Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs Senator Babafemi Ojudu is a governorship aspirants in Ekiti State. The All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain spoke with ODUNAYO OGUNMOLA in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, on the primary holding on Saturday and the party’s preparations for the July 14 poll.
You recently concluded a tour of the 177 wards and 16 council areas to meet the delegate. How was it like?
It was quite interesting; that was the second one that I did since I embarked on this project. I went round and we were well received, the evidence of that can be seen in the videos we have posted in the social media. People were ecstatic, I delivered a message of hope to them, I let them know who I am, who I was and where I want to be. I also preached the message of unity, that we can only win this coming election if our party is united. I told them the story of what happened in 2007 when we had thirteen aspirants and one of them won and eleven others quit the party and joined up with the PDP and since then, we have not been able to win election clearly in Ekiti State. I told them that if we fail to unite this time around, it will be very bad for us; I asked them to eschew bitterness, rancor, not to damage anybody’s image. That we all still have to come back united at the end of this primary to win election in Ekiti State. The people warmed up to it and I also let them know that they need a man of courage, somebody who has a history of struggle, somebody who can give a bloody nose to Fayose and his baby. They were happy, they received us warmly and quite a good number of them has been calling ever since, that ‘I may not have campaigned for you in the past but hearing you talk, I am rest assured that you are the right person to fly the flag of our party.
What message do you have for delegates as the primary election beckons?
They should elect someone who can win, they should elect someone with good record, they should elect someone who majority of voters in Ekiti State will vote for. Less than five per cent of the population of this state, are members of our party, Therefore, for them to know who they should vote for, they should go round the state, talk to civil servants, talk to teachers, talk to pensioners, talk to local government workers, talk to market women, talk to farmers, talk to the youths. Ask them, they are all tired of Fayose but who will you put forward for us to win this election? They know, people know that if you ride okada here and strike a discussion with okada riders, they will tell you, if you go to the market, they will tell you, if you call on a pensioner or a teacher, they will tell you that we don’t want this person, we don’t want that person. I have asked them and they said they love our party if we pick the right candidate. Our delegates should ask these questions even if somebody gives them millions of Naira, they should take the money but they should ensure that they vote somebody who can win. In the primary in 2014, at the national level, people collected money from some aspirants and Buhari didn’t give anybody a dime and people still voted for him because they knew Buhari could win election for them. These are the kinds of things I want to tell them, that there are some of us who have been struggling and fighting for Ekiti State and taking a lot of risks on behalf of the people of Ekiti State. They know that I am that one, they should vote for me and I won’t disappoint them, I won’t steal their money, no enquiry set up to probe me in my entire life in public office, I have not stolen any money and I have not been indicted in any way. So, they can trust me.
What makes the Ojudu candidacy different from those of other aspirants, what makes you different from other aspirants?
Again, it has to do with my record in public service, my engagement with the military even when I was not yet an active politician, when I was a journalist. What makes me different is my person, my character; people know that I am a courageous person, I don’t run away from battles. I take up struggles on behalf of the people and secondly, my public record is very clean, sparkling. Nobody can say Ojudu has stolen his money, nobody can say Ojudu has done any deal with anybody in the past and in the present. Another factor is where I come from; Ado-Ekiti has registered voters of 180,000 plus, the next local government to it is Ikere with 65,000. In our party primary, we have thirty three persons contesting across the state. From that population of 180,000, I am the only one contesting from that local government, there is a reason for that. Ado people want their son to be governor this time around and they are backing him with their votes. Oye local government area where Dr. Kayode Fayemi comes from, there are five aspirants there and they are not just pushovers. A former senator is there, a former member of House of Reps is there, former chieftain of PDP who actually won the primary of PDP in 2007 and it was taken from him and given to Segun Oni, is also from there. In Segun Oni’s local government, there is (Muyiwa) Coker, in Emure with less than 40,000 voters, there are two aspirants from there. In Gbonyin, with not to large population of voters, there are two aspirants from there. Same goes for Efon, there are two aspirants from there. I am the only one where we have over 180,000 voters; if Ado supports you in any election, you have won, if Ado is against you in any election, you have lost. I don’t want us to lose this forthcoming election.
Therefore, there is a strong reason for our party members to look at the candidate from Ado, particularly a candidate who is very strong, who is not a pushover, who is brilliant, who is bold and balanced. If they do that, if I am elected and presented as their candidate from the 6th of May, it’s a walkover, it’s a forgone conclusion. Ikere, where Fayose went to pick the candidate for PDP, has 65,000 votes, Ado has 180,000 votes. From that Ikere, there are five aspirants from our party, so all of these are going to come into play. I am having a head start already from these factors I have just told you. I, also can be trusted; I am not arrogant, I am not haughty, I relate freely with people, I move around with them, I eat with them and I am very sincere. Those are the qualities.
What is your message to voters as the July 14 governorship election draws nearer?
My message is that, let us vote to win; don’t let us vote because of money. Yes, people will bring money, take that money, in some cases, it is their money. So, take that money, it is the money they supposed to have used in the past to take care of them; take that money and vote according to your conscience. If you love our party, don’t vote for anybody because he is boasting that he will give delegates N1 million or N2 million because we will later ask them where they got that money from. That is for a later day but take the money first and then do what is going to give glory to our party, APC, what is going to make us win. Do what is going to give you hope; we don’t want to stay outside government again for another four years, we don’t want any remnant of Fayose again in this state after this election. Then, let them know that I have stood by this state over a long period of time, I have taken risks, I have used my resources, I have had some kind of engagement with everyone who is on the field in this state. This man (Fayose) is ruining Ado-Ekiti, he has demolished several homes and rendered thousands of people homeless. He has abused our traditional ruler, so, they are angry and they are poised to punish him by voting for their own son to become governor who will then redesign this state and make this state a good place to live in.
