Fayemi: Continuing with the pre-primary issues

BY SAM OLUWALANA

There is no contest without a winner so says the popular saying. The governorship primary election of the All Progressive Congress, (APC) that produced the incumbent Governor of the state, Dr Kayode Fayemi, was one of the most contested primaries in the country going by the number of Aspirants that came out to participate in the exercise. It was postponed the first time it was supposed to hold due to some problems encountered by the panel that was detailed to conduct the exercise and the heavy downpour, one of the features of the month of June which marred the exercise.

Eventually, Dr Fayemi emerged in a clean contest as the winner of the primaries. Unlike other victors that see their victory as a personal one, Dr Fayemi swung into action by making sure that he visited his other opponents in the primary and appealed to them to team up with him in the task of governing the state. He was accompanied during the fence mending visits by a national leader of the APC and former Governor of the state, Otunba Niyi Adebayo.
Some of them, especially, another former Governor of the state, Chief Segun Oni, who resigned as the deputy national chairman of APC to participate in the primary, got offers for another political office, all in an attempt to mend fences by Dr Fayemi; but he and others were not satisfied as they still harboured deep seated animosity.
Rather than join forces with the party’s flag bearer to campaign for the governorship election, they all seated in the fence waiting for the humiliation of Dr Fayemi during the July 14, 2018 governorship election. Some of them underneath were romancing with the opposition People’s Democratic Party, (PDP). Chief Oni on his part, went to court to challenge the outcome of the primary alluding that the Dr Fayemi did not resign from his position as a minister 30 days before the primary contrary to the constitution of the APC. Leaders within and outside the party approached him to drop the court case and team up with the winner of the primary but all fell into Chief Oni deaf ears as he insisted that the decision to drop the case was beyond him.

The election came and Dr Fayemi was again declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC). Dr Fayemi was eventually inaugurated on the 14th October, 2018 for a second term of office. The ceremony which attracted dignitaries, political big wigs and diplomatic community was boycotted by Chief Oni and his co travelers who still believe that something was going to happen. They resort to all sorts of pranks all in their bid to blackmail the Governor into going into an alliance which will guarantee them ministerial or other appointments at the federal level.

On his part, Dr Fayemi like the biblical saying refuse to look back but focused on how to change the negative perception of the state caused by the maladministration of his predecessor. In his promise not to be a winner takes all, Dr Fayemi picked some known followers and supporters of his opponents and appointed them into offices and they have all resumed.

Leaders from the wards where the sponsors of the court case come from invited them to meet with them to answer questions on why they did not explore the process put in place by the party to seek redress if they are aggrieved, but rather went to court. None of them has honoured the invitation by the leadership of the party at the ward level. In their wisdom and after going through the constitution of the party, Chief Oni was suspended by his ward at Ifaki, Bunmi Ogunleye got outright expulsion from the party. Others like Oyetunji Ojo, Babafemi Ojudu, Tony Adeniyi, Dr Ifeoluwa Arowosoge and Bimbo Daramola are expected to appear before the leadership of their ward to defend their action.

As if the battle by these enemies within is not enough, the opposition PDP in the state, now that its members are idle, has been busy to in some cases cry more than the bereaved. An Aide to the Governor in charge of anti grazing was suspended for flouting laid down procedure by going to the media to announce a policy statement without authorization. His traducers went to town criticizing government.

At the twilight of the immediate past administration, 2000 workers were brought in to the state civil and teaching service on the order of Mr. Ayo Fayose, whose crony has just lost the governorship election. This was an administration which did not deem it fit to employ a single worker during its four years tenure and now that it has lost the election, the next thing was to cripple the incoming administration with bloated wage bill not minding that it was owing workers in the state seven months unpaid salaries. Here was a Governor who sacked 20,000 youths engaged by his predecessor few days into his administration in 2014. He equally stopped the monthly stipend of N5, 000 being given to the aged initiated during the first term of Dr Fayemi.

In his usual practice to seek opinion on issues of state interest, Dr Fayemi set up a panel to advise government on this issue and the panel recommended that those employed at the eleventh hour should be relieved of their appointments. They are however allowed to participate in a fresh recruitment exercise that will be in tandem with laid down policies of the civil service. Despite all these facts, some people who will never see anything good still went to town to paint Dr Fayemi in a bad light, just in an attempt to cause disaffection and make his administration look like he was not prepared for governance.

Even with these, there is still this clarion call from well-meaning indigenes of the state at home and in Diaspora that everything should be done to support the present administration in its effort to make Ekiti state an enviable one in all facets of life. The chairman of APC in Ekiti state, Barrister Paul Omotoso advised the aggrieved people within and outside the party to bury the hatchet and join hand to move the state forward.

For the four years tenure of the immediate past administration, Ekiti state was in opposition and the Governor, Mr. Fayose was the spokesman of the opposition who never saw anything commendable in what the federal government was doing. This made the state to lose several opportunities. Just two weeks ago, the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo was in the state to launch the school feeding programme of the federal government. The state according to record, is the last to benefit from this gesture. Apart from giving the beneficiaries balanced diet and healthy growth, the programme will provide jobs for the womenfolk.

At every occasion and opportunity, Dr Fayemi makes the intention of his second coming as Governor of Ekiti state known which is among others to put things in a better perspective by correcting the misconceived perception of the people about the state. His other colleagues in the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, (NGF) would have shared in his vision and philosophy that made them to unanimously give him the mandate to lead them as chairman for the next four years.

This is a feat achievable through hard work and diligence, unlike in the past when the Governor of Ekiti state was the leader of opposition in Nigeria. Dr Fayemi as chairman of NGF will in no small way benefit the state in particular and the entire country at large. He is someone that had seen how it is being done at the federal level having served as a minister before his second coming as Executive Governor of Ekiti state.

Oluwalana is the senior special assistant (party matters) to Fayemi