The smooth transition in Ondo State

WITH  the brickbats and sabre-rattling that heralded the conduct of the November 2016 governorship election in Ondo State, some bookmakers had predicted that the sky in the Sunshine State would be blood-red, particularly given the intra and inter-party conflicts, as well as the intrigues among aspirants and political parties. References were made to the Second Republic when the attempt by the state to so transit from one civilian administration to another became a theatre of war. It was clear to all that whatever happened in the state in its bid to transit from one administration to the other would be a signpost of what could happen subsequently in the entire country.

At the election, the ruling  party in the state, Peoples Democratic Party  (PDP), was defeated by the All Progressives Congress (APC). Unexpectedly, however, the erstwhile governor of the state, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, and the PDP candidate in the state, Mr Eyitayo Jegede (SAN), accepted the outcome of the election with an equanimity that was alien to this part of the world. On his own part, the winner of the election, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN), rather than proclaim the vengeful traits of a politician earlier frustrated by his opponents, declared that the achievements of his predecessor were so massive that he would require divine intervention to equal them.

We salute Akeredolu for commending the outgone government, especially in admitting that Mimiko laid a good foundation that he would want to build upon for the good of the people of the state. We counsel other states to take a cue from Ondo State. Our understanding of the governmental configuration is that if an incoming administration discovers that the position of things is not what it expected, there is a way to communicate that experience without creating an atmosphere of hate. What made the Ondo case further rare was that a ruling party transferred power to another in an atmosphere devoid of hate and violence. The people of the state must be saluted for this remarkable feat.

Transiting beyond rhetoric, both political camps began a process of handover that was smooth and dialogical. There was communication and understanding between them and as they proceeded,  the people of the state and Nigerians as a whole were given the full details of what to expect on the day of the inauguration of the new government. The inauguration, held on February 24, was very smooth. The day before, the exiting and incoming governors had met and the instruments of power were exchanged in an atmosphere of camaraderie. If there were hard feelings, such did not become openly advertised and did not in any way hamper the handing over of power. At the end of the day, the people of Ondo State benefited from a peaceful transition that their previous political circumstances apparently did not dictate.

The two leaders deserve to be commended for the high level of maturity they displayed in the transition exercise. In a political process that many Nigerians see as war and where the fittest survive and the weakest are eliminated, the Ondo State template is one that needs to be recommended to politicians who see power as an end in itself. We salute Mimiko and Akeredolu for creating an atmosphere that was devoid of the usual recriminations and bloodshed. In many states of Nigeria where governorship elections were held, it was either that the outgoing government made ascension into power very problematic for the incoming one or artificial roadblocks to successful administration were constructed in order to frustrate the latter. The outcome is that the leaders would, through their dissenting body language, send red signals to their following, leading to skirmishes and bloody encounters.