Buhari, Atiku contest is day versus night, integrity versus corruption ― Ajimobi

Ahead Saturday’s visit of President Muhammadu Buhari to campaign his reelection, Governor Abiola Ajimobi has described the choice between Buhari and his main challenger, Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as two distinct and parallel lines.

Ajimobi likened the choice between Buhari and Atiku as the difference between day and night, progress and retrogression, integrity and corruption, credible and abysmal performance, insecticides and locusts, security and insecurity.

Doing this distinction while meeting with interest groups at state Secretariat, Ibadan, on Thursday, Ajimobi said only Nigerians without a sense of history will be campaigning a return of the PDP whose 16 years era was replete with corruption, abysmal performance in infrastructure and power among other sectors.

In the past three and a half years, he argued that the Buhari administration deserved a second term going by successes in road and rail infrastructure development, improvement in power generation, revitalization of states through bailouts, empowerment of Nigerians through social investment programmes like N-power, school feeding,
tradermoni and marketmoni.

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“The uniqueness of the presidential election is like comparing day and night, integrity and corruption, between going forward and retrogression. The corrupt people are back and campaigning as if we have lost a sense of history.”

Have we forgotten 16 years of looting? The lines are clear as we know the main challenger is the Peoples
Democratic Party and its candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

“We have seen what the Buhari’s administration has done in the past three and a half years in empowering unemployed youths, paying N30,000 every month. Electricity has also been improved to a very reasonable
level which the PDP administration did with unmatched failure, with abysmal performance.

“So, we have seen a Buhari/Osinbajo government that has brought development to Nigeria, that has averted the trend of retrogression, corruption, has brought more peace and tranquility to Nigeria. This election is between locusts and insecticides, between security and insecurity, between progress and retrogression.

“This is a government that is unmatched in infrastructural development. Look at the roads and railway system that is being developed, particularly in the South West. The most important road network is the Lagos-Ibadan road, and this administration has almost concluded the reconstruction and repair of the road, so also is the railway. PDP was there for 16years, they never completed any.  Look at electricity, social welfare, tradermoni, school feeding programme among others,” Ajimobi said.

Just as he campaigned for Buhari at the federal level, Ajimobi again called for support for the election bid of the party’s governorship candidate, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, whom he said was most qualified than his other contestants in terms of integrity, decency, accomplishment and vision.

Addressing journalists after the event, Adelabu chided descriptions that he was only going to be a copycat of the outgoing Ajimobi’s administration, if he emerges governor.

Adelabu said though his campaign for continuity was in replicating the Lagos success story of continuity, he will not hesitate to review existing government policies and actions, as circumstances demand.

“I am not a copycat but we have a blueprint and we have a plan to upgrade it. Some decisions may be right, correct and applicable at a particular point in time but as times go on, the circumstances or environment may not remain the same such that we have to review policies, programmes or action plan.”

“We are not going to be dogmatic, we will be responsible and flexible. As things change, we will review our existing policies and see where we can amend, in the best interest of the people. And I believe I have the capacity, training, capability, background to carry out all it.”

“We are not starting from the scratch. We have a blueprint, standard plan that will see to the utmost development of Oyo State. There has been a foundation created by the incumbent administration that I will work upon.”

“It cuts across the critical sectors from economy to security mechanized agriculture, housing, health, education, transport management system, environment, job creation and internally generated revenue. We are working to upgrade the blueprint. The example is not far-fetched. We saw how it worked out in Lagos State and this is their
20th year of progressive rule. That is why Lagos is a success story and it is not a bad idea to replicate that continuity here in Oyo State,” Adelabu said.

The event had in attendance representatives of traders associations, artisans, vehicle operators, community development councils, youth associations, among others.

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