Less than two years into the administration of Governor Seyi Makinde, the 2019 gubernatorial candidate of Accord Party, Hon. Saheed Ajadi has labelled the administration as an underperforming one.
He noted that the current performance of Governor Makinde is his best and as such, the state needs the expertise and vision he plans to bring on board if elected, as the state’s governor in 2023.
Ajadi, a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Public Administrators in Nigeria, made the analysis during a press conference in Ibadan on Monday.
While attributing his foray into politics to his background which allowed him to travel around the world and compare the impact of governance in various societies with Nigeria, he noted that a close observation of the current state of the country several decades after independence is an indication that the African giant is still sleeping.
“During our 2019 gubernatorial debate, I said something about gas flaring and recently the governor has keyed into that. Although he wants to start it, I’ll be the one to complete it Insha Allah. From Oyo State, we will control south west, from south west, we will develop Nigeria. Lagos State has demonstrated the ability to think through Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu through transformational leadership. He employed the best brains around,” Hon. Ajadi said while speaking on the brand of politics he will play if elected governor.
Berating the free education policy of the current administration in Oyo State, he raised questions about the sincerity of government and the inconsistencies between its claim and the fact that parents still pay various forms of money at government owned primary and secondary schools in the state.
“Education: Give free education which he has given, correct? But if you say you are giving free education, there should be checks of why we need to bring this money or bring that money. Specify what you are trying to do for the parents. Don’t be ambiguous with education.
“A lot of people are poor, if you are trying to help them, help them. How? If you make your education free, then you must train your teachers because even the incumbent went to government schools. So it means that the likes of Bola Ige had quality teachers, if not the best because those are government schools.
“He also has to give teachers a sense of belonging. How do you do that? Give them incentives; teachers in Oyo State henceforth have a one-bedroom, two-bedroom house. How do we do this? Direct labour. No contract. You have people that you are paying salary to. You have Engineers, Architects, even labourers. How many contract did Awolowo give out? Let people engage, if they are not ready, sack them and bring in people that are ready to work.”
Speaking further, he undermined the attempts by the current administration in the state to implement populist oriented programmes noting that a leader is expected to govern the people to where they are supposed to be. “The incumbent is doing his job; he hasn’t done anything as far as I am concerned,” he noted.
He also noted that he plans to bring his expertise in renewable energy to channel the waste in the state for biomass energy.
“President Buhari should engage youths and appoint 50 percent of them into his cabinet. He should then give them 6 month parameters each. They don’t need to have any experience. this will enable the youths to have a sense of belonging before the President leaves,” he added.
