerged the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate while Senator Demola Adeleke will fly the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) flag.

    Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Moshood Adeoti, did not only withdraw from the APC’s primary but also resigned his membership of the party. He went on to pick the governorship ticket of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).

    The Social Democratic Party (SDP) held two parallel primaries that produced former Deputy Governor, Senator Iyiola Omisore and Munirudeen Atanda. But the National Chairman of the party, Chief Olu Falae, has thrown his weight behind Omisore, allegedly because of his war chest and perceived electoral value.

    The leading candidates

    Political observers believe the governorship contest is largely a three-horse race, involving Oyetola, Adeleke and Omisore. Incidentally, the candidates hail respectively from the three senatorial districts in the Southwest state. Oyetola (Osun Central), Adeleke (Osun West) and Omisore (Osun East) are not only the candidates to watch out for; informed analysts said one of them is certainly guaranteed to mount the governorship seat. This conclusion is primarily based on the perceived popularity of the individual candidates and the strength of the political parties they are flying their flags.

    Party/ candidate strength

    On the account of being the ruling party, the APC is considered the strongest in the contest. Aside from the power of incumbency, the party is believed to be the choicest among Osun indigenes with mass membership across the 30 local government areas.

    Its candidate, Oyetola has also adopted the Ileri Oluwa(God’s promise) slogan for his campaign, a slang that sits well with most of the voters. He is seen as a technocrat and the engine room of the policy thrust of the Aregbesola’s administration. The governor, even critics acknowledge, has performed creditably well in the areas of health, education, road construction, agricultural upliftment and civil service reforms, among others.

    With the perception that he represents continuity of the developmental strides in Osun State, Oyetola is highly favoured to clinch the governorship seat. There is the belief in many quarters that a change of party and government might reverse the many policy directions of Aregbesola that brought about massive development.

    The Iragbiji-born politician has wide experience in public administration, finance management, private business and politics. Unlike other Chiefs of Staff who run into troubled waters, Oyetola has managed to traverse the intricate pitfalls in the office, building confidence with his principal, the public and political class without rocking the boat.

    For this, he has the utmost trust of critical stakeholders in governance, winning wide thump-up for his conflict skills. The insurance expert established Silvertrust Insurance Brokers Limited in 1991, serving as its Managing Director from 1991 until he emerged Chief of Servant in 2011.

    He bagged a Bachelor in Insurance in 1978 from University of Lagos and Master of Business Administration (MBA) in 1990 from the same institution. In 1980, he joined Leadway Assurance Company Limited as Area Manager.

    In 1987, he left for Crusader Insurance Company Limited as Underwriting Manager. In 1990, he moved to Alliance and General Insurance as Technical Controller and served in that capacity until 1991.

    If narrowed down to popularity and what government sources describe as ‘competence,’ Oyetola is seen as the most favoured to win the race.

    But he faces stiff opposition from Adeleke, who is from a political family with mass followership.  The senator is also running on the strength of calls for power shift to Osun West, which his supporters pointed out, has not produced a governor since the late Senator Isiaka Adeleke in the Third Republic. What he has going for him is the political dynasty the family has built for decades in the state.

    The PDP on which ticket he is flying has however suffered serious misfortunes since former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola was thrown out of office by the Court of Appeal. The primary that produced him was keenly contested with Dr. Akin Ogunbiyi, who lost by a meagre seven votes that left a bitter pill to swallow for Ogunbiyi supporters.

    Ogunbiyi did not only reject the primary, describing it as rigged, he also proceeded to court to contest the educational qualifications of Adeleke. This is after he sent a petition to the Primary Appeal Committee. Ogunbiyi’s antagonistic and combative moves are seen as polarising just few weeks to the governorship poll.

    They have left PDP supporters in the state heavily divided and disillusioned over the disunity among their leaders. Adeleke is hugely popular in Osun West, especially in his Ede hometown. He also has the means to prosecute an electoral battle of this magnitude.

    Should the court decide in favour of Ogunbiyi on the qualification suit, the PDP might be left with no choice than to adopt him as its candidate. But even if Adeleke wins, the party will still have battles to face in healing wounds and building consensus among supporters and stakeholders.

    Either way, it would be too close to the election for the party to mend fences and face others as a formidable entity.

    Though Omisore has left the PDP, there is no doubt many of his supporters are still holding out to fight the party from within. Without united front consisting supporters of Ogunbiyi and remnant forces of Omisore, it is hard to see how far the PDP will go at the September 22 poll.

    Omisore, the third force, is certainly not a pushover in Osun State’s politics. He is blessed with vast war chest and a cult-like followership, especially in many parts of Osun East, which he once represented at the Senate.

    But he is seen as a politician with too much baggage, which was why the PDP was happy not to give him the governorship ticket in the first place. Besides, some voters in the state are believed to be indisposed to having anything to do with him, no matter what. With a depleted support base and weak party structure, Omisore’s quest to govern may remain a mirage.

    Plans for Osun

    The three candidates have unfolded their policy thrusts and agenda for Osun in different fora. They will certainly play major role in who the voters would eventually decide for. Oyetola said the state cannot afford to retrogress following the vast improvements recorded in the last seven-and-half years of the current administration.

    According to him: “Having been a privileged member of the team that has brought the current transformation our state has witnessed these past seven and a half years, I know what the issues are.

    “I know that what our people need is an agenda of continuity and revitalisation that will deepen the current gains in infrastructural development.

    “I know what we need is to continue to work and even harder to increase our revenue base to support the payment of salaries, pensions and other deserved emoluments of our teeming workers.

    “In furtherance of the enormous achievements we have already made, we need a leader with steady hands, whose words are his bond, who can further invest in the prosperity of our people.

    “We need a bridge builder, who would continue with the leadership values of the incumbent administration to unite our people, inspire them to jettison primordial sentiments and work for the development of their people, and secure a prosperous state for the benefits of our generations yet unborn.

    “What our state needs urgently is to further soar with inclusive, innovative and unwavering governance. We cannot afford to retrogress. Not anymore. The job at hand is too urgent to be left alone for just anyone unprepared.”

    Adeleke, on his part, promised not to loot, if elected. He said he is already a blessed and comfortable man seeking the governorship seat only to benefit the masses. According to him, “I’m contesting because of the people. Our people are suffering and we need to liberate them.

    “If I become governor, I cannot steal money that belongs to people. I have achieved everything that I could need money for in life.

    “I have built houses, I have cars; I have everything. So, what would I do with stolen money? So, I won’t steal as a governor. I only want to serve.”

    Omisore, on his part, said: “If I become the governor of Osun State, the salary and wages of the workers would be paid promptly and there was a testimony to this when I was the deputy governor.

    “I would treat workers with dignity and respect. I will focus on building major infrastructure in the state, such as roads. We will carry out the dualisation of Gbongan junction to Kwara boundary, ensure the development of Osun airport, and see to the construction of the Ilesa/Ife dams, rehabilitate of Ede headworks, Ejigbo water supply scheme.

    “We will also see to the dualisation of Mayfair Junction to Lagere-Enuwa-Moore-Ilesa bypass and the construction of Gbongan-Oyo boundary. Most of these projects were initiated and facilitated when I was chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation between 2007 and 2011.

    “But all these were discontinued and their prices inflated. We shall give them utmost priority when I become the governor. Education and health shall take their pride of place in my government. I shall stop capital flight of Osun’s money.

    “Osun’s money shall be spent by our people and not Lagosians. Unemployment shall be tackled using my professional and entrepreneurial goodwill to benefit Osun people.”

    Come September 22, electorate will head to the voting polls to decide whether continuity is the way to go or a change in government might be another option to consider. Whichever of the considerations carry the day will certainly determine who wears the governorship crown in Osun State.

  • Hurray! the Ekiti governorship election is a week away

    It is  exactly a week to the Ekiti governorship election and the worst offence  I believe  any freeborn  Ekiti , with the privilege of a forum like I have courtesy this column can commit, this last Sunday before the election, is to afghanistise, or write on topics far removed from that historic event.

    But first, let me crave my editor’s indulgence to kindly publish this article in its entirety though it is about twice my allowed space.

    I am much obliged.

    I am, therefore, as a concerned Ekiti citizen, and a member of the STRATEGY committee of the John Kayode Fayemi Campaign, even at the risk of repetition, devoting this column today, to reproducing a seminal article authored by Wole Olujobi, the hardworking JKF campaign Director of Media and Publicity, in which he interrogated, to the minutest detail, the four years of Governor Fayemi as governor of Ekiti, 2010 – 2014. The objective is to enable the Ekiti electorate draw a clear distinction between the two academic giants representing the two leading parties – APC and PDP – in the election scheduled for July 14, 2018, and thus be able to vote wisely, especially if he/she is interested in the state’s development.

    While I am doing this for Dr John Kayode Fayemi of the APC, it is my hope that somebody, on the other side, will be perspicacious enough to equally let the Ekiti electorate know what the PDP candidate, Professor Sola Kolapo Eleka, has done for the state in the course of his three and a half years service.

    So critical, in my view, is this exercise, which I have described elsewhere, as a sine qua non, that I have suggested to our candidate that we should have the article translated to a language all Ekiti citizens will understand as well as have it run severally before D-Day on radio, TV and the print media. This should be more urgent in the case of the PDP candidate who, besides having never functioned as a state chief executive, has the added incubus that he cannot be quoted on many key governance issues beyond talking about continuity. So monotonous has this ‘continuity’ overuse become it has led to people asking questions like: is it continuity as in a cannibalised Ikogosi Resort? Is it continuity as in school enrolment which under Fayemi was 98% but now has so plummeted Ekiti State ranks lowest among Southwest states? Or is it continuity as in the Ikogosi-based Gossy Water that is now history?

    I just hope Professor Eleka will appreciate, and commend my drawing his attention to this crucial inevitability.

    However, because we want to come to equity with clean hands, Professor Eleka is permitted to treat Governor Fayose’s achievements as his own. That way, we’ll have a level playing field and a better basis for comparison.

    So let’s go.

    Back then to the piece by Olujobi. Such is the quintessence with which it captured the four years of Governor Fayemi’s administration  that  I’d like to enjoin the reader, whether of  Ekiti extraction, or not, to read it with some solemnity in order to  appreciate, and internalise,  how much an individual with a conscience can, in public office,  positively impact society .

    Happy reading.

    FAYEMI’S ‘FIRSTS IN EKITI DEVELOPMENT HISTORY

    By Wole Olujobi.

    He wrote, mutatis mutandis:

    In the last three weeks, I have had the rare opportunity of traversing the length and breadth of Ekiti State to see, first-hand, the progress, if any, in the development  programmes of the Ayo Fayose-led government.  Worthy of note is that rather  than a leap in development  to add to the accomplishments of former Governor Kayode Fayemi, what I saw  was a reversal of  the state’s fortunes.

    Besides the over-priced 800-metre fly-over show that glitters in the night, all parts of the state are perfumed  in pitch darkness, and our people are daily  at the mercy of night marauders  who stalk residents without let.

    Infrastructural development has grinded to a halt just as economic development initiatives are zero. Health services are priced above the table, poverty is on all fours, while social services have taken  flight.

    Just like in make-shift props for quick-fix solutions to endemic problems, big  lies are now employed as soothing balms   to malignant problems for what has become an unquestioning Ekiti society.

    Everywhere across the state, the socio-economic development brakes that screeched to a thunderous halt on October 15, 2014, remain locked on the same spot.

    Curiously ,  all these negativities are dressed  up as heroic accomplishments,  never  before seen in the state that  the unwary. could  still believe in the make-believe story  that Ekiti State has become an El Dorado. As you read this, but for the Debt Management office, the state debts, like its  Internally Generated revenue, would still have been  shrouded in secrecy, even though it has since climbed to N115B from the N18B Fayemi left on his exit in October, 2014.

    In contradistinction , within a year of his assumption of office, which was a record achievement,  then Governor  Fayemi not only disclosed the state’s revenue profile, he  upped the state’s monthly IGR substantially from N109M to N600M. He achieved this,  not by imposing fresh taxes on the people like governor Fayose did. Nor did he increase the existing  taxes; rather, all he did was block leakages in the state’s finances.

    For the first time ever, Ekiti State in November 2011, adopted visits to  all Local  government Areas for budget planning purposes during which visit every town  presented their preferred three projects to be incorporated in the year’s  budget,  and subsequently, for those that could not be accommodated in the current  year.

    For the first time in the state, a total of 183 secondary schools, and 836 primary schools were renovated, and furnished.

    Forty eight thousand (48,000) laptops were distributed to students and teachers in Ekiti State schools while additional 25,000 pieces were ordered, making it the first time in the state that information and computer technology would receive such a boost. This  yielded dividends  far beyond imagination as manifested in the tremendous improvement in  the 2013 WAEC result in the state. This initiative was long  before JAMB changed  its examinations  to a computer-based system, thus giving Ekiti  students  a head start.

    For the first time in Ekiti State too , teachers received 25 per cent of their pay as  core subjects and rural posting allowances in addition to their monthly  salaries.

    Across the state, and also for the first time, five mini-water treatment plants were commissioned while new pipes were laid to replace the old ones, with 167 modern water fetching points,  nick named  Eyiyato Fetching Points,  constructed in various communities across the 16 LGAs to ease the  hardship of  water shortage while in September 2013,  governor Fayemi signed the Water and Sanitation Bill into Law, marking the first time for such initiative. The percentage of water supply in the state  rose to 52% as against the 25% in place on  his assumption of office in 2010. This  comprehensive approach to water supply crisis increased the state’s rating as one of the  two  best states in the water sector in the country.

    Also, for the first time ever, in the history of  the West African sub-region, 20,000 elderly people were paid a  N5,000 monthly stipend as social security,  while by October 2013, during  his Third Year Anniversary, another 5,000 senior citizens were added to the scheme while the wife of the governor, for the first time in the history of Ekiti State, made sure that no elderly person in the state went to bed hungry. She did that through her Food Bank Programme where the elders were served cooked food in special kitchens across the state.

    All general hospitals in the state were fully rehabilitated  and two new ones were built while 728.365 kilometres of both Federal and state roads were constructed in addition to the 81.2 kilometres constructed in all local governments under the 5 Kilometre Road-per-local-government scheme, the first time that local governments would undertake such initiative backed by the state government.  As much as 902.565 kilometres of Federal, State and Local Government roads were rehabilitated, re-constructed and constructed to last decades unlike in the past where new roads collapsed barely a year  after commissioning.

    Women were empowered through small business schemes while Affirmative Action took root in Ekiti State with many women appointed into senior government positions. The First Lady, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, a U N honour recipient for her role in women empowerment in Africa,  brought relief to mothers of triplets through her Multiple Birth Trust Fund where financial assistance and baby items were given to them while also strengthening women empowerment schemes through her gender empowerment programme.

    Fayemi’s administration enacted  a law banning discrimination against women and all forms of violence against women, as well as enacting a law banning abuses against children.

    For the first time too, many communities that had existed for over 200 years without electricity, such as Oke-Ako in Ikole Local Government, were connected to the national grid while many communities were opened up through construction of rural roads and culverts.

    Hundreds of Ekiti youths, which included a trained medical doctor – turned farmer,  were engaged in commercial agriculture under the Youth Commercial Agriculture Development Programme (YCAD) and 117,000 farmers were registered to benefit from the ADP programme.

    For the first time, Ekiti State had both the largest cassava productivity (yield/Ha) and cultivation.. Yield was above national average at 15T/Ha (national average was 12T/Ha).

    Ekiti also had the largest expansion in cultivation in the country in 2012 with the addition of over 1,150Ha by YCAD Programme alone.

    As at October 2013, YCAD critical objective had started to manifest, as Ekiti State had the highest yield in cassava in the country.

    In an amazing manner, Ekiti State started  producing water melon and carrot which were,  hitherto,  exclusive produce from the Northern states.

    750Ha of land was cultivated under the Rice Expansion Programme, where government supported farmers with 100% input for production. 2013 operation alone was aimed at achieving 3,000Ha capacity and government also flagged off N600 million irrigation project under which Ero and Itapaji dams  provided 1,700 hectares of irrigated land.

    For the first time, there was a joint constituency project in irrigation by the three Senators representing Ekiti State with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO). The irrigated land was at Itapaji and served from Itapaji dam, which also served Iyemero and Gede farm settlements while  that of Ero dam was planned to serve Ikosun, Igogo and Ewu farm settlements.

    To restore cocoa to its prime position as the main cash crop as was the case in the First Republic, 150,000 cocoa seedlings were distributed to 15,000 farmers in 2013.

    For the first time, over 2000 school children and infants in Erijiyan – Ekiti were administered with 137,442 doses of Praziquantel pill to prevent Schisostomiasis, a water-borne disease prevalent in the area.

    In his health programme, no fewer than 400,000 Ekiti indigenes were treated under the free health mission programme during the seven editions across the state while the free health programme of Fayemi’s healthcare took care of the health needs of about 48% of children under five years, pregnant women, the disabled and elderly above 65 years.

    For the first time, another brand of free health mission called ‘Ilera Laafin’ was instituted, which took health missions to the palaces of the traditional rulers and their chiefs, even as more than N130 million was spent on the health care needs of indigent patients for various operations and provision of artificial limbs by the government.

    For the first time, a cancer care centre, the Funmi Adunni Olayinka Diagnostic and Wellness Centre, was established for early detection of cancer and cancer-related ailments to prevent avoidable death, even as the Ministry of Health conducted free medical screening for breast cancer in women and prostate cancer in men.

    And for the first time, Fayemi’s giant strides in the health sector increased antenatal attendance from 15,254 in 2010 to 79,104 in 2012, reduction of infant mortality rate to 98 per 1000 (the lowest in the country where national average is 189 per 1000) while maternal mortality dropped to 250/100,000 (National average is 545 per 100,000), getting Ekiti and two other states certified as having met the 2015 MDGs health goals.

    From its decrepit state before he became the governor, Fayemi within three years developed Ikogosi Warm Spring Resort into one of the top seven of the natural hospitality destinations in Nigeria and for the first time, an elite Knowledge Zone was also established within the facility for advanced studies in various fields.

    As at 2014, there were 781 completed projects, 558 on-going projects and 134 community projects initiatives on ground. Altogether, there were 1,473 completed and on-going projects in the state from October 2010- October 2013. As revealed during the present campaign, all uncompleted community projects remain exactly where they were at governor Fayemi’s exit in 2014; not a single block has been added to at uncompleted building project since 2014.

    According to the Human Development Report (2012), Ekiti State, for the first time, was described as the most conducive environment to live, for long and healthy living with a life expectancy average of 55 years which was higher than the National Life expectancy average of 50 years.

    Ekiti also had the lowest infant and maternal mortality rate and the lowest HIV/AIDS infection rate in the country while the state had the highest pupils’ enrolment relative to Nigeria’s population and it had the least out-of-school children (less than 2%) in Nigeria.

    For his development and leadership style, Fayemi won ‘Governor of the Year 2012 Award’ for the first time by the Leadership Newspapers on September 18, 2012. He was also named the Governor of The Year 2013 by Champion Newspaper. All these were confirmed in September 2013 when the United Nations invited Fayemi to its session on the basis that his state had met many of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), also for the first time in the history of Ekiti State.

    For the first time, SAMSUNG Corporation awarded ‘Best Governor in Africa’ honour to Fayemi for investing heavily in education, while the London Economist’s report on governance in Ekiti State said: “Better governance is creeping beyond the metropolis. When your correspondent e-mails the governor of Ekiti State in impoverished central Nigeria he gets a reply within minutes, with the entire cabinet copied in and being told to assist with a visit.

    “After a six-hour drive north, seven interviews across the capital, Ado Ekiti, are arranged in the space of a few hours. Cabinet members are mostly foreign-educated and highly motivated and have private-sector experience. A new employment agency sends out job advertisements by text message. All secondary-school pupils are getting free laptops with solar panels.”

    For the first time, the state’s official twitter of the Ekiti State Government-@ekitistategov had the highest number of visitors among the states that had accounts on the social media in Nigeria.

    It had 11,624 followers as at September 30, 2013 and it was a platform where the government kept its citizens aware of its programmes.

    Fayemi knew the importance of a knowledge-based economy and he embarked on a venture of making Ekiti the Silicon Valley of Nigeria through Information and Communications Technology with the laying of fibre optics around the state for high speed internet access to homes and offices at affordable price, including wi-fi hot spot around many business areas in the state.

    All these gains, which Fayemi hopes to strengthen if he is elected governor on July 14, 2018, have been reversed in the last three and half years by Fayose who is planning to sustain the tempo of that destruction through a continuity agenda by his proxy, Prof Olusola Eleka, the governorship candidate of PDP.

    Will Ekiti people support the agenda that will reverse their fortune and which holds no promise for their future?

    That is a question to be resolved by millions of eager  Ekiti people thirsting for a government that would no longer arrest the state’s overall development.(concluded)

    Let me now conclude by saying that I feel positive, and cocksure that, having now tasted both sides of the political divide, and seeing the differences between the two very clearly, peace and development loving Ekiti people will, enthusiastically, elect Dr John Kayode Folorunso Fayemi, on Saturday, 14 July, 2018, for development.

     

  • Uncertainty over PDP’s guber ticket

    Ahead of the September 22 governorship election in the state, the Osun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is making efforts to choose for itself a credible and popular gubernatorial flag bearer. Assistant Editor, Dare Odufowokan, reports the cloud of uncertainty that currently pervades the ongoing struggle for the ticket of the opposition party in the state.

    AT the last count, more than 20 persons showed interest in becoming the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the September 22 governorship election in Osun State. Despite its current status as an opposition party in the state, chieftains of the PDP, as well as some pundits, believe the party stands a chance of winning the election provided it picks the “right candidate” among its array of contestants.

    Determined to do its best at arriving at the best choice as its flag-bearer, the PDP in Osun State, guided by the Screening Committee constituted for the purpose by the national secretariat of the party, cleared 11 aspirants. The Nation gathered that of the initial crowd of about 20 aspirants, only the said 11 fulfilled all requirements needed to appear before the screening committee.

    “Some of those aspirants jumping all over the place before now, like I told you before, were not serious contenders. Among them were some people hoping to be handed the party’s ticket by some undemocratic arrangements. Those are the ones you see leaving PDP for other parties even before the primary election was conducted. They have since realised it is no longer business as usual.

    “There were also those who had no plan of going all the way. They are the pretenders who entered the race merely to garner some cheap political visibility. We knew them all along and the party was conscious of their antics. One or two of them were even fronting for some other aspirants. With the seriousness being shown by the new leaderships of the party, both at the state and at the national levels, they have all come to realise we are not joking about the next election,” a PDP chieftain told The Nation in Osogbo, the state capital.

    As the date of the primary election draws nearer, the state chairman of the PDP, Hon. Soji Adagunodo, is leaving nobody in doubt of the preparedness of the party to give all the cleared aspirants a level playing ground. He assured all aspirants of a free and fair primary election. “We will ensure all the aspirants get equal treatment, and it will be unfair for anybody to say the party already has a preferred candidate.”

    The Nation also learnt that an agreement was recently reached between the state leadership of the party and all the aspirants to the effect that the entire process, as well as the delegates that will midwife the emergence of the party’s candidate, will be open to all the contenders and their camps.

    The contenders

    Following last Wednesday’s clearance of aspirants contesting to be the party’s flag bearer, the PDP in Osun State is now ready to pick one of those who emerged as serious contenders as its flag-bearer. Chairman of the Screening Committee, Austin Opara, at the presentation of Screening Certificates to the aspirants at Wadata Plaza, in Abuja, said the successful aspirants include Sen. Akanbi Abdulrasheed, Dr. Ayoade Adewepo, Dr. Oyewumi Olalere, Mr. Nathaniel Oke, Sen. Ogunwale Felix and Alhaji Fatai Akinbade. Others are Dr. Ezekiel Adeniji, Dr. Akin Ogunbiyi, Rafiu Bello, Sen. Ademola Adeleke and Prof. Adeolu Durotoye. Opara commended the aspirants and urged them to work as a team for PDP’s success in the election.

    The aspirants, while assuring of their readiness to cooperate with the party to ensure a hitch-free primary election, commended the Screening Committee for a wonderful work. Adewopo, while commending the leaderships of the party at state and national levels, said the people of the state are looking up to PDP to provide the much needed credible alternative for them to vote for at the September election. He said PDP will win the next election once it is able to give the people of the state the candidate they are yearning for. “We all know who can win the election for us. What we need to cooperate and do the right thing,” he said.

    Meanwhile, The Nation gathered that some of the aspirants whose names did not make the final list of screened aspirants are offering explanations to their supporters on why they are out of the guber race so early. One of such, a former federal lawmaker, who sources claimed did not obtain nomination form to be part of the screening process, have told his supporters that he decided to opt out of the race for personal reasons.

    ‘Don’t know’ in the lead

    But with the primaries for the PDP governorship ticket weeks away, checks by The Nation revealed that majority of party chieftains and members are uncertain over where the pendulum will swing. This, according to many party sources, is an unusual development that should be commended in the history of the party in Osun State. Not a few attributed the uncertainty to the level playing field provided all aspirants by the Adagunodo-led committee.

    “In the past, we would all know who will win the ticket even when we felt the person is not the best we have in PDP. One person will always win the ticket only to go on and lose the general election as usual. That is no longer the case and this is a development many party men and women are happy about. We now know our vote will count at the primary election and we are all eager to exercise our right to choose,” a source said.

    The Nation also gathered that the aspirants and their supporters are working frantically round the clock as they transverse the length and breadth of the state, speaking to party leaders and would-be delegates, about their gubernatorial ambitions. According to checks by The Nation, not less than seven of the aspirants met party leaders and selected party members at different locations across the state this week alone.

    “Nobody can confidently say this is the person who will win the ticket. We will, for the first time in the history of Osun PDP, have to wait till the very end of the primary election before we even have an idea of who our candidate will be. While you may call it uncertainty for now, it is a good development for us as a party that is serious about winning the next election and taking over the administration of the state,” our source said.

    However, there are fears in some quarters that money may still play a big role in determining who would ultimately get the ticket given the unusual openness of the race at this crucial time with no party leader or group exercising firm control over the possible fate of the aspirants. The late entrance of some aspirants perceived to be money bags, or backed by some big spenders, into the race, heightened this fear in recent weeks.

    While party leaders and chieftains insist all the aspirants are good enough to represent the PDP as the candidate, some pundits say the race is actually a contest that may be limited to about four of the screened contestants. Many observers of the politics of these state and the recent struggles of the opposition party to reposition itself and return to its winning ways after eight years out of political power, say some aspirants are better positioned to clinch the ticket than the others.

    “Delegates at the primary election will be thinking about many things when they go to cast their votes. But many of them will be thinking about the roles played by each of these aspirants during the fierce struggle to free PDP in Osun State from the strangulating hold of a few people. We know those who joined us to end the dictatorship that kept our party on its kneel for so many years.

    “We also know those who sat on the fence and watched on as if they are not part of the party. While some fought with us and suffered many humiliations as we suffered, many others stood aloof and watched as the battle raged back and forth. They were later to shift to our side after the battle was won. There are even some of them who fought against us back then. Today, they are with us and they want the party ticket. The delegates will decide their fates,” a party leader from Osogbo said.

  • Anambra guber poll: Police dismiss IPOB threat

    The police in Anambra  on Saturday  said no person or group could stop  the forthcoming governorship election in Anambra.

    The Commissioner of Police in Anambra, Mr Garba Umar, said this in Awka  while reacting to the call by the Indigenous People of Biafra(IPOB) on  residents of the state to boycott the Nov.  18 governorship election.

    Umar told journalists that he only heard about the said call for  boycott of  the election in the media,  adding that IPOB had not claimed responsibility.

    He gave an assurance that the police  would ensure a peaceful election  in the state.

    “We have the capacity to provide a peaceful atmosphere in Anambra State for that election.

    “I have not heard from IPOB that it would stop the election  apart from what was published in the media. But that is for the media.

    ” Nobody or group can issue such threat and succeed  because we have all it will take to subdue such threat.

    “The people of the state have the right to have periodic elections to choose their leaders; nobody or group can stop them from exercising such right. We can’t allow it.

    “We are fully on the ground and we can suppress such threats,” he said.

    Umar, who assumed office in  the state  on June 21, said consultations were on with relevant stakeholders in the state to ensure a peaceful poll.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that stakeholders,  including political parties and Ohanaeze, the apex Igbo socio-cultural body, had  cautioned IPOB  after it called for the boycott of the guber poll.

  • Ondo APC congratulates Obaseki

    Ondo APC congratulates Obaseki

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State has congratulated the Governor-elect of Edo State, Mr. Godwin Obaseki on his victory at the just concluded September 28, 2016, Governorship election in the State.

    A statement issued by the APC State Publicity Secretary, Omo’ba Abayomi Adesanya said the victory is well deserved by the party especially in a keenly contested poll.

    APC lauded the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for ensuring the exercise when on smoothly.

    The party noted that the simultaneous Accreditation and Voting system introduced by the commission has largely reduced rigging and violence.

    It therefore, advised INEC not to lose sleep on the new strategy it adopted, but to improve on it for future elections, especially, the November 26thGovernorship election coming up in Ondo State.

    APC appealed to its members in Ondo state to work assiduously for the victory of APC and it candidate, Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN).

  • Odubu denies rift with Oshiomhole

    Odubu denies rift with Oshiomhole

    The Deputy Governor of Edo State, Dr Pius Odubu has denied having an altercation with the Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, over the shift in the Governorship election from September 10 to September 28.

    In a statement, the Deputy Governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr Kelly Odaro, said: “Our attention has been drawn to the falsehood being circulated by some disgruntled elements on the social media especially by one Ugiagbe Josh Eseiwi that the Deputy Governor, Rt. Hon. Dr Pius Odubu is at war with his boss, Governor Adams Oshiomhole, over the shift in date of the Edo Gubernatorial Election.

    “The said post even went further to suggest that the Deputy Governor had an altercation with the Governor to the extent that the Governor directed his security details to walk his Deputy out of his (Governor’s) office.

    “This statement is entirely false, a figment of the authors’ imagination and a desperate and continuous move to drive a wedge between the Governor and his deputy.

    “For emphasis’ sake, Dr Pius Odubu is a perfect gentleman who is imbued with the principles of honesty, integrity, and respect for authority and above all the fear of God.

    Edo State Government and Governor Adams Oshiomhole have no power to fix, regulate or shift elections as being canvassed by the authors of this falsehood. It is the sole responsibility of INEC to regulate and conduct elections in Nigeria.

    “Edo people should disregard this post as Governor Oshiomhole and Dr Odubu will continue to enjoy a harmonious relationship.

    “Dr Odubu and his supporters have put the issue of the APC Primaries behind them. He is currently mobilising his supporters across the state to campaign and vote en masse for the APC candidate, Mr Godwin Obaseki.”