Former governor of Ekiti State, Olusegun Oni, in this interview with OLADIPUPO OLAYEMI TAWAKALIT and OLADUNNI AYOOLA FLORENCE, revealed that his ambition to run for governorship election is a result of the yearnings of the people. He also disclosed that PDP is prepared for the 2023 general election.
There have been speculations about your political ambition. Can you make some clarifications to these speculations?
Well, it is no longer a rumour. We have passed the stage of applying, and we are awaiting the primaries, then the finals.
What gives you the cutting edge over other aspirants?
I have been a governor before, and when I was the governor, we were serving the people. They are the best judge of the level of services they received, and because they are the best judge, they have been talking about it. It is not a propaganda. It is not about what the press wants the people to believe, feel or see. They have been talking about it, and they give feedback. It is not what they say that you see but what you see for yourself.
They said, ‘Of all the people that have served them, Segun Oni has served them the best.’ So, the urge is coming from the people. It is their verdict; I am just reacting to it.
Many people have lost hope in Nigerian politicians so much that people no longer believe in whatever they say. What will you do to change this narrative?
Politicians are humans, and human beings need one another. When the people need politicians, they should always say it and vice versa.
We should stop saying it is improper for the entity in need to look for who to supply their needs. The people should know when they need the politicians. If the politicians are calling on the people when they need them, the people should know when they need the politicians too.
So, if the politicians know that the burden to serve the people, as a return, much will be on them, the kind of atrocities they perpetrate will be less. Also, the politicians will know that they must fulfil all of their promises.
Recently, there have been talks over Value Added Tax, an issue that has degenerated between Southern governors and the Federal Government, including some states in the North. What is your take on this issue, and what do you think is the way out?
I personally believe that value-added tax should be the responsibility of the state. Then, if the state government believes they should contract it out to an entity like the Federal Inland revenue service because they will do it more efficiently, then so be it. If that happens, the basis of allocation should not be determined by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
In this case, FIRS will be acting as a contractor to the state, and they should report. If they agree that a certain percentage of whatever they get from the state will be for the state, and the state has a means for monitoring, it shouldn’t be the responsibility of the federal government.
The federal government should recognise that and work out an acceptable way. If the FIRS doesn’t want to lose the business, they should call everyone to the table and agree on what should be done. The idea of “we are the federal government. Therefore, we are superlative” does not augur well with everybody. The FIRS should put in a proposal but go to the court first. The court will make a final pronouncement based on which they will have to agree on the rounds of settlement.
The National Assembly has passed a bill mandating all political parties to conduct only direct primaries for all internal elections. Some governors seem to oppose this. Do you think direct primaries are the way to go?
In Nigeria, it is difficult to say X or Y will work or is the solution to a problem in Nigeria because we have seen processes and concepts fail. They fail, not because they are not good enough, but because they were designed in a rickety manner. The attitude of people and the attitude of the politicians to direct and indirect primaries can be heinous. We saw Andy Uba score over 240,000 in the Anambra direct primaries, and only 40,000 showed up for the real election.
That should say something. Whether direct or indirect, you will see people sending text messages informing people that they have won the primaries that weren’t held anywhere. Politicians are the ones taking advantage of whichever.
My advice is, once the constitution of Nigeria backs up whichever we want to do, INEC should sit up. The INEC should not just be called. Whether they are there or not, they should not just write results that are favourable to one party or the other to ensure that it goes. We all have the responsibility to make Nigeria work. I know it can work, and it will work. It is not just an avenue to extort money from politicians.
Right now, INEC is trying as much as possible to cut down people’s interventions for the processes’ integrity. I will give them some kudos for that. We have seen processes taking over from people, which will make the integrity of whatever they are doing much better. However, they have to do much better.
Do you think your party is ready for 2023 as regards the crisis?
If you watch the events, you will see that PDP is fully ready, more serious and determined. In a political party, there will always be differences of opinions and approach, but once the political party strikes the middle of the road point, they will all follow it. We had conventions, which show that once our party says ‘yes, we will all follow ‘yes.’
This shows that we are very serious, and I am happy about that. We are ready. The other party that is of a magnitude that can make a serious quest for govern at the centre, well, you are the ones to determine and see if they are serious for yourself.
What should the good people of Ekiti State expect from you in the coming days and days after?
Well, if God gives us this quest, and we believe God will give it to us. If you go anywhere, the preponderant of opinion is high. I was talking somewhere that in Ekiti, we outnumber our opponent at least four to one.
And a neutral person who is not a card-carrying member of any party said it is like seven to one. I said if we outnumber the opposition party seven to one, and I were in the group with one, I would be very careful because people are angry and hungry.
We should not find the means of putting light in a leg of petrol that is everywhere. Let us go and vote. We all should exercise our franchise and practice democracy for once.
As a friend of mine will say, “This time will also pass.” Definitely, this time shall pass too. We have been through this like twice in my lifetime—the first and second republic—because when the people are determined, no one can stop them, and if anybody tries to play smart or cunningly, they will see the people’s reaction.
Though they will waste some people, the people will be so determined to be wasted and fight with their last breath. When you get to that level of desperation in people, you will know that it is not difficult to cause chaos. So, the people of Ekiti should expect continuity and progress.