The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has announced that the only aspirant formally known to the party as the 2018 governorship race in the state gathers momentum is Dr Oluwole Oluyede, and said it had also heard of numerous aspirants of the party from the social media.
The acting chairman of the APC in Ekiti State, Mrs Kemi Olaleye, stated this while receiving Dr Oluyede at the APC secretariat in Ado Ekiti, when he went to formally tell the state working committee members of his intention to vie for the governorship ticket.
Olaleye said that the 33 or so aspirants that are said to be jostling for the ticket of the APC “are not yet formally known to us as the executive of the party in the state,” pointing out that “we are also seeing them on the social media just like everybody else.”
Mrs Olaleye, who commended Oluyede for his support for the party through mobilisation and funding, charged other aspirants to emulate “his humility and display of maturity in his quest to seek the ticket of the party.”
She noted that “some of the names that are being mentioned by the people as governorship aspirants, include those who would end up as commissioners and even local government chairmen or councillors when the APC has taken over power in the coming dispensation.”
Earlier, Dr Oluyede had told the APC state working committee that he was bringing something different to the race, pointing out that apart from being a governorship aspirant, he also wants to serve as a unifier of the various groups in the party.
He assured Ekiti indigenes that the state would benefit from a proposed $18 million Malaysian firm’s palm tree investment in Nigeria, hinting that he had already sealed a deal with a firm in Malayasia for the planting of 10,000 palm trees in Ekiti.
He however, assured that the deal with the Malaysians would go ahead for the good of Ekiti, whether his governorship ambition was successful or not.
Oluyede also used the occasion to tell the APC in the state to seriously consider zoning in fielding a candidate for the 2018 governorship poll in the state, saying it would do the party a lot of good to in the coming race.
Oluyede, an Australian based medical doctor, promised to break the jinx of state’s sole dependence on federal allocation if given the mandate to serve by bringing his international connections to bear in medical tourism, farming and skills acquisition.
He also urged the party to be fair in its consideration for zoning, describing the agitation as a child of necessity that would not only inject equity and fairplay in the distribution of elective positions in the state, but would make it easier for APC to win the poll.
“I had visited the Malaysian firm and it intended to invest $18million in Africa and Ekiti will benefit whether I become governor or not.
“I have visited the firm and all I need is for people to show interest, because only vocation and skills acquisition can bail out our youths from unemployment.
“Farming has become a good investment even in advanced climes and I want to say that I will spend my time in the farm even as a governor to encourage the civil servants, young school leavers and artisans to return to the farm.
“I want to say there is nowhere in the world where people only depend on government for business. With me as your governor, I will promote business in Ekiti and diversify our economy so that we can stop depending solely on federal allocation.”
Oluyede assured that he won’t play a spoiler’s role if not given the party’s flag, demanding that ‘but the party must be fair and just in the conduct of the primary.
He said he would reignite vocations like bakery, block making as well as arts and designs in all secondary schools to imbue the students with special skills.
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