Ojo: Fayemi’s Election Was a Clean Win
Kayode Ojo, one of the governorship aspirants of the All Progressives Congress in the July 14 election in Ekiti State in this interview with Shola Oyeyipo, dismisses some misgivings about the election. he also addresses other burning issues. Excerpts:
You recently participated in the electoral process, in Ekiti, which culminated in the election of Dr. Kayode Fayemi. You are supposed to be an aspirant of the party. But he won the primary and also went on to win the election. What, generally, is your view on the exercise from the primary through to the election?
Generally, the primary process needs improvement. No doubt about it. We witnessed the main election and the main election I can conveniently say was credible and transparent. It portrayed the general view of the people to change the PDP to a reliable government in the APC.
So, you were satisfied with the process that produced Dr. Kayode Fayemi?
Well, at the end of the day, I will say yes.
Is it because you are a member of APC or you are genuinely saying that as an Ekiti person?
Number one, I am a party person. So, we are not saying the process is perfect. It wasn’t, but at end of the day, there is party supremacy. I know we can continue to improve on the system.
There was a major concern about the exercise and it was what people called vote-buying. It wasn’t peculiar to Ekiti but the dimension it took in Ekiti was disturbing. A lot of people tagged it ‘see and buy, and it was actually done by both parties. Do you not think the outcome of the election could have been tainted by that development?
People were talking about ‘see and buy’; I didn’t see anything in my polling unit, where I voted. So, I can’t say whether anyone bought people. What I didn’t see, I can’t comment on it. But I was told PDP gave some people money – N4000 or something, but what I didn’t see, I can’t corroborate.
But I will say this, for people in Ekiti, the poverty rate is extremely high and even if you give to people any little thing, they might say ‘he is trying to induce me’.
I went throughout the state in 18 months trying to campaign for the primary. You have to take care of everybody – from people trying to buy basic food to those who want to pay school fees of their kids, some to help them go for treatment and all of those, so, what do you call all of that?
Ekiti politics, until we get a good government that is going to help the people out of poverty, money is always going to be an issue.
There was tension in the build-up to the exercise. A lot of people thought that your party was going to descend heavily with its federal might, so, the opposition had alleged the abuse of power to intimidate the opposition. Did you see such indications and in what way does it typify change?
Look, ask anyone that was in Ekiti in 2014; that lived through 2014 and that lived through this July election, they will tell you it is like comparing death to sleep. There was nothing like federal might in the July 14 election. The policemen that were there were there to maintain law and order and security. Nobody was harassed. All the PDP chieftains and leaders were moving around. They were doing their things normally.
In 2014, some APC leaders were arrested, some of them were taken to the next state and dropped to walk back home. They didn’t even have a chance to vote. They couldn’t vote! But in this election, all the PDP were there. They were able to do what they had to do. I know President Buhari a bit. I know he does not believe in shenanigans and to deny people their rights. There was nothing like federal might in Ekiti.
The eventual emergence of Dr. Fayemi is what some people have described as ‘conspiracy of the elite, because they feel the elite at some point they came together to push Governor Fayose out, but when you look at the result of the election, is it not disappointing on the part of the so-called elite that in spite of everything, the difference was less than 20,000 votes. How do you explain that?
Well, I understand where you are coming from but the fact is that in any election you only win by a simple majority. That is what is important. It is not the margin, even if it is by one vote. So, that was what the APC was concerned about. We are not concerned if we won by 200,000 or 1 million votes so that we can change the narrative of Ekiti state from the image you just mentioned, which was terribly negative.
Apart from this image, there is nothing you can really hold on to in Ekiti in almost four years. There is nothing on the ground. It was just last month (July) that January salary was paid. People have not been paid and they are going to vote for the man, who more or less was acting like he was going to vie for a third term. He didn’t even allow the candidate to sell his programmes. I don’t know whether you watched the clip on Channels TV when the anchor asked: “What can you say you have done for the people” and he said, “Why are you asking that kind of question? Last week, I was still frying garri with my people”. Please, is that an achievement?
You, other guys, are completely elitist. Do you think this is going to change the impression of leadership in the state, given the way they have cheered on the incumbent?
We are not all elitist. I am not elitist. I campaigned in Ekiti for 18 months. I was there with the people, but I don’t do it for the show. I can stop by if I want to buy boli. I can get down from my car and choose the one I want to buy. It is because I need it that I want to do that, not because I want to buy ponmo so that I drive 200 miles and throw it away. That is what Fayose does. It is not that he takes the ponmo home to go and eat. He throws it away. So, we are not elitist. Dr. Fayemi has his own style. Everybody has his own style. When I was there, I went to the joints to have at least a bottle of beer with the guys and they appreciated that. I know that Ekiti people want you to come to their level. If you have anybody in Ekiti ask, the people there like me. They want me because they know me. I am not elitist. I can relate to the elite and I can also relate with the common people. You cannot blame Dr. Fayemi if he cannot to go to the bear parlour and have pepper soup. What is important is the dividend of democracy that he is going to give to the people to make their lives better.
Is it true that you’ve offered to work with Dr. Fayemi?
Absolutely!
In what capacity are you offering yourself for service?
In any area, they need my help. I am ready to make sure the government succeeds. That is the most important thing. It is for the government to succeed because it is when the government succeeds that we can have continuity and my eyes are on that continuity.
What challenges do you think Fayemi might start off with?
Number one is the debt. The state is in very heavy debt. The amount of debt this government has racked up is high, even though I don’t have the actual figures. I know we are in a serious situation. I think the biggest challenge he is going to face is on the finances of the state. How is he going to get money? How is going to be able to take care of all the backlog of salaries that are being owed and at the same time be able to pay the current salaries and then go to capital projects and all the other expenditures?
He will take care of the people. So, I know it is going to be extremely difficult. After the first time of Dr. Fayemi, he has gone out to be a minister and gathered experience. He has mingled with people and I believe this his second coming would be much better.
Nationally, a lot is happening on the political turf. There have been defections and impeachments, lest anyone forgets that your party promised change. Are you impressed with the change the people are being served?
Let me tell you something about politics that I know and I am sure is the truth, it is that every politician is in politics because of what he wants to be and then to be able to translate that to the people – to be able to help them. If you look at the situation and you look at the calculation, politics is also about mathematics and you look at that calculation and you see that your two plus two is not going to get you four in a particular place and you know that two plus two is going to be four in another place, you’re almost bound to see if you can explore your end game there. That is what is happening.
If the president was not running for the second term, I can tell most of those leaving wouldn’t have left, because most of them want to be president and they know that there is no way they can defeat the president at the primaries and they don’t want to wait. Also, if you look at it, especially the guys from the north, they know that if President Buhari finishes the second term they probably would have to wait another 16 years before it gets back to them. For example, add 16 years to the age of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar. Is he not 74 now? He would be 90 years old! We are not Malaysia that they just elected a 93-years-old man. So, he knows that for him now, it is his last dice, so he has to throw the dice anyway. But throwing that dice as a politician then you must have some excuses why you need to move and all these. That is what is going on.
But it possibly can’t be that everyone who has left or who will be leaving is doing so because they want to be president?
Some people are aggrieved. I read but I don’t know how far it is true that the Senate President was saying all the appointments went to Lagos and Katsina. That he wasn’t given slot. The Speaker too was not given slot.
But that is public knowledge, isn’t it?
If that is true, I think there are better ways to handle that. We are almost at the end of the term. This is not the time. It could have been said about a year ago. If all that you have said is true, I think the Senate President should have remained in the party and fight from inside to correct all the anomalies. Then build a closer relationship. Maybe you spoke to the president and he did not act immediately, it is not all of us that act now-now. Some people take their time before they take action or act. If I were him, I would have continued to talk, even if it means I had to meet the president every day or every other day, except he doesn’t want to see me.
Do you know how many times they have been itching to see him before the whole thing went south?
Well, I believe with Adams Oshiomhole as the new chairman, people may say he is a little bit brash, he is definitely more active. I would have worked with the chairman of the party, who is ready to listen or ready to take action, even to confront the president if need be and say, ‘hey, we need to do this’. I think if he had done that, what I think the people didn’t see in him is maybe they didn’t see some real genuine sincerity in his grievances. You know sincerity can come with okay, this man is sincere, that is the way I actually see these things.
What’s your take about the state of security generally in the country?
Well, the security has somehow been challenging. From what I read in the news about all those killings, kidnappings and all those things going on, of course, the security situation of the country is still very much challenging and I think a lot more needs to be done in that area.
(See concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)