WE WON'T ALLOW VIOLENCE DURING ONDO GOV POLL-----ONDO GOV

Ondo State Deputy Governor, Alhaji Lasisi Oluboyo, in this interview with ADE AKANBI, speaks on many issues bothering on politics, especially the forthcoming governorship election in the state

As the deputy governor of Ondo State, What is your view about a claim that deputy governors are ‘spare tyres’?

I am privileged to serve as the deputy governor of Ondo State. The time I have spent is very challenging and interesting. The state governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko is a leader that develops leaders and I owe him a lot of appreciation. I cannot talk about other deputy governors, but in my own case, I see a deputy governor as a partner in progress. I also see a deputy governor as somebody to assist his boss, the governor and stand for him when he is not around. So in my own case, I think Governor Mimiko has been fair to me. Within the short period of being the deputy governor, I have acted as the Chairman of the Executive Council meeting more than nine times. I have represented him (Mimiko) at the National Economic Committee in Abuja twice. I have also represented him in the Governors’ Forum and many other places. It depends on whether you have a capable, reliable, and agile person who can deliver as your deputy governor. You will saddle such a person with responsibility. So the office of a deputy governor is not a ‘spare tyre’ position but a helping hand and you can see that the governor has more time to be involved in politicking. He (Mimiko) is the Chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum and not only that, he attends to so many issues both within and outside the state.

Do you think the PDP will retain power in Ondo State, bearing in mind that the party is no more in power at the federal level?

It is the people of Ondo State who will choose their leader and I want to assure you that with the achievements of the PDP in the state, I don’t see any party giving us a serious fight. Our party has done a lot as far as the development of the state is concerned. We have overwhelming support and we have a lot of ongoing projects and before the end of this administration, all the projects will be completed.

How do you think all the projects embarked upon by your administration will be sustained after you must have left office?

It is not over until it is over. We still have some months to go. Mimiko has promised to work for the people of the state and he is still working and that is why people are worried about who succeeds him because everybody wants sustainability. We want the good works to continue and that is why we need prayers. We need prayers in the state because we don’t want a situation where someone will just come and cancel the mega schools project and free shuttle buses, among others. If you look at all these programmes, you will know that they are people-oriented. They touch the lives of both the poor and the rich, so we pray that the Ondo State people will appreciate these developments. That is why we should think more about who will succeed the governor. We started this struggle together even in the dark days when people thought Mimiko would not get anywhere because they had some godfathers somewhere. The people of the state are different from other states. If the current relationship between the governor and the people can be maintained and sustained till the time of election, I am sure that they will vote for the PDP again. What the people need is sincerity of purpose which the governor is providing. Because of the prudence of the government and sincerity of purpose of this administration, we have been able to move ahead of other states. The construction of Oba-Ile road is going on and if the governor is working at this time of dwindling oil revenue, you will know that it is God’s hand. I want to assure you that if we can sustain these achievements, our people will vote for the PDP in the next governorship election.

The next governorship election is some months away and the All Progressives Congress has said it will win the state, how are you taking this development?

It is not the making of noise that matters. Some of us are silent politicians; I don’t make a noise because I don’t know how to make a noise but I win all my elections. I have been in this game since 1979. In the Bible, it was recorded that I know my people and my people know me. Let me go back memory lane. In 2007, Mimiko did not come out until November 2006 and he defeated a sitting governor that had a federal backing; the people voted for us and we uprooted them. I want you to know that Ondo State is a very unique state and the people here are educated; they compare and contrast. Let the APC show us what it has done at the federal level. Who tells you that the PDP is not going to win the next governorship election in Ondo State? I can assure you that Mimiko will also pass the mantle to another PDP member who will rule for eight years. Making a noise is not the game. You know we have a marriage between the old PDP and the old Labour Party and why we did not perform well at the last general elections was because we had some challenges. We are settling down with these appointments going on. The governor just appointed four commissioners and out of them, two are from the old PDP and that is to tell you that the unification is gradually taking shape. Then if you look at the boards and the parastatals that had earlier been released, both sides had gotten appointments. What is next after the remaining ones have been done will be to talk about party executives from the ward and local levels. Later, meetings will start. We will be telling the people what our party has done and this is where we are and where we are going. During the 2012 governorship election in the state, they made a noise but what did their noise achieve for them? You can see the margin that the PDP used to defeat them. So, in the next governorship election, the PDP will win again.

There is an insinuation in some quarters that you are likely to succeed your boss, do you have such a plan?

Planning to succeed him is not part of our agreement. It is a wrong perception that I will succeed him. I am the deputy governor and my target is to carry out my responsibility, support my boss and be loyal to him. To succeed the governor is not part of our agreement and we do not discuss that at all. I pray that a PDP person should continue after his tenure. Secondly, competent people from our party have been showing interest and I’m not part of them, the candidate of the party will be my candidate and whoever the party chooses is whom I will support.

Where do you think the PDP should pick its candidates from in the three senatorial districts of the state because it seems you are not popular in Ondo North?

You are not correct by saying we are not popular in the North. I can assure you that we will win all the local governments in the North in the coming election. It is only in the South-West that we have a problem but I will not disclose what we intend to do there, just wait and see. What we want is a free and fair election. If it is violence-free, and the Independent National Electoral Commission is able to maintain its integrity and neutrality, I can assure you that this election is going to be won by the PDP. There won’t be violence in the election. Ondo State people are educated and we know what we are doing. I cannot fight because of an election. I cannot even snatch a ballot box; I have never done that in my life. We are a product of the rule of law, so the election is going to be violence-free and I have mentioned the local governments where we are very sure of victory. Even those places they thought are their strongholds, we are going to defeat them there. I am happy some of our party members have come out to show their interest. The APC does not exist in Ondo State. I have said it times without number that the party is nowhere to be found. By the time we start politics proper, we are going to showcase our achievements. Look at the Dome; they were criticising Mimiko when we started Shoprite. Go there now and see it yourself, don’t forget that very soon a five-star hotel is coming up at the very large part of the Owena Hotel and the entire axis will become an industrial area. The people of the state will continue to appreciate Mimiko because he is a visionary leader. When he declared in 2006, he said he wanted Akure to look like London in the night. Look at what is happening now. Go out in the night and see what is happening in Akure. We spent up to N26m on diesel to power the city.

The opposition often accuse your government of non-regular payment of workers’ salaries and the debt of the state, what is your comment on this?

It is because they do not know anything about this administration. We have the least debt profile. As I am talking to you now, we do not owe up to N30bn and you are talking about salaries for how many months? By God’s grace, we owe only two months’ salaries now. We owe November and December. Go to Osun and Oyo states that refused to appoint commissioners, and you know what that means when you don’t have commissioners because the cost of governance will be low. How many months do those states owe? I don’t understand when they say we are creating debt for Ondo State and for your information; in another five to six years what we would be getting from the Dome will be huge. If some other states owe over N100bn and they are not able to pay six, seven months’ salaries, can you say Ondo State owes?

SOURCE: PUNCH