Oyo State governorship candidate of the SDP, Oluseyi Makinde, is convinced that political heavyweights in the state would be shocked, as he remains the candidate to beat. This and other issues, he tells Assistant Politics Editor, DANIEL KANU, in this interview.
Defection from Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to Social Democratic Party (SDP)
Well, it is an open secret how the primaries in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) went. The party would not obey its own guidelines and wouldn’t also obey a court order regarding the delegates to elect the party’s flag-bearer. So, when they wouldn’t do that and our people insisted that they were waiting for us, and that they wanted us to have a platform for them where the hope of the generality of the people of Oyo would be realszed, we then decided to move down with our entire machinery to the SDP, to give that hope to our people.
There is concept of Omoluabi in Yorubaland. That is who we are, and that is how we were brought up. We looked at the parties and all the available platforms, and coming from this part of the country, and being Omoluabi ourselves, we looked at the promoters of the SDP in persons of Olu Falae and Segun Osoba. These are the men that have contributed immensely to the progress of Yoruba race and the country. They are Omoluabi personified. We discussed with them and it is obvious they have vision for Yoruba. We realised we share same vision.
Popularising relatively unknown SDP
It is about educating our people. They know already what we stood for. I am not just coming into the political arena; I had contested in the past and we have been engaged with our people all these years. We are doing a lot to re-introduce the party in their consciousness. Of course, the SDP was used as a political party in 1993. So, it is not something totally new. And people also recognise the fact that the freest and fairest election ever conducted in this country was won by the SDP. I will probably say, we have turned a full circle. But Oyo being a Pacesetter State, I will not be surprised that we are the one projecting this. Our action is going to catch on the entire country.
The reality is that the youth these days are not really concerned about the party but about the candidate. So, once we have a large following from Omititun as a structure and they follow me, Seyi Makinde, as a person, then all is well. That is what they care. Remember, majority of our youths are not illiterate; they are politically conscious at the moment. Perhaps where we need to do a lot of work is actually with the elderly.
Covering ground within six weeks to face old hands
Democracy is not about the positions you had occupied in the past; it is about the people, the majority of the people, and that is where we are going. We have listened to our people. We have heard them. We have given to them our programmes, our manifestos, and there is an alignment that: give us a new platform and we will vote for you. Really, politics is all about people. If the majority of the people say this is where we are going, then that is it and that is democracy. So, I believe that politics of Oyo State is just to be turned around. And all these so-called heavyweights, I think, are going to be shocked at the end of the day. This is because the decision of the people is going to be final. Actually, the vote is going to count.
Having candidates across board
We had hectic time sieving candidates. There is no constituency where SDP is not fielding candidate in the state for the election.
Chances of beating experienced candidates
That is actually our strength because those that have done it before, our people have now seen their limitation. And for us, we haven’t done it before, but we have done certain things that the people have been able to see. So they know we have the capacity, and integrity. They are convinced on where we are coming from. They know what we have done privately and they know I can raise the leadership bar. They know precisely our engagement with them. They know that over the years, we listened to their yearnings and tackled some of the issues within our communities. Bearing in mind that I have performed at private level, they know that if one has the resources of government, one would even do a lot better. It is my desire to send Ajumobi packing from Agodi.
What to do differently if elected
We have our manifesto and our campaign theme which we term ‘Operation HEAP’. We are talking about healthcare delivery. We are talking of making agriculture positive business in Oyo and also weaning the state from over-dependence on oil by projecting agriculture. We have education among priority projects. We will fix infrastructure. We have seen students and pupils learning under a very difficult and unsafe condition; dilapidated buildings here and there, no provision of material for the teachers. But all that will be a thing of the past.
If you look at the WAEC (West African Examination Council) result, Oyo came last of all the states in the South West. We will have a good shot at physical infrastructure. I am an engineer by training, and if I look at the current government, I sympathise with the state. We also have security in our manifesto and intend to deepen the current security situation in our state to make it better and more responsive.
Factors that would shape Oyo election in 2015
I think the major factor is the personalities that are involved. I can characterise it for you. You have three of the candidates who are over 65 years old. You have two who are around 50. I am 47. And one of those two has been tested as senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. And people have seen what he did and what he didn’t do. It is obvious that I am the candidate to beat and I believe people would gravitate towards me.
View on generational shift
That is what is in vogue all over the world, and I believe Oyo, being a pacesetter, will key into it. They will do it not because I am the youngest, but because they know I am the best potential to do the job. We will achieve on target and I want to be held responsible on this.
Advice to people of Oyo
They should not be deceived by people saying: oh, this is a new party. They should stick to my competence. On how we are going to comb every nook and cranny of the statel; over the next six weeks, I intend to cover almost everywhere within the state, taking our messages to the homes of all our people. They should listen to our opponents and ask them questions on why those promises made to them four years ago were bungled. I want to tell our people that I am the alternative because I have the solution to salvage the state.
