Meet the Ondo governorship candidates

Meet the Ondo governorship candidates
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According to the Independent National Electoral Commission, there are as many as 12 candidates for the Ondo State governorship election scheduled for October 20, 2012. This is not unexpected in a state as literate and politically conscious as Ondo and in a multiparty political system like Nigeria’s.

What is surprising to many informed voters is why anyone would wish to contest the position with the incumbent, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, of the Labour Party, given his sterling record of accomplishments so far. It is precisely this fact that has led voters to put a searchlight on the other contenders to find out if any of them has the political experience, the track record, the integrity and the mettle to upstage Mimiko in a free and fair election.

So, let’s meet the others: Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN, (Action Congress of Nigeria); Chief Olusola Oke (Peoples Democratic Party); Taye Adeuti (Allied Congress Party); Adeyemi Bolarinwa (All Nigeria Peoples Party); Ayodele Olusegun (Better Nigeria Progressive Party); Omoyele Olorunwa (Change Advocacy Party); Olusoji Ehinlawon (Congress for Progressive Change); Oladipo Lawrence (National Conscience Party); Abikanlu Olusola (National Solidarity Democratic Party); Victor Adetusin (People for Democratic Change); and Omoregha Olatunji (Progressive Peoples Alliance).

Only three of the 12 candidates are considered serious contenders, partly because of their perceived stature and partly because of the relative strength of their political parties in the state. They are: Akeredolu of the ACN, Oke of the PDP and Mimiko of the LP.

Akeredolu is from the Northern Senatorial District, where the ACN is considered relatively strong. However, this perception may have derived from the emergence of over 30 ACN aspirants from the area because the position was zoned there by the party leaders.

Apart from a two-year stint as Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Ondo State (1997-1999), Akeredolu has spent the last three decades in the service of the legal profession. Among others, he served as chairman of the Legal Aid Council and president of the Nigerian Bar Association. In recognition of these contributions, the NBA recently named its Abuja secretariat building after him. These professional accomplishments notwithstanding, Akeredolu is a complete novice in partisan politics.

Oke is from former Governor Olusegun Agagu’s Southern Senatorial District, where the PDP is considered relatively strong because of the former governor. Like Akeredolu, Oke is also a lawyer. However, unlike him, he has been a partisan politician for the past two decades, during which he was either running for political office or holding a political appointment. True, he was elected to the shortlived House of Representatives in 1992, but his election to the Senate in 2007 was nullified by the Supreme Court.

Mimiko, from the Central Senatorial District, has a much more robust political resume than the other two put together. As a medical doctor, he, too, is a consumate professional. But his interest in partisan politics dates back to over three decades, including his student days at the University of Ife, where I was teaching at the time.

His services to Ondo State also have a long history. Besides serving as a medical officer, he served twice as Commissioner for Health; once as the Secretary to the State Government; and he is completing his first term as governor. In addition, he has served the Federal Government as minister. In Ondo today, Mimiko’s popularity and that of the LP are fused. This was tested in the 2011 elections when the LP swept all the state and federal legislative seats across the state, except just one. The endorsements for his second term bid derive from his meritorious services, especially as governor.

The testimony of a partially blind man is instructive here. As I was interviewing fountain watchers at the new big roundabout by the First Bank junction in Akure, I noticed him being led off the fountain into his car. I followed him to his car, and the following exchange ensued:

“Sir, I am a columnist for The PUNCH, and I have been interviewing people at the fountain. If you don’t mind, can you tell me about your experience there?”

“Well, if you care to know, I have heard many good things about Mimiko and the wonderful job he has been doing in Ondo State. My driver told me about the fountain on our way, and I told him to stop and lead me there. I heard the splash as we approached the fountain and stretched out my hand when we got there. I found a Mimiko wonder I could touch and feel. But, mind you, I am not from Ondo State. I am only passing by.”

What a blind man appreciated and other urban development projects in Akure and other big cities have been a subject of attack by the ACN and PDP campaigns, which share three common features. First, both parties continue to be remotely controlled by party leaders from outside the state. The influences of Lagos and Osogbo on the ACN are now well known. So is Abuja’s on the PDP. Hear the PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, as he instructed a committee last week to go and mend fences in Ondo State, “We won’t disclose our strategies to win the election in the open. But we are determined to win.”

Second, the “selection” of their candidates has been mired in controversy, featuring god-fatherism, factional endorsement and staged primaries. Consequently, some key party members have defected to the LP, while a number of others are sitting on the fence.

Third, both campaigns have unleashed attacks on critics and Mimiko’s supporters. For example, Akeredolu’s campaign organisation has attacked Pofessor Kole Omotosho; Dr. Tunji Abayomi; Dr. Olu Agunloye; Dr. Fredrick Faseun; Dr. Tunji Braithwaite; and Chief Ebenezer Babatope. Oke’s campaign has also attacked many prominent citizens, including Chief Olu Falae and even members of the PDP in the state, for their dissent or support for Mimiko.

This attack mentality resulted from the construction of political opponents and their supporters as enemies. The outcome is a messy struggle in which each campaign tries to stage a verbal or physical attack or defend itself. The onus is on INEC, security agencies and the electorate to ensure that the best candidate emerges victorious.