Ajimobi is not in a battle with anybody —Adeagbo

Niyi Adeagbo is the Chairman of Itesiwaju Local Government Area of Oyo State. He joined politics in 2009 and was appointed as a member of the Oyo State Rural Electrification Board after the 2011 general elections and a caretaker chairman in 2016. In this interview with YEJIDE GBENGA-OGUNDARE, he speaks of his vision, crisis within his party and other issues.

WHAT inspired you to go into grassroots politics?

With my appointment to serve my people at the grassroots, I realised that my desire to positively touch the lives of fellow humans was destined to start with my native local government area. The popular demand of my people coupled with my desire to contribute more to the advancement of my council area spurred me to contest chairmanship elections and to God be the Glory; I was elected on May 12, 2018 and sworn-in as executive chairman on May 14th.

How will you cope with the allocation-driven local government system in Nigeria?

I coped as a caretaker chairman by looking inwards. What remains after paying workers salaries and allowances from the federal monthly allocation is not enough to execute capital projects; therefore we concentrate efforts on improving our internally generated revenue through taxes, levies, agriculture among others. However, having little or enough money is not the key to performance but prudent and strategic management of the so called funds. Again the determination to get things done no matter all the odds is another weapon we have.

Our administration is always open to local and international partnerships so long the outcomes will be of immense benefits to my people.

Which group of APC do you belong?

Group? I don’t understand your question.

Are you a member of SENACO or the Unity Forum of Oyo APC?

I belong to APC and not either of the groups you mentioned. However, I must inform you that Senator Ajimobi Campaign Organization (SENACO) was setup in 2007 for the purpose of gubernatorial elections and the group has been disbanded by Governor Ajimobi. So, what we have now is APC; SENACO and LAMIST groups are no more in existence. Mr. Governor did say it that there is no caucus or groups in Oyo APC; he treats every member or legacy parties that formed APC equally.

Are you denying there is a Unity Forum? Why is there crisis over the party’s congress?

There are few aggrieved party members that called themselves unity forum within the party. But honestly speaking, I cannot specifically pinpoint what they are fighting over. Is it their 2019 individuals’ ambitions? Is it to gain the control of party structures? Is it because some of them are relieved of their political appointments by Governor Ajimobi? Expression of one’s displeasures is normal in a democracy but such right must not be damaging. The members of unity forum are taking things too far.

I am not saying the party members should not complain or express their grievances but they should channel it through the appropriate authorities for amicable resolutions. In every assembly, even in a family, there is bound to be disagreements. And for every crisis or problem, there is solution. Governor Ajimobi is the leader of the party and for any sincere loyal member, he must be respected at all times; that for me is a progressive ideal. I was one of those that didn’t get my preferred appointment in the first term and I remain committed and loyal to the party and the leadership. A father is a father any day no matter what.

What can you say about the parallel congresses?

The position of the National Working Committee of APC has been made known about parallel congresses. It says there is no such thing as parallel congress. The only congress recognised by the party is that conducted in accordance with the party constitution, which was organised by the congress committee charged by the party to organise such congresses. So the self-conducted parallel congresses outside this are an exercise in futility.

What has governor done to solve the lingering crisis?

Governor Abiola Ajimobi is a father and leader of the party in the state. He is neither in competition nor in a war with any group. I must commend the governor for his maturity and patriotism in the face of this crisis. Most members of unity forum have served under administration of Governor Ajimobi; so resolving the crisis is not difficult.

While we await amicable resolutions, I enjoin the few aggrieved party members to shun divisive tendencies in order for us to forge ahead as one indivisible party; collectivism is our strength in winning elections.

You appear to be running against a deadline know only to you in your activities?

Time is of great essence for any serious person. So, you are absolutely correct to say I am in a haste to deliver on my electoral pledges. I am in a great race to deliver my own dividends of democracy to my constituents than giving executive excuses. When I was in the caretaker capacity, I did not waste time to deliver based on my limitations. By God’s Grace, I do not want to be in the bandwagon category of executive complainants who defend their abject non-performance in office. Let me also state here that after an opportunity to serve in caretaker capacity for over a year and this opportunity of a 3years mandate, I will not waste any time in the delivery of dividends of democracy to my people because I will not be seeking another time.

What should your people expect from your administration?

We have four cardinal points on which we have based our agenda for our people. We called it 4D’s: Developing in unity of purpose, developing our infrastructure, developing our economy and developing our human capacity. These 4D’s have its short and long term plans. I was able to execute majority of my short term plans when I was in caretaker capacity; now that I have 3years mandate, our government will simultaneously deal with both the short and the long term plans based on the 4D’s.

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