What is the agenda of G15?
The purpose is for us to promote and project the good policies of
this administration and position our people to benefit; as it is now,
there is a disconnect between what is happening in Abuja and the common
people. For example, my mother doesn’t know what the Minister of
Agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi is doing in the agricultural sector. My uncle
doesn’t know how to benefit from the N220billion lying fallow in the
Bank of Agriculture. We try to organize our people to know that there is
something good in this administration.
Nonetheless, in the South-West, there is a disconnect between the leadership and the masses. That is the gap we want to bridge.
What is your take on GEJ’s endorsement?
Well, the endorsement of Mr. President is a confirmation that nobody,
no group throws away a winning team. Every nation has its own brand of
democracy depending on the peculiarity of the situation. The kind of
the situation we have in Nigeria today demands that we have our own
homegrown democracy that will help democracy and consolidate on the
gains of the past. I see Mr. President as a foundation builder, who is
laying a solid foundation for the greatness of this nation. And if you
are going to build a tower, the structure doesn’t come out until the
foundation is well entrenched underneath. And the foundation is usually
not seen. So, we need some time for us to consolidate on the laudable
achievements of this Goodluck administration. So, his endorsement gave
credence to our clamour that this man must continue and consolidate some
of the gains of this transformation agenda and policies until they
begin to materialize. Then, others that are coming after him can now
build on it. So, we have been vindicated and it is our own brand of
democracy, which is good for the country.
Why the move to gather 4 million votes for Mr. President.
We have it all mapped out in the eight states that we cover, where we
have our state directors and we have given our people target. For
example, the last meeting I held with my directors in Ondo State, we
have 1.4million registered voters in the state and we have asked them to
target to mobilize 400, 000 voters across the 3, 231units.
Our structure is such that at the state level, we have the state
directors, at local government level, we have local coordinators, at
the ward levels, we have the supervisors; at unit level, we have the
leaders. So, what we do is just to mandate the leaders to get so and so
numbers of people.
For example, in Ondo State, we just need to mobilize 125 people; not
party members, that is what differentiates us from other groups; but
voters with voters’ cards and registration numbers.
So, we have given our group target. When we sum it up, Ondo State is
to mobilize 400,000; Ekiti State is to mobilize 600, 000 of 1.7million
voters; Oyo State is to mobilize 800,000 out of 2.4million voters, and
so on. We have our statistics ready and we have structure in place to
actually deliver.
Why South-west people must vote Jonathan
One of the closest officers to Mr. President today, in person of the
Chief of Staff, who organizes everything, is from South West. Though a
domestic staff, he is also a powerful mobiliser. He may not have a
ministry or budget but he organizes things around the President. He’s a
highly influential officer from the South West in the present
administration.
The grudges of the past is borne out of the selfish interest of some
powerful individuals, whose political interest is entrenched but now in
jeopardy in South West; who connived with others to deny the people the
rights that belong to us for their own selfish gain. We all know that
the position of the Speaker of the House of Representatives ordinarily
should be for the South West. And we all know how this position was
shifted away from us thereby denying us the No. 4 position. So, the
problem of South West was not orchestrated by Mr. President but
homegrown by us.
That is what we stand to correct by coming out to say we deserve a
better treatment; we deserve to educate our people that it doesn’t pay
anybody to be in the opposition; it doesn’t pay anybody to be selfish
for their selfish interest and deny millions of people their rights. In
the second dispensation, I expect South West to be treated fairly.
How do you feel about the PDP in South West and its crises?
Yes, while we are using this medium to urge our leaders to speak with
one voice. We know that in politics, it is all about self interest.
Is pecuniary interest among members of the party the cause of the crisis?
I have heard that severally. But our people have a timid way of
condemning what is not achievable or inconceivable by them. In
politics, everybody is involved because you are involved. So, one way or
the other, you must be involved in a process that will make somebody
embark on policies that will affect one and his generation. You have a
right to the emergence of such person.
So, nobody is being driven by pecuniary reason. It is either they are
afraid to go into the murky water they call politics or they are afraid
to voice out their opinion. And in any situation, there are always
actors, there are commentators and there are watchers. So, theirs is
the work of commentators. They are free to comment.
But we know why our group has come out. This is because there is a
disconnect between people in government and the masses. The masses do
not truly know the importance of the far-reaching decisions President
Jonathan has made upon their lives and upon their children. So, this is
why we say let us educate our people; let them see something good with
Jonathan.
Do you think President Jonathan is overwhelmed by the challenges facing him?
Many people are ignorant of the enormity of problems confronting
Nigeria. Our people have an adage that if trees fell over themselves, a
sensible person will first of all cut the one that is on top. I have
taken my time to study and examine our President and I think we have one
of the most intelligent Presidents that we ever had in Nigeria. He is
not a Mr. Quick-Fix but surely a Mr. Sure-Fix. At any point in time, I
will not subscribe to it that the President is overwhelmed. Many of
those criticising him cannot even manage their own home not to talk of
managing a volatile country such as Nigeria.
He is handling the issue if security; he is handling the issue of
unemployment; he is handling the issue of power. Look at how he dealt
with the issue of power. In the next four, five years, power will never
be a problem with Nigeria because some past administration spent
billions of dollars with nothing to show for it. Within four years, we
have marginally moved from 2, 000 megawatts to 4, 500 megawatts but
we’re targeting 5, 000 megawatts before the end of the year which is
achievable going by the structure on ground.
Thursday, 13 November 2014
‘Jonathan deserves 2nd term’
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