2019 polls will be a contest to rescue Lagos from dictatorial rule ― Bode George

FORMER Deputy National chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, on Wednesday at a stakeholders parley said that the 2019 election in Lagos State will be a contest against the “monstrous, dictatorial, reckless, godfatherism” that has held the state hostage for the past 20 years.

The meeting, which followed a visit by the party’s governorship candidate, Mr Jimi Agbaje, his deputy, Mrs Oluwayemisi Haleemat Busari, and other PDP leaders, including Chief Ebenezer Babatope; former Lagos State deputy governor, Senator Kofoworola Akerele-Bucknor; former Minister of Works, Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, Dr Eddy Olafeso, among others, was aimed at strengthening peace and deepening of amity in Lagos State.

According to George, who said the PDP was now on a mission to rescue Lagos, the common enemy of Lagosian was the representative symbol of a party which has virtually appropriated the Lagosian heritage as a personal estate.

“Our party has now come out on a mission of rescue and salvage. Lagos must be redeemed and unchained from the manacles of APC,” he declared.

Speaking on the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship rally held on Tuesday, which later turned bloody, Chief George expressed displeasure over what he described as a show of shame during the flag off of APC campaign.

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“It was on record that yesterday, APC murdered five people at their so-called flag off which turned into a killing field. Amid the blood bath Emmanuel Oladesu, the Political Editor of The Nation Newspaper was hit by a stray bullet. The Correspondent of News Agency of Nigeria, Buhari was openly disposed of beaten up. A Correspondent of the Telegraph Newspaper was equally robbed. Hundreds of people were injured.

“Surely we can’t continue with this madness. We need a real, progressive fundamental change. This is where we stand today. Lagosians deserve better than this arbitrary, undisciplined, aberrational cabal holding down our people. They must be voted out. That is our focus. That is our mission. That is our collective fight and devotion.

“Lagos deserves a breath of fresh air. We are the real progressive and sanitising symbols renewal and a new beginning. Enough of a regime of brazen nepotism and blatant one-man-rule.

“We are moving forward with a vow to bring meaningful enlightenment into the lives of fellow Lagosians. No more burdensome taxation. No more brazen gutting of our treasury. No more criminal cronyism that has reduced our state to serfdom and helplessness.

“Lagosians must now take their fortunes into their hands with boldness and with the assertive alert. This is the preachment we are taking across the nooks and crannies of the state. And we are sure of victory,” the PDP chieftain said.

Also speaking, Mr Agbaje, the PDP governorship candidate, said that it was paramount that Lagosians begins to look at the character of leadership before electing people into office.

According to him, “The first thing we need to bring to governance in Lagos State is the character of leadership. You can have the best blueprint in the world but if you don’t have a good character it will go nowhere.

“There are two types of politicians those that seek power for service and for themselves. What we have in Lagos today are those that have power for themselves and it can best be described as Oligarchy system of government.

“If you compare Jakande Era with these set of people that have been in power in the last 20 years you will see that Jakande era is power for service because you have education, health, water, house among other things address. But in 20 years of these people are only to benefit themselves, we have gone back in every area, our education is worse among other things.”

Earlier, the governorship candidate of Lagos State chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr Jimi Agbaje, had assured that he would prioritise education and health, as well as ensure provision of regular supply of electricity in the state if elected and sworn in as next governor, come May 2019, declaring that it was all about changing narrative of governance to what it was in the past from what it had since become in the last 20years.

Agbaje gave this promise on Wednesday at separate Town Hall meetings he addressed at Oshodi and Ejigbo areas of the state, insisting that he was poised to govern Lagos on what he termed “Jakande model.”

The PDP governorship candidate, who addressed various sectors of the society, including artisans, market men and women, also promised to ensure that the state generates at least 1000megawatts of electricity in the first six months of his being in office and increase it to 3000megawatts in four years, even as he lamented the poor state of education, health, among others in the state.

While addressing Lagos residents at Oshodi, Agbaje said his message remained freedom for Lagos, declaring that he was ready to ensure that people had access to quality education and health care without stress, unlike what was obtaining now where people stressed themselves to send their children to private schools and could not access health care delivery.

The PDP governorship candidate, who later paid a courtesy visit to the Oloto of Oto, said his government would be run much like the one headed by former Governor Lateef Jakande, which he said left legacies that one was still talking about today.

“We have a government for 20years, what have we got? When we talk of freedom, it is freedom from jagbajagba, from godfatherIsm,” he said.

While thanking the people for voting him in 2015, Agbaje urged that come 2019, they should cast their votes for the PDP presidential candidate, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku, himself as the party’s governorship candidate and all others standing elections on PDP ticket.