By OMONIYI SALAUDEEN

With the recent defection of five out of the G-7 governors to the All Progressives Congress (APC) recently, the country is now almost at a political equilibrium. But while the APC is still basking in the euphoria of its acceptance, the Acting National Vice Chairman, South West PDP, Adedeji Doherty, says there is no problem. In this interview, he exudes confidence that his party will overrun APC in the next election. His words: “We can wipe out the entire APC governors and bring them to PDP. We have a lot of carrots to dangle at them.” Excerpts:

Until recently, political players in the South West had always insisted that constitutional conference was a necessity. Are you not surprised at the way the leader of the opposition suddenly changed tune, saying the confab is diversionary?
One thing you need to understand about this national conference is its timeliness. Most of the issues to be discussed at the national conference are already in the front burner of discussion within the geo-political zones. Today, we are faced with the threat of Boko Haram because there are misunderstandings and misgivings in the minds of the people because we have not been talking.  Other militia groups like Bakassi boys, OPC and MOSSOP also have their reasons for doing what they were doing. Therefore, if we have a national conference where all ethnic nationalities can canvass their positions, there will be a way forward. That is why the national conference becomes imperative before the 2015 election. So, tf we have  purchased arms to be used during the election; the dialogue will not allow us to use it.

As a people, what in your own opinion should be the agenda of the Yoruba at the conference?
I will break the issue of Yoruba into two segments. That is, what the generation of our fathers wants vis-a-vis the new generation. We want good roads, good hospital, qualitative education, employment, empowerment, good infrastructures, efficient transport, security, good housing policy, to mention but a few. These are basic things that a society must not just want but demand. And in demanding these, there has to be a plan as a people. Personally, I will like a situation whereby we remove party sentiment and have a common focus of how to actualize these goals. Osun and Oyo states are known for agriculture. We also have Ekiti and Ondo states as food baskets. In Ekiti and Ondo states, cocoa, rubber and timber are main produts. What is our development plan for all these? These are supposed to be our foreign exchange base. In terms of education, we need to groom the right quality of teachers to be able to pass on the right knowledge to our children. We have to try as much as possible to also balance the minds of the students. Education is of the mind, of the soul, physical, spiritual and temperamental. Yoruba are the most learned in this country. And it is for no other reason other than all these things I am saying. Also, I believe in rural development.

We need a rural development plan for the entire zone. We need to put in place affordable housing. The cheapest means of moving goods and people is by rail. The rail network has to be drawn up for the zone. Nothing can stop us from achieving all these, if we can play down on party sentiment? The vision of an integrated infrastructure for the entire zone needs to be cultivated whether you belong to APC or PDP. This is the only road to industrialization which the younger generation can live on. Once the youths are empowered, you have also tackled security. These are the things we need to put together for the zone to lift itself up.
To actualize these lofty ideas you have raised, there is a need for strong political leadership. But up till now, the question of leadership still remains unanswered. Who is there now to provide the leadership direction to achieve this dream?

I don’t want to use harsh words, but I must say, personally, that the generation in front of us has failed us as a people. We are nowhere to be found in the scheme of things today. But I will not point fingers at anybody. Rather, my answer to your question is that God will lead us to that person in Jesus name.

How do you see the threat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the dominance of PDP?
The smallest party in Nigeria is a threat to PDP. It doesn’t even have to be APC. That is the reality that we live in right now. But it now depends on how PDP handles the threat. If we wake up, tie our trousers, fasten our seat belts, and go back to work, then it will have a positive impact on us. That is the reality; anybody who cares to listen can hear it. If we sit down and we continue to say that they are a threat and we are not doing anything about it, or go to APC governors to woo them to our side too, then we are not doing anything. There is nothing wrong with the APC going to woo the PDP governors. The PDP governors too should go to woo the APC governors; after all, we have more to give them than they have to give us. So, why can’t we woo the governors and bring them to us? We even have power to guarantee them better future than they have power to guarantee us. We have a lot of carrots to dangle at them. We can wipe out the entire APC governors and bring them to PDP.

With the resources at the centre or what?
With everything at our disposal; with the whole federal might!  When Bola Tinubu left as governor of Lagos State, what did he become? Nothing! And it is because he didn’t become anything that he is jumping around now to win one state or the other. If he were to be a PDP governor, we could have moved him to be an ambassador or give him ministerial position.
But this same Tinubu is one person some people are already touting as Yoruba leader. Don’t you see him so?
I don’t believe so.

Whether you believe it or not, the entire South West is within his political kingdom. Is anything there to dispute?
Let him show us that he is the leader. Leadership is not by people saying you are the leader. In my own book, leadership is about the impact you have on your people. Yes, he has Ogun, he has Lagos, he has Osun, he has Ekiti and Oyo.
He has Edo too.
Edo is not part of South West. Our focus is South West. What kind of integration do you see among these governors? Even between Lagos and Ogun states, what collaboration do you see? What investment do you see jointly made by these states? They can’t even put fly-over over Redeemed Camp there.

That is not within the jurisdiction of the states; Ibadan-Lagos expressway is a federal road.
I am not talking of the expressway; the express belongs to the Federal Government. The park belongs to the states.  We need to open our eyes wider! Lagos generates close to N40-N42 billion monthly. Yet, the state is the highest in terms of external debt in this country. It takes almost 30 percent of the entire loan portfolio in the country. Where are the infrastructure to justify the huge debt? We can’t say Fashola has not done what he can do under the circumstance that he is because his hands are tied. We knew it from the day he got in. I said it in one of my previous interviews that Fashola cannot do anything in his second term because they have spent all the money.

They are already in debt and they are taking more loans. They are asking the Federal Government to pass N200 million dollar loan again in 2014. How much have they paid out of the 200 million dollar loan they had earlier taken? Go and do an analysis of the state IGR vis-a-vis the level of development, you will see that Lagos State is the worst in the country in terms of development. Do you know how much they make at Lekki toll gate per day? Good, they are doing the light rail. But how many years has it been there and how many years more is going to be there? I can tell you in the next five years, they can’t finish it because it is an elephant project everybody is sucking.

And the people will continue to suffer. Tax regime in Lagos State is the highest in this country today. We have income tax, PAYE, consumption tax, radio tax, TV tax, commercial tax, parking tax, land use tax and local government tax. I can name close to 30 different taxes being collected by the state government. All of us are frustrated in Lagos State. In the last 14 years in Lagos State, there has not been a single virgin road made. People spend three to four hours going to work in traffic hold up.

If you are feeling so strongly about governance in Lagos State as a case study, why has peace remained elusive to the PDP being the alternative party people are readily looking up to for improvement in the quality of their lives?
There is peace in PDP now. I am the Acting National Vice Chairman, South West, today. In Lagos State for instance, do you see any wobbling? Do you see any acrimony? Do you see any leader abusing another leader in the newspapers? I will not say it is due to me, but the will of God. But I play my own role and I will continue to play the role. In Lagos State, we don’t have any problem anymore. Some days ago, we had close to 50,000 people declaring for PDP. Next month, we are having a rally at the National Stadium where close to 200,000 people are going to be there declaring for PDP.

Source: Sun