Kassim Afegbua
Kassim Afegbua is the Special Adviser, Media, to Edo State
Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole. In the wake of the recent defection
by some prominent members of APC to PDP, such as the former Minister of
Foreign Affairs, Chief Tom Ikimi, Afegbua noted that politics of stomach
infrastructure may very well be the motivating factor behind the
exodus. He spoke on other issues bothering on governance in the state
in this interview with Adibe Emenyonu
There have been series of defection by members of Edo APC to PDP. The
latest being Chief Tom Ikimi. What is your reaction to this trend?
Well, it is true that some persons have left the APC in Edo State. It
is also true that APC have also gained from the PDP; those who have left
the PDP and other parties to join the APC. So as for Chief Tom Ikimi
who is the latest, we do not have problem with that.
How do you mean?
Yes, because as a man of 70 years, he needs some retirement benefits
and it is possible that only the PDP can offer the kind of retirement
benefit he is looking for in the sense that they can play about with
money. They have big contracts to give to people. But in APC, Edo State,
we devote our time and energy on performance by using the resource of
the state to add value to the well being of the state and also to
develop all the towns and villages within the limit of available
resources. So we may not have enough to distribute or dispense to
individuals who may want some level of patronage by way of lets share
the money. That is not in the doctrine of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole style
of governance. And so for a Chief Tom Ikimi, who has reached his
political apogee so to speak, I think nothing is amiss because his
political relevance in Igueben is very minimal just as his political
relevance in the country is also inconsequential.
After his escapade of Obasanjo! Obasanjo; Obasanjo! Obasanjo! scenario
of 2003, having been booted out of the PDP and having himself undermined
and disparaged the party on a number of occasions, it is only in
Nigeria that you see people try to swallow their own vomits. And so, for
us in APC, we do not have problem with him. We will treat him as elder
statesman but not a role model.
Are you saying the APC in the state is not worried? Because of recent
events,we learn that the Deputy Chief of Staff, Governor’s Office who is
an acolyte of Chief Ikimi has also resigned to join his master. Should
this trend continue, don’t you think it will affect the fortunes of the
APC in 2015 state assembly and national assembly elections; and 2016
governorship race in Edo State?
It is curious that such a young man, a wonderful promising young man, a
great guy will tie his political fortunes to the apron string of an
old man who has reached the zenith of his political career. Chief Ikimi
has seen it all. To us, when they get to that age of 70, the law of
diminishing returns sets in. What they do most of the time is to look
for parties that can offer them comparative advantages in terms of
retirement benefits because they do not have the capacity and energy to
work any longer. They look for cheap money, cheap relevance, cheap
networking etc. But for the Deputy Chief of Staff, he is my good friend,
wonderful guy. I would not want to believe that he will also resign and
follow his political mentor. But if he did, perhaps he may also have
other reasons why he has decided to take his own decision. As an adult,
he also has the liberty to take such decisions. He may have well felt
his political future or his political presence will enjoy more
recognition by remaining with Chief Ikimi. In all these, there is no
cause for alarm.
But in all these, there is one recurring issue. All those that have
decamped from APC to PDP have accused the governor of running a one man
show. How true is this?
I don’t believe in such. If I get my rhythm right, I will also be in
the same frame of mind with the Comrade Governor to be able to add
value, be able to perform and deliver on his electoral promise. Nobody
thought Edo State can attain this level of development within a space of
five and half years. Particularly talking from the inherited
infrastructural decay we saw on ground. Those who may want to accuse
Oshiomhole of being dictatorial should also search their own consciences
because Chief Tom Ikimi for example, did not derive his decision of
decamping from any accusation of the governor. If I get him right, he
has issues to grind with the national leadership of the party. He feels
that if it is not him, there should be no other person. He also has
issues with Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Again, that brings to bear the
politics of selfishness that is so pervasive in this part of the world.
If it is not you, somebody else must be. It must not always be you at
all time. Chief Ikimi at a time was chairman of a political party,
National Republican Convention [NRC] and to a large extent; Nigerians
know his level of performance, the level to which he was able to conduct
himself. So at 70, if he looks to become the chairman of another strong
opposition party and he is unable to get it, the expectation should be
that he should be able to reach out to people, work with those who God
has bestowed the leadership of the party on. You don’t have to insist
that your own sentiment and aspiration should be the basis or road map
of that political party even if you no longer belong to that party. No
individual can build a party. It is not possible. It is all a collective
thing. To that extent, the leaders of the party felt they will be much
more comfortable with a Chief Oyegun as national chairman than an Ikimi.
All this has been adduced by Tinubu. When Chief Ikimi wrote, Tinubu
replied him, stating the reasons why in their own wisdom, they felt they
were comfortable with Oyegun.
Coming back home to Edo State, Governor Oshiomhole has displayed enough
energy and capacity to consult widely before taking any decision. He
may not be a perfect man or the ideal typical politician because the
typical politician wants things to go their ways all the time. If they
are 10, they want things to go in their 10 ways. If they are 20, they
want things done in 20 different ways. They will want you to take
decisions that will favour each and every individual. That sense of
collectivism, communalism that should exist within us as Africans does
not hold waters when it comes to such argument. They will rather want
things to be seen from the prism of individual politician.
Unfortunately, the Comrade Governor is one man who does not have the
kind of patience to tolerate such bestiality, inanity. What looks so
pedestrian and you see people latching on it as if that should be the
basis of moving the state forward. Oshiomhole does not have such
patience for situations as this. He is not likely to be on the same page
with individuals with such myopic manner of politics of yester years.
In this contemporary time, Oshiomhole’s understanding is that give or
take; two persons cannot be captains at the same time. One person must
be and there is supposed to be that spirit of give and take so that we
can collectively galvanise our energy and move the state forward.
If you say dictatorial, that may be in the realm of those who are
typical politicians. But if you say consultation, fine because he
consults. If you say he is not a man you can easily bend if you do not
have superior logic that I will agree because you cannot bend Oshiomhole
if you don’t have superior argument or logic. You must be informed and
have superior information for you to convince him to take a particular
decision against what he has in mind. Working with him, we have on many
occasions argued on issues and if he discovers you have superior logic,
he capitulates. I think those saying he is dictatorial are just doing so
to give him a bad name.
Recently, the Benin elders raised the alarm over alleged plot by PDP in
the state to deny people of the senatorial zone the Permanent Voters
Card [PVC] with the intention of denying the Benin man the opportunity
to contest the 2016 governorship election. How true is this?
Yes I read this in the papers. For a reputable body to raise such
alarm, they must have the information at the tip of their fingers. But
such plot will not work because by the zonal arrangement in APC, the
next governor of the state will come from Edo South. When you say Edo
South, you are talking about the seven local government areas and its
environs. So we are not bordered about the political shenanigans in the
PDP or the political manipulations by their demagogues. They have always
ploted graphs to favour the central zone and all that. As far as APC is
concerned though I am not their spokesman, but as stakeholder, Edo
South will naturally be fielded as candidate of the party in the 2016
governorship election. In any case, there is still a long rope to tow
because election of 2015 is by the corner. In February next year, people
will be competing for the state and federal assemblies. After that, we
will begin to prepare for the 2016 governorship election. So to a large
extent, those who are raising the allegation may have their reasons.
However, the more PDP is in crisis, the better for APC because for us in
APC, we don’t want to be distracted. This is because some of the people
leaving us for the PDP sooner than later will taste the bitter pill in
the PDP. Today it all sound like Hosanna music, tomorrow, the melody may
change to crucify him. So we are resolute to move the state forward.
The Comrade Governor does not want to be distracted by politics of 2016
that was why he placed embargo on issues of 2016 election. That holding
all manner of meetings as a precursor to 2016 should stop. This is
because he wants to have three good years of maximum concentration on
the developmental agenda he has set for himself, then the last year, he
will do some level of stock taking and prepare the way for the new man
who will take over from him. Only God knows who will take over from
Oshiomhole. We may all have our dispositions, but God is the ultimate
disposer in whatever intention or action plans we may want to exhibit.
To that extent, we are not loosing sleep over the happenings in Edo
State. The real voters, we are connected to them because once there is
that connection between government and the people, then all these
characters by way of mobile politicians who are here today and there
tomorrow will pale into insignificance because if you want to test the
popularity of a party, you go to the grassroots.
That is where you will know whether you have performed or not. You see,
the beauty of APC is the fact that it has a record of performance to
refer to. You don’t need to go far. All you need to do is to point a
finger and people will see what the party has done in the three
senatorial zones of the state. We may not have had the kind of resources
to cope with the developmental challenges pointing at us as a state,
but we’ve been able to make judicious use of what is available to us
both from the Federal Account and Internally Generated Revenue [IGR] to
add meaning and value to the commonality of our existence. And so, today
those who felt that Edo State will not work are surprised that the
state has bounced back. We may not have gotten it all. Six year or eight
years of an administration cannot solve all the problems. But we are
saying that for God sake, we are leaving Edo State better in far more
superlative terms than we met it. For that, the Comrade Governor will
have his place fully assured.
Contrary to your assertion, some people are of the opinion that the
governor did not do as much as he did in the first tenure; that he is
doing more of politics than proper administration of the state. For
instance, they cite the abandoned work at the Central Hospital Benin and
other numerous projects. How do you react to this?
This is not true. I think we have even done more work this second term
than in the first tenure. People don’t understand that the first term
was work in progress. Completing those works in progress takes much
effort in terms of resources. Capital projects in this tenure must have
gulped up to N100 billion if I am not mistaken. Besides, people do not
understand that if you commence a particular road project in you first
term and you are unable to complete it until your second term, it means
you have been able to fulfill your financial obligation to the fullest.
It is like the Benin Storm Water Project. In the first tenure, effort
was devoted to laying the foundation. But now work has commenced, an
indication that due diligence is being followed at the right time.
Another example is the Upper Siluko Road, Upper Mission Road, Forestry
Road and several others like the 2nd East Circular dual carriage way
that has been awarded. Even the completion of the Airport Road was
completed in the second tenure because of the street lightening and
other beautification as well as the solar-powered traffic light which
are all part of that contract. Those who make such allegation are those
who believed that Comrade will not finish the projects he commenced in
the first term. But now that they are seeing that he is completing these
projects, they are naturally finding ways to criticise him.
The Central Hospital that is being talked about, work has resumed
their. After that accident, there was a re-assessment by architects and
engineers that there is need to reinforce the pillars to prevent a
reoccurrence of what happened before. Even the contractor has promised
that within six months, the hospital will be delivered to Edo State
Government. The same thing goes to Women and Children’s Hospital,
Ewohimi which has being built and furnished.
It is not about having structures in place but also bringing the right
manpower to manage them. So the Comrade Governor cannot start what he
cannot finish. What he has done to a large extent is that all the
projects he is not able to finish during the first term, he will
complete them in this tenure. There will be no abandoned project. For
instance, he has assured me, just as he assured other members of my
community that work will soon commence on the Okpella township roads;
that the designs were ready. Government does not just work in one swoop.
Government is methodical, planned and structured in such a way that
when you plan your budget, they are just estimate because what you may
get in the final analysis may not meet up with 40 or 50 per cent of what
your estimates are. When this happen, it is now your responsibility as a
good manager of resources to know how to apportion what you have gotten
to meet up with the developmental challenges; and in Edo State we are
doing just that. For instance, Preco Oil-Palm Company is being given
additional lands for its expansion project. In doing so, they are taking
away thousands of our youth off the streets by employing them.
There is a whole lot of blue print lined up by the state government.
This year alone, the intention of Government is to generate about 13,000
jobs and we are moving in that direction. This is aside from the Youth
Employment Scheme {Edo YES} and the Neighbourhood Watch. The Information
Technology Unit is currently being expanded to make sure that
everything in the state is automated. Oshiomhole is laying a legacy that
anyone who comes after him and try to distort the flow of the stream,
will cause a lot of flooding. Oshiomhole needs to be commended in all
fronts. As an insider, what he complains most time is that “how I wish
Edo State is as rich as our sister states like Delta, Bayelsa and
Rivers. Naturally, nobody has challenged the quality of work he has
done. What they normally quarrel about is the cost. Take Five Junction
as an example. When the governor was constructing the place, nobody gave
him hope. But today, that area is like a Mecca of some sort. Where are
the roads in Edo State before? They were all narrow and windy. Before,
nobody thinks a six lane road was possible in the state, but today, we
have seen that it is possible. Oshiomhole may not be perfect. By what we
are saying is that he is able to add value to governance, been able to
reorder the narrative to the extent that people now have confidence in
government.
What is the state of preparedness of the government to sensitise the
people on the forthcoming distribution of PVCs in the state?
We have since placed advertorial in the print and electronic media, ran
series of jingles to sensitise the people to come out when the time
comes. We have also used apparatus of government to ensure that people
at the local level are well sensitised and mobilised. We have done so
through local government party chairmen and ward leaders. It is a civic
responsibility. With that card, you can to interrogate the activities of
government. As a voter, you have the right to question government on
how monies are expended especially those gotten from taxation. That is
why we admonish people to be good tax payers and good voters because the
people have to own their government since they are repository of power.
This can only be done if you have a voter’s card to exercise your
franchise on election day. You may make all noise but if you don’t have
the card to either vote leaders you want or vote out those you don’t
like, then you don’t have any basis to criticise. So we are quite
prepared. Once INEC blows the whistle, the people will come out. This is
when we are going to see how INEC will prevent the people from
collecting their card since they have registered before, making
reference to the position of Benin elders.
There is this outcry about double taxation in the state. For instance,
people have complained severally of paying tax to both local government
and state governments. What is government doing to address this problem?
Taxation is a civic responsibility. The Pay as You Earn [PAYE] law is
not the law of Edo State. It is a federal law that if you domicile in a
state, there should be some level of bilateral cooperation. So what we
met on ground was some kind of negotiated tax payment. But we have been
able to eliminated. In the past, it was negotiated that if you are
supposed to pay 15 per cent of your income before, you now pay 7.5 per
cent and all that. That was in the past because things have changed. So
those are now paying more according to what the income tax law
stipulated will naturally cry foul because it is not the convenience of
any one the world over. But because it is a law, nobody can run away
from it.
Besides, the state government has read the riot act telling local
governments to stop imposing taxies and levies on people; that they must
do that which is specified within the law or tax regime. So to a very
large extent, they are complying. This is because government at a stage
was getting embarrassed by the unwholesome attitude of some touts that
go on the highways asking for radio licenses and we had to wade in. So
since the riot act, we have not had any complaint. Even at that, we have
told people within communities to apprehend anyone who still indulge in
such unwholesome act.
Not too long ago, students of higher institution in Edo State blocked
the Benin-Ore highway protesting the work-to-rull action of their
lecturers over non-payment of salaries and allowances. Don’t you think
this is bringing bad image to the government?
If there is anything the Comrade Governor does not joke with, it is the
salaries f workers in the state. Go round the ministries and other
departments of government in the state, there is no worker that receives
his/her salary beyond 24thof every month. This is commendable. In Benue
State, they are owing teachers for nine months; Kogi State for six
months, Bauchi and quite a number of others. That we are even able to
pay salaries regularly is an achievement of no mean feat. Again, this
government has increased grants/subventions to higher institutions since
it came on board. Only last year about N500 million was given to
Ambrose Alli University. And I know that the same thing was replicated
to other institutions like Colleges of Education, Ekiadolor, Iguenben,
College of Agriculture, Iguoriakhi; and Institute of Management and
Technology, Usen. But again, speaking about the decay that this
administration inherited, you know that in as much as the body and soul
is willing, resources may not naturally come for you to meet all the
challenges. But for anyone to say we have not added value to these
institution will be missing the point because government had done so
much. Nevertheless, this boils down to issue of management of resources
by heads of the respective institutions of higher learning because when
you give, the bulk of expenditure is used to settle salaries and wages
since they have so many non academic staff than academic staff. For me,
there is need to do a complete overhaul of these institutions.
Government had in the past tried to take some positive measures towards
addressing this but ended up being accused of witch-hunting some
persons. In any case I just resumed from my holiday, I will look more
into this matter to be able to furnish you with more details now that I
am back.
