IN a recent news story, you mentioned the issue of some political parties willing to go into alliance with the SDP ahead of the governorship election, what is the situation now?
The arrangement is still on. Actually, another two parties have joined the arrangement and in the next few days, we will consummate the arrangement so that we can present to the people of Osun a very formidable conglomerate of parties for the coming election. All we are saying is that we don’t want businessmen politicians coming from outside the state to dominate the political space in the state for their selfish interests. So far so good, we are all on the same page about the rescue mission. We are on course.
Talking about being on course, there was this rumour that Omisore and the candidate of the Action Democratic Party (ADP), Alhaji Moshood Adeoti had a meeting. Is that towards the same course you talked about?
It is part of what I am saying. Truly, we had a meeting with the ADP camp and even as I am speaking with you, the talks are still ongoing. But you know that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has a time frame that we all had to meet. Due to that fact, the various parties who had candidates were allowed to go on with filing INEC papers.
Is the SDP merging with ADP?
You see, everything is not about merger. If parties cannot merge, they can go into an electoral alliance. If you remember, in the days of the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), Baba Awolowo went into an alliance with the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) and that produced the Kaduna State governor at the time, Alhaji Balarabe Musa. So, all efforts are still in the pipeline to ensure that we achieve the rescue of Osun State. Even as I am speaking with you, the parties we are discussing with already have candidates with tickets but everybody is subjecting his parties’ tickets to the common good of Osun State by venturing into an alliance.
There is the insinuation that the SDP flouted the principle of zoning by giving the ticket to an Ife man instead of someone from Osun West. What is your view on this insinuation and are you sure the popularity of your party cuts across the state?
There is nothing like zoning. There has never been any time that Osun people agreed on any zoning formula. Look at it; the first governor of Osun State was Senator Isiaka Adeleke of blessed memory. He was from Ede in Osun West. The next civilian governor after Adeleke was Chief Bisi Akande; he was from Ila in Osun Central. But he was followed by Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola who spent almost eight years and he was from the same Osun Central. You see, Adeleke attempted to resolve this issue when he was governor; he was the one that created six zones. And when you look at those zones, each zone is attributable to a particular sub-tribe. Ijesha zone consists of mainly Ijeshas. You have Ila, which consists of mainly the Igbominas and that is where Chief Akande comes from. There is the Osogbo zone. There is the Ife zone, which is dominated by the Ifes. There is the Iwo zone, which consists of the people in Ayedaade, Ayedire, Iwo and Olaoluwa. The Ede zone comprises Ede, Egbedore and Ejigbo. Of the six zones, only three have been able to produce the governor, leaving three. The Ifes have never produced a governor in the state, if you talk about the zones. But the truth is Osun people have never ever agreed on zoning the governorship; we have always gone for merit.
And talking about Omisore’s popularity cutting across the state, he has picked a running mate who is not only from Osun West for balancing the political equation. It is also significant to know that the young man, Yemi Lawal, was born into politics; his father was the Senatorial Leader of the PDP for years and Yemi Lawal has been with us all the time. He is the state youth leader of the SDP in Osun State today and he is the Speaker of the Youth Parliament in Osun. So, he is not only coming from Osun West, he is the head of the youths in SDP. And when you talk about advancing the interests of the youths, the development of the youths, how can you do it behind their backs? Omisore wants the youths to also be involved in governance at the very top level so that it will be easier to carry the youths along. I am not talking of students alone, I am talking about youths across all sectors; the people who are underemployed or unemployed, who have taken to menial jobs and riding commercial motorcycles. The people we want to integrate into the economic programme of the state are youths; at least 70 per cent of them and that will be in the overall interest of the state. So, I think Omisore should be commended for picking a youth as running mate and that also tells you he has a popularity that transcends senatorial districts and breaks through zonal barriers as a friend of the youths.
At a period that people in the state are asking for a strong governor who can think on his feet, create wealth and save the state from economic troubles, what do you think Omisore is bringing to the table that makes him better than other 48 governorship candidates?
When you are talking about the governorship of a state, so many things go into it. Your education is important to start with; it is statutorily required that you must have a secondary school leaving certificate. But Senator Omisore is an academic and an author, so there is no question about his academic qualifications. Now, when you talk about people who have been preparing to rule the state, who have been burning the midnight oil; Omisore is the longest in the race. This makes him more prepared than any other candidate you can talk about. Look at the other candidates, many of them came into the race four to five months ago. How prepared are they? Do they have a sound manifesto they can sell to the public? Many of them have not even conducted the congresses of their parties, so they have no executive in the wards or local governments. They just arrived one day with a party’s name and they are aspiring to govern Osun State.
And if you want to talk about cognate experience, which is another important factor in governing a state, Senator Omisore has been there before. He was deputy governor under Baba Akande; he even acted as governor then. Go and ask the workers, they really the short period Omisore spent as acting governor. After leaving that office, he went to the Senate where he spent eight years and became the chairman on the Senate Committee on Appropriations, where he oversaw the National Assembly’s inputs into appropriating resources to 774 local governments of the federation. So, apart from being the longest in the race, he is the most experienced. He has a track record as a deputy governor and an acting governor for some time. He has a cognate experience and he is the most consistent. Omisore has a viable manifesto. He knows Osun State inside out more than other candidates. There is no ward in Osun State that Omisore cannot tell you the names of minimum of 10 people; even their phone numbers. There are people always visiting Osun any time there are elections and they come to contest. But Omisore lives here and he is known across the state.
Finally, Omisore is not coming to steal money, because he is not a poor person or a hungry person. He is self-fulfilled professionally and business-wise, even politically. Omisore is only interest in coming to develop Osun State. He has a blueprint prepared in collaboration with about 16 professors in different fields. I have seen the blueprint and if you see, you will how well he has articulated his vision for the development of the state combining his experience as an academic, businessman and politician.
and then