The gubernatorial candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the 2019 governorship election in Oyo State, a legal luminary, Chief Bolaji Ayorinde, has said that Governor Makinde’s agitation in the Peoples Democratic Party debacle, was not for selfish reason, but asking for fairness, equity justice among the geo-political zones in Nigeria.
The legal luminary stated this while addressing journalists in Ibadan yesterday on the crisis rocking the leadership of the party on the sharing of positions.
Chief Ayorinde explained the reason of the aggrieved G-5 governor’s as seeking for proper restructuring of the party in oder for all the component part of the country to have a sense of belonging.
He added that the agitation of the G-5 governor’s is not about fighting for their personal benefit or gain but they are asking for situation whereby the party would have a strong footing and all the members will have a sense of belonging.
When he was quizzed on the chances of Governor Makinde at the forthcoming general elections in the state, Ayorinde noted that Makinde’s performance would speak for him from what he has been able to deliver in his first term to the people of the state.
He said: “First of all you have to appreciate the position of the G-5. Personally, I do not think they are agitating for themselves. You see, they are in a political party where they are calling into question the current structure of the party.”
“It is not Governor Makinde who wants to be the chairman of PDP, it is not Ortom or Governor Wike not at all.”
“The point they make is that if PDP cannot be properly structured as a party, if they win election how will they restructure Nigeria? So that all the component part of this country will have a sense of belonging.”
“And the morning shows the afternoon not to talk of the night that is their agitations.”
“I hope people can see that it is not about their personal benefit or gain from whatever is happening in the party but they want a situation whereby they are able their party on a strong footing so that Nigerians particularly the party members from the south can have a sense of belonging.
“As to the chances of the governor himself, he will be judged by his own performance, so I don’t see the spelling of doom, there is no doom.”
“And if you look at character of the governor, he doesn’t appear like he is a desperate person, he has won election in the past, he has lost, and when he won, he had staged the course, he had set out his objectives and he is doing his best and the results are very clear.”
“You see the fact that he is involved in agitation, for a best structure for his party, it does not mean that he himself or his party in the state may not do well; they are different elections and gone are the days when there were band wagon effects. Those days are gone people would vote on the presidential election day as they wished.”
“People would vote for governor as they wish, so I don’t see that issue as a problem.”
“I think for us here, we must not see politics as end, one thing that is beginning to wane among the Yoruba’s is education,that was our pride, education.”
“When you are well educated the sky is the limit as they say, that is when you can produce intellectuals who can in turn lift your economy, lift your science, lift your arts ensure that you have a decent society, so even going to election what is our stand on education, it is education that allow you and I to have intelligent conversation.”
“So going forward 2023 let us continue to educate ourselves, when we are very educated we will make the right choice,” he said.
