The Chairman of House of Representatives Committee on Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), Dr. Aderemi Oseni, represents Ido/Ibarapa Constituency. He spoke with reporters in Lagos on the Federal Government’s infrastructure battle, voter registration, challenges confronting Oyo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and preparations for 2027 governorship poll
Amid the rift in the Oyo APC, you set up the Remi Oseni Committee of Friends (ROCOF). Does this suggest a lack of confidence in your party?
This is not so in any way. ROCOF is not a rival to APC. And it can never be. Rather, it is an initiative that will complement what our party is doing in Oyo State. The vision transcends Oyo State, though it started there. It is a movement we are using to mobilise support for the reelection of President Tinubu in 2027 and as well for my own political aspiration. Its membership transcends one political party, religious group or ethnic nationality. It is a movement of likeminds that resolve to mobilise support for President Tinubu and I. The reason is not far-fetched. The task ahead is huge. We cannot leave it to our great party alone. To achieve at least 75% voter turnout in 2027, we need to deploy diverse approaches to mobilise popular support for all our candidates. In most cases, many candidates don’t really succeed during elections. This happens because most people are induced to vote against the popular and right candidate. Some party members will collect money from different candidates and engage in anti-party activities. They work for another candidate while on another party’s campaign train for an election. But when you have a movement like ROCOF that mobilises people for a definite cause; educate them properly and encourage them to perform their civic duty, the outcome of the process will be different and outstanding. We are bringing together people who believe the success of their candidate during and after elections are their priority. This is basically what we are doing with ROCOF in Oyo State and beyond.
The performance of the APC during the last bye-election was not impressive by all standards. Why did the APC lose the by-election?
First of all, let me educate you a little about the last by-election in the Ibadan North. Our party did not understand that they were running a by-election. As you all know, a by-election is not a conventional election. It is not like the general election. It is an election where you will be contesting with the ruling party in the state or the opposition party. It depends on who you are. Like us, we were contesting as the opposition party. But my party did not understand that aspect. I think this is the first challenge we had in that by-election. Also, if you want to fight against the ruling party in a state like Oyo State and win such an election, the strategy you deploy should be carefully designed to achieve the desired purpose. It should not be a strategy that was hurriedly put together. I think we got it wrong in this area. Already, we have learnt our lessons. We have also gone to the drawing board in preparation for the general election. I believe our approach to the 2027 elections will be different.
How are you and other party leaders building the Oyo APC to avoid the repeat of what happened during the by-election in the 2027 general election?
I am happy that everyone knows fundamental mistakes have been made. But how do we get out of where we are now? Like I said earlier, we have returned to the drawing board already. It has become our collective responsibility to work out how we can bring the Oyo APC back on track. We have realised our mistakes, particularly before and during the just concluded by-election. In that process, we managed to poll 8,312 votes compared to 18,404 scored by the PDP. This outcome does not really represent the standing of APC in Oyo State. It only reveals the weakness of our approach to the by-election. The good thing is that all of us are now working hard together to bring the APC back on track.
Where exactly does your interest lie with respect to 2027? Put differently, what is your next political aspiration?
I’m not overly ambitious. My primary interest is to see the Oyo APC back on track, first and foremost. That is what I am working for along with other leaders of our party. Once we resolve it and the party is positioned for a landslide in all political contests, then other things will fall in place automatically. To the glory of God, I’m a minister of God. As Apostle Paul said, I am what I am by His grace. My decision to venture into politics is basically to serve the people and nothing more. If I’m privileged, I will serve wholeheartedly. If I’m not privileged, the decision of my party prevails. That does not mean I will quit my party. This suggests that my aspiration to serve is a do-or-die one. But when desirability is not available, availability becomes desirable. That is the reason I chose to present myself to support the country as a nation. People always believe Christians have no business in politics. But I have challenged that notion because politics is the business of governance, and it is not for people who have nothing to offer the people or who do not have the interest of the people at heart. It is not meant for everybody, but for those who can make a difference in power.If you leave it to the people that are available, you will be governed by anybody who presents himself for the available office. If you’re a medical doctor, you cannot be allowed to become a governor on that basis alone. You must be sponsored by a political party as required by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended). If you now leave it only to people that are available, we will be managed by mediocre. That is why we are where we are today.
Specifically, are you interested in becoming Governor of Oyo State, given the pivotal role you are playing to unite the leaders of the APC? Or do you plan to return to the House of Representatives or the Senate?
This question means you have been following what I have been saying all this time. In life, if you want to be great, you must finance greatness. If you are not ready to finance it, there is no way you can be great. What I am doing currently is to position myself for higher responsibility. It is to present myself for my party and let them know that when there are challenges, it is not that we do not have what it takes to win the election. All they need to do is to look inward and search the right candidates for all available political offices, whether executive office or legislative seats. That is what I mean by when desirability is not available, availability will become desirable. As it is now, what I have built for my party now through ROCOF is enough for us to win any election any day. That is my own way of helping the Oyo APC apart from peace initiatives we are taking to put the party back on the path to victory. Already, we have over 200,000 members. All of them with Identity Cards. What I’m doing is to tell people that governance is not an exclusive club. Governance is more than desiring an office, neither is it a birthright. That is why we have to develop a capacity for our people to enable them to understand they can have better opportunities. We also need to understand that the governorship election is not a tea party. You do not just wake up and desire to become the governor of your state. You cannot come out without adequate preparation and announce to the whole world that you want to contest for the Office of the Governor. It is more than a mere declaration. It requires a lot of qualities and preparations. Any person, who desires such a position, will get to a point when he will be convinced that it is time for him to move forward. If you fail to lay a solid foundation for the aspiration, I can tell you sincerely that it will not go far. As for me, we have not got to the point of declaration. When we get there, the path will be clearer. That is why I believe it is not a tea-party affair. If you want to be a governor, you need to lay a foundation, a solid one indeed. You need to connect with the grassroots, the party, and with the leaders. It is deep. It is not just about having the financial strength. Those factors must be well earned. When those qualities have been earned, you do not need to be told again that you are ripe for the contest. It is just a common sense that you must know if you are contesting for the governorship election. As a politician, you will be able to identify key factors – strength, weakness, opportunities, and threat. That is what we call SWOT analysis, which means those who can poll more votes or secure popular support should be presented for the general election. I know in the couple of months to come, we will know what to do. I need to equally say that this is not a do-or-die affair. If the opportunity presents itself, I do so. Whatever the party leaders want is what I will do.
Ibadan, which falls to Oyo South, has consistently been producing governors in Oyo State, except on one or two occasions. Why is Ibadan always against governorship zoning to Oyo Central or Oyo North?
Honestly, this is one of the questions people have been asking me in recent times. For me, that is grace. You cannot fight grace in life. It is not the responsibility of the Ibadan people to produce governors from Ibarapa or Oke Ogun. It is the responsibility of the elders of the state to come together; meet the people of Ibarapa, Ibadan and Okeogun as well as work out an understanding on how to rotate Office of the Governor among the zones. It is possible, but we have to be deliberate and decisive about such an arrangement. With a clear understanding among the elders of the state, we can rotate it zone by zone. Look at the Niger Delta, for instance. It is not the business of Nigeria for somebody to be located in Bayelsa or River State. If we are making noise in Ibadan that they are not sharing oil derivation with us, then you will understand where I’m coming from. That is about grace. All oil funds they are receiving on a regular basis was by way of grace. I have given more than enough advice on how Okeogun or Ibarapa can produce governors in Oyo State. If I were the Governor of Oyo State, I would be the one who could hand power over to somebody in Okeogun. If Governor Seyi Makinde has already planned to hand over somebody from Okeogun or Ibarapa, you do not need to change that narrative. It is his mental decision. If I’m the one in charge, I will meet with all the notable Ibadan indigents. I will convene a summit where I will educate them on the need to allow other senatorial districts to produce governors. When I finish my tenure, I am going to hand over power to other parts of the states. You will bring them on board. You will negotiate it with them. You will discuss with them. You will now invite all the leaders from Okeogun. You arrive at a decision. The decision reached at the meeting will inform you of the way the incumbent administration will spread your projects. I think that is a possibility.
Do you think such an understanding can be brokered with the population of Ibadan?
The probability is very high if we bring all elders on boards and no attempt is made to reduce governance to sectional politics. One of the ways this can be done is, other zones – Ibadan, Okeogun, Ogbomosho, and Ibarapa – will organise a summit and decide to present a candidate who will contest for the Office of the Governor.
This is irrespective of the party to which the person may belong. Also, they will agree that there is no zone that will accept that their son should be deputy to any candidate. Once this happens, all the political parties will narrow their candidates to one zone. When the election comes, they can decide as a zone that irrespective of the number of votes that come from Ibadan, they will vote for the candidate that their zone has presented for the contest. If you look at the way our election is, Ibadan has about 40 percent of the total results. Okeogun has about 30% of the total votes. You must understand that they vote in blocks. This is due to the communal lifestyle where everyone relates peacefully. If you come to my federal constituency, there is a ward that 90% of the people there are non-indigenes. I have an idea of this due to my grassroots knowledge. If you are not on the ground, you cannot persuade the people to vote in this direction. But once they talk to themselves, they call it “Ibo Olojukan” (a uni-directional voting pattern). That is how other zones can produce governors in Oyo State.
You insinuated earlier that most votesAPC got during the 2023 general election were through your effort and some members of the party. But we knew Governor Makinde helped President Bola Tinubu during the presidential election due to disagreement with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. It also appears like the governor may not work for President Tinubu in 2027 because of his presidential aspiration. Is it one of the reasons for the outcome of the last by-election in Ibadan North?
Let me quickly make some clarification at this point. First, I’m a modest person by all standards. Second, as I said, I’m a minister in the temple of God. As Apostle Paul said in the Scripture, we are what we are by His grace. In the 2023 election, Governor Seyi Makinde might have worked for APC, just like you have said. I did not say that. In my federal constituency, however, he did not do one single work. If he did, let him come and prove it with hard facts. I will tell you clearly, and it was in this constituency that the governor invited all the traditional rulers three days before the election and asked to work against me and ensure that I did not win the poll. I stand to be quoted. He embarked on this mission then because he clearly understood my strength among my people.
Did he campaign for Vice President Atiku?
Do you mean Governor Makinde? That is not my business. I contested the federal legislative election on the platform of the APC. I did not have to disturb myself about who was campaigning for this or that candidate. At that time, my commitment was to ensure that all candidates of the APC, including me, won their elections in Oyo State. Who was working was not my business. That is why we now set up ROCOF, a dynamic, non-political, non-religious, and non-ethnic forum that brings likeminds together for the rebirth of Oyo State and Nigeria. At ROCOF, we are not distracted in any way. With what we have embarked upon, we project to have at least 500,000 members by the end of this year. Irrespective of who you are or whichever party you belong, I will be in a position, by the grace of God, to present to the Oyo APC massive support we have consciously mobilised through ROCOF. If Governor Makinde could leave his comfort zone and come to my constituency head office in Ido Local Government to appeal to all traditional rulers to work against me during the 2023 general election, it means we have to be more deliberate and strategic in our approach to the 2027 general election. Honestly, I try to be as civil as I can. It was the grace of God that didn’t turn his request into a crisis for the ruling party at that time because it was a game that was already closed. The same thing happened in the chairmanship election, I returned home and embarked on an aggressive campaign to ensure that I still delivered the two.
