Some Nigerians have their reservations about what some people call the strides of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration. What do you make of this, knowing that Buhari is likely to seek Nigerians’ vote in 2019.
A lot of people have eyes, but they can’t see; a lot of people have ears, they can’t hear; a lot of people have noses, they can’t smell. Let’s go back to the basics which are what Buhari promised during the last campaigns. He promised three major things upon which the All Progressives Congress (APC) won the election. Buhari and APC promised to fight insurgency and violence throughout the country, we promised to fight corruption and repair the economy. I want to say that in all of these respects, the Buhari administration has excelled. With regards to insurgency, Buhari came on board at a time when insurgency was at its highest. Boko Haram was in control of 14 local governments in three states. They had held in their custody, thousands of Nigerians and communities; businesses were grounded, education system collapsed, health systems had collapsed, several facilities had been bombed and a lot of people had to live in Internally Displaced Persons camps.
Today, this government has succeeded more than 90 per cent in the task of dislodging Boko Haram. Of the 14 local governments Boko Haram used to control, they don’t control a piece of land anywhere in the country. Of course, they have soft targets, but you cannot say the situation is the same as what obtained during the past administration. On corruption, everybody agrees that the fear of Buhari and the EFCC is the beginning of wisdom that was not the situation before. You will recall that that government was overthrown by Nigerians because corruption had become not only an art, but also a science by the operatives of the last government. You will recall the level of impunity with which funds were being stolen. You would also recall that at that time, petrol was selling for a $140 with daily production of 2.2 million barrels. You imagine the amount of money coming into the coffers of Nigeria, yet instead of that government to invest in infrastructure, education, health, unfortunately, money was simply being shared. That is why we have so many cases with EFCC and so many operatives of that government undergoing several prosecutions.
When will the Buhari administration publish the said looters?
I can assure you that the publication will come. You don’t publish looters until you have had convictions and it is not for the government to convict, it is for the court to convict. You don’t just publish because every accused person is presumed to be guilty or innocent of the crime until he has gone through the mill of prosecution. The government will not put the cart before the horse. If government does that, people will then challenge government in court for being convicted even before going through the process of prosecution. So, the government must comply with the rule of law, and the rule of law states that there must be presumption. Many of these cases are dragging in court because the lawyers of the accused will use one method or the other to elongate the process of prosecution. But the good thing is that the proceedings that are going on that time never existed. Furthermore, that government, for two years, on 38 major roads that contracts had been awarded, no work went on. Within the two years that Buhari came on board, all the contractors are back on site. So, the issue of corruption has been adequately dealt with. Furthermore, the government has introduced the practice of Treasury Single Account such that the leakages happening within government circles, with regards to government’s funds are blocked. So, relying on manipulating government money to the detriment of government and Nigerians has been stopped. In fighting corruption, this government has scored more than 80 per cent in performance.
How well has the administration repaired the economy, as promised, considering the hard times that several Nigerians are currently going through?
When we came on board, we operated a mono economy, which relied strictly and only on oil sales. No attempt was made to diversify the economy. No attempt was made to bring up policies that will help the economy to grow. Today, government has diversified the economy. As a matter of fact, as opposed to the $140 per barrel of oil, it is $44, up from $38 over the past one and a half years. So, it is very difficult for government to pay salaries because the expenditure that government has to continue to maintain, like payment of salaries, overhead are not decreasing despite the sharp decrease in the income that Nigeria has. Government has diversified into agriculture and if you are conscious of agricultural development in the country today, you would agree with me that Nigeria has diversified. A lot of money is coming in in fertilizer production. Today, there is no middleman between the farmer and the fertilizer selling point. Apart from developing agriculture, the government is developing the mining sector to the extent that a lot of foreign investment is being encouraged to come into the sector.
A lot of times, you hear statements by beer parlour critics who are resounding what they heard. Today, farmers are smiling to the bank. In Kano, the way to know a farmer is you see the person with a new motorcycle. When they bring their farm produce from the villages to the towns, they ride back on new motorcycles. Somebody from Iseyin said farmers are now building new houses. Today most farmers from Sokoto, Zamfara who go to Lagos to do Okada business have remained on their farms because farmers have become more profitable. Today, there is an increase in local rice production. There is not only abundance of farm products but also a lowering in the prices of those products. So many cassava farmers participated in the last Hajj from money from their cassava farming. This is the most benevolent government in terms of farming.
The economy is also being reinvigorated in the provision of infrastructure. The government had to borrow money to pay all contractors on 38 major roads to return to site. Again, government is not only building the East-West road, which will be an express road from Calabar to Lagos, government is also investing in building a rail from Calabar to Lagos, another from Calabar to Maiduguri, then another from Maiduguri to Kano to Zamfara, then a new one from Lagos to Kano. The old one has been concessioned only for bulk haulages. This is a conscious effort to reflate the economy and I am happy that job losses have been stabilised. More jobs are being created even in the ICT industry. For the first time, ICT has contributed more than 10 per cent to the Gross Domestic Product and provides more jobs than even the petroleum sector. Anybody who wants to assess this government should assess it on the basis of its campaign promises. I have done an assessment of the Buhari administration based on his campaign promises and he has done very well. At the appropriate time, those of us who believe and are Buhari’s followers will ensure that he contests the APC primary election and wins.
There are criticisms that President Buhari is not actually fighting corruption because some of his lieutenants are said to be involved in corrupt practices, especially against the backdrop of the Abdulrasheed Maina saga.
People are simply emotional that they prefer to call the dog a bad name in order to hang it. They prefer to throw the baby with the bath water without thinking of the consequences of such action. When the Ikoyi gate happened, nobody forced President Buhari before he suspended the NIA DG, just like he suspended Babachir Lawal. Whatever the PDP has said on Maina, they were the ones responsible for the Mainagate. The incidence of massive corruption and looting by Maina occurred during the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan. When it happened, the man was invited to the Senate to answer queries. That day he went to the Senate with an attachment of 37 Mopol to protect him. Was that done by President Buhari? The man then went to court to seek for reliefs and got judgment on this, three years ago, not to face any queries. The Jonathan government, for one and a half years, did not appeal the judgment. Since then the EFCC has been looking for him.
This same cabal made him surface now because the time of appeal had elapsed. What happened was that the Minister of Internal Affairs got the judgment that favoured the resumption of Maina. He then forwarded it to the Minister of Justice and the Minister cannot reconstruct the judgment and he said, based on the judgment which was not appealed for about four years. But Buhari said that whatever the judgment, Maina should be disengaged from service. The EFCC has not been discouraged from looking for Maina. If there are people saying that the whole of Buhari’s government is not fighting corruption, you will have to give me and others the evidence of me not fighting corruption. Everyone in Nigeria agrees that the most incompatible leader that Nigeria has ever had in its history is President Muhammadu Buhari. You think he will tolerate any one in his government who will undermine his corruption fight, when he has the power to fire and hire. Up till today, he does not have one oil block, he has no house in Lagos or Abuja, do you think that man in his old age will now want to corrupt himself. This is someone who also cut his salary by half. So I think people should be fair to this government.
You desire to be the next governor of Oyo State. What makes you think the people of the state will embrace your desire?
I have been in politics since 1979. So, if you have a son who passed his primary school, did well in secondary school, you ask why he would not want to go to the university. The people of Oyo State know that they need me to shepherd the resources of the state in the best way that will be of benefit to every nook and cranny of the state. They have known me for almost 40 years, they know that I am principled, honest to a fault, courageous in defending the rights of the masses, poor; they know I have had a lot of experience in governance having served as member of the state House of Assembly, Commissioner, Minister.
Today, as Minister of Communications, they know that nobody in Oyo State has the experience I have in utilising ICT to develop the state’s economy to the extent that other countries are using the same ICT to develop the country. They know that with my level of exposure and Godliness that I will not steal their money. If you have someone who is ungodly, he will simply steal your state blind. You need the best, compassionate manager, most honest, experienced, well-educated manager to run the state so that what comes to Oyo from Federation Account and our local resources are put to the best use in the service of our people.
Power blocs
Today, socio-geographically, we have Oyo, Ogbomoso, Oke-Ogun, Ibadan, Ibarapa power blocs. I am the only one who transcends all these blocs. I am not from Ibadan but the Ibadans feel more comfortable with me and will tell you that they are more comfortable with me and say that “Ajumobi o kan ti aanu”. Today, I have had the privilege to live in Ibadan for 38 years. I am known by all the big names in Ibadan. There is no one who is important in Ibadan that I do not know or they do not know me. I have socialised with them on political, religious, professional scene. I am also married to two Ibadan daughters but some will make jest of me and say that it is not a qualification, but that means I have very important links. About 12 of my children are partly Ibadan and partly Saki, and that speaks volumes. Soon, I will become chief in Ibadan land.
Have you discussed your ambition with the incumbent Governor Abiola Ajimobi?
I have not had the opportunity to formally discuss my ambition with the incumbent governor Abiola Ajimobi but the opportunity will come. It is never too late to do that. We have come together a long way. Governor Ajimobi and I have been together since 2007 when I was Attorney General of the state. Recall that, that year, he contested for governorship on the platform of ANPP when we were in PDP and my governor was Senator Rashidi Ladoja. When the election was to come up, Governor Ladoja announced to the entire people of the state to give Ajimobi support and the people did, in pursuance of the announcement. And when the election was rigged, Governor Ladoja called on me as Attorney-General to raise a legal team to pursue Ajimobi’s case at the tribunal. We spent about N25 million to pursue the case, and for everyday that the case came up, I was physically part of the legal team led by Niyi Akintola. Even when we lost at tribunal, I was present at the Court of Appeal. Unfortunately, he lost again. And we became friends. I can assure you that we remain friends. He will have no choice but to support me. I know he wants the best successor who would continue from where he leaves and he knows I am the one who has the requirements of being the servant of a greater Oyo state. I am convinced Governor Ajimobi will support me. He is a party person; he is a patriotic leader; he has done well in road developed only surpassed by General David Jemibewon. I don’t have any problem with him, he will support me.
What if you don’t get the APC ticket to contest?
In 2015, I struggled with Ajimobi to get the ticket but didn’t. I went to court, I didn’t leave the party, I contributed to the electoral victory of the party. I was Coordinating Officer for my party in my local government and I worked very hard. In the presidential election, my party came first of all the local governments in the state; in the governorship, my party was second in the state. So, whatever it is, I remain a loyal member of the party having being a co-founder of the party. I was a member of the merger committee that brought together all the parties. But to think I will not get the ticket, I don’t know who else will get it. Gone are the days of Action Congress Nigeria (ACN) when primaries were not held before candidates emerged. APC has the constitutional provision that there will be primaries, not imposition of candidates. If there will be primaries, involving party members in Oyo state, not people coming from the skies, I know that the party holds me in high esteem, they love me, and know that I am one person who can solve the perennial problems: social, educational, unemployment, agricultural development, community development. I believe the people will simply do what would be in their best interest which is getting me to assist in running this state. I don’t have a fear.
and then