Alhaji Adebayo Shittu, a lawyer, came into limelight in 1979, following his election into the Oyo State House of Assembly on the platform of the defunct Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN). The Saki-born former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice is an All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirant. He spoke with TAJUDEEN ADEBANJO on the political situation in the Pacesetter State, the Ajimobi Administration, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s quest for power shift and other issues.
Why are you contesting for the governorship in the APC when you know that Governor Abiola Ajimobi is interested in a second term?
It is not a constitutional right; it is a privilege to serve two terms in office. It is not a constitutional right that the incumbent must automatically fly the flag of the APC in 2015 election. Constitutionally, every governor spends four years. After four years, if he succeeds, he goes for another four years. I have a right as a member of the APC to also seek for the ticket of the party. And based on the peoples’ assessment, particularly the assessment of the members of our party, if the incumbent has done well and the party can guarantee that, with him as the flag bearer in 2015, he could deliver votes for the APC, he may get the nod. If on the other side, our party finds out that it will be too risky to present him for the governorship election in 2015, as I am sure that is the situation, I believe that members of the party would elect me at the primaries and I can assure you that in the Oyo APC today, I am the only person who can rescue the the APC from imminent electoral defeat I because the entire goodwill that the governor had in the 2011 election has been blown off and today, there are disenchantments within the Oyo APC. Many people have grudges against the style of the governor.
Could you shed light on what you have described as the style of the governor?
To start with, a man may think he is doing well, but his best may not the best for the state. If you look at his scorecard, he has done very well in infrastructural development within the Ibadan inner city and, may be, in three other towns and Oyo State is far bigger than that. We have about 33 local governments. He has also done well in the beautification of streets by growing flowers and providing water to sustain these flowers. He has done well in sanitation and transportation. If you look at the educational sector, I have not seen any achievement by the government. For instance, lately, he just tried to embark on the white elephant project of six model schools across the state in a situation where, for instance, Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State have built more than 30 schools and completed their constructions with 27 new ones in various state of completion. But, our governor is just starting with six when he has about six months to the end of his administration. So, you won’t call that a pass mark, compared to what a sister APC state is doing.
In the area of employment, right now, there are more than 100,000 graduates in the state who are walking down the streets without job. Even, graduates of agriculture in their thousands are walking the streets jobless in a state where we have a fantastic productive soil; in a state when the sun shines when it should shine and when the rain falls when it should fall and this is one area where you should never have a problem.
People are frustrated. Besides, if you look at the 2011 election that brought our governor into office, he defeated the PDP governor by just 33,000 votes. Compare that with Governor Aregbesola who defeated the PDP with 103,000 votes. Come to think of it, you would recall that his triumph at that election was made possible because there was crisis in the PDP and PDP leaders particularly from Ibadan-Senator Teslim Folarin; Afeez Gbolarunmi; Alhaji Yekini Adeojo, Senator Lekan Balogun and Wole Oyelese-supported him. They all work for Governor Ajimobi; they abandoned their party at that time worked for him and that resulted in victory for Governor Ajimobi. Unfortunately, all of those who came from the PDP to work for him have gone back to their party because our governor was not grateful enough in action and speech.
What do you mean by ‘grateful enough’?
Well, if you have a benefactor and suddenly, the benefactor turns his back at you, what does that imply? Politics and leadership are about inclusiveness and not exclusiveness; when people work for you, you try to show them gratitude. Again, apart from the people who helped him to win the 2011 election, even erstwhile ACN members like Sharafdeen Abiodun Ali, Senator Femi Lanlehin, Senator Ayo Adeseun and some members of the House of Representatives from the ACN have also left the APC out of annoyance and disenchantment. So, you want to ask, could it be all of these people are bad not the one person who is a governor and who is in the better position to show leadership; he suppose to know the way he will give them the sense of belonging and show that leadership and governance is not about one person.
Again, in Oyo State today, market men and women are not happy with our governor, traders and civil servants are not happy with our governor; the okada riders are not happy, transporters are not happy and today, if you walk down the streets of Oyo State and they see the symbol of the APC with you, the next thing they will say in Yoruba language is E fe e je tan na. That cannot be a commendable statement. So, these are things you would see and assess and I know that for the APC in Oyo state, there is fire on the mountain come 2015 elections.
What is the way out?
Before I answer your question, this would not be the first time, but we hope to pray it does not come to pass because in 2003, the AD lost election, at that time, the flag bearer was Governor Lam Adesina, the party lost in 2003, lost in 2007 and won in 2011 only because of the contributions of PDP stalwarts. If in 2011, Akala has been change as the flag bearer of the PDP. If they had look for another candidate, who has not offended party members and the electorate, then, the PDP would have won that election.
In Ekiti, we know what happened. During the APC primary election in Ekiti, Fayemi recorded 177,000 votes for endorsement. Unfortunately, he could not score that figure during the governorship election. That led to his defeat. The way out for us in Oyo State is to appreciate that a second term ticket for Governor Abiola Ajimobi is political suicide.
We cannot win, if he gets the ticket and that is why a lot of PDP leaders, a lot of Accord party members, a lot of Labour Party members are praying for Ajimobi to get the APC ticket so that they can defeat him.The signs are also there for our party members, the signs are there on the wall and it is for us to make hay while the sunshine.
What are your plans for the state?
I have seven cardinal programmes; I have always prided myself as a graduate of Awolowo School of politics. s a student of the great University of Ife, I was a member of a Committee of Friends, which produced the four cardinal manifesto of the UPN, which was the platform we used for elections in 1979. I have learnt a lot from the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo and my manifesto is formulated along his ideals. What were these ideals? The goal of governance must be the best interest of the majority of the people. I would spend greater part of my budget on what would benefit the majority and not on white elephant projects. The programme that touch the welfare of citizens of Oyo state.
I will implement free education at all levels and I mean it. It’s unfortunate that, since Chief Obafemi Awolowo left in Yorubaland, we have never had any government which has implemented that programme.
I want to revisit that, you know I want to implement it, I want to show to the world that with the best brain that God has endowed us with we can after all implement free education. What do I mean by that? Education in my government will be completely free at the primary school level; at the secondary school level; at the university level; at the polytechnic level; at the colleges of education level and so on and so forth. I mean government will take over the payment of school fees, I would not want to see a situation where any child of Oyo state is excluded from access to higher education because he does not have the means or his parents do not have the means to finance his education.
I intend to produce a hundred of millionaires in Oyo State by the time I completed my first four-year tenure in office.
What would you do, if you don’t get your party’s ticket?
If the primary election goes in free and fair atmosphere and it is acceptable, I will remain with the party and work for the success of the party no matter who emerges.
