Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko (second left) playing host to the Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi,(first left), Osun State Governor, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola (second right) and his Deputy, Princess Laoye Tomori, during a visit to Mimiko at the Government House Akure, Ondo State
On insinuations that Mimiko may buckle to pressure, one of his aides declared that the governor is comfortable with where he is and that he has friends in both parties.
Information Commissioner Ranti Akerele said that governor Mimiko has said it “times without number that he was elected on the platform of the Labour Party and that there is nothing he wants that he can not actualise in Labour Party.
Akerele added that LP is a Party with social democratic bent and kind programme that makes it comfortable to work for ordinary man .The Labour Party is the right platform there is no reason for him to change party.
On the visit of the two governors, Akerele denied that they came to put pressure on Dr Mimiko to join the ACN.
“It was not a political meeting at all, the two governors were coming from Ghana where Dr. Fayemi delivered a lecture and they both landed at the Akure Airport.
“They later, at the Airport, thought that it would not be nice for them to find themselves in Akure and not visit the state governor.
RESIDENTS of Akure, the Ondo State capital, were caught unawares yesterday as the visit of the two south west governors –Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun and Dr Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti states was not on the governor Olusegun Mimiko’s scheduled for the day.
But journalists became curious about what Nigeria’s “newest” governors would be doing at the same time with their big brother governor at this crucial period when the Action Congress of Nigeria ACN is sweeping the South West from the Peoples Democratic Party.
Information making the rounds in the state is that after the ACN was declared the winner of the Osun election, the PDP leadership within and outside Ondo state had put pressure on Governor Olusegun Mimiko to return to the party from Labour Party, LP, where he is currently.
Some however express the fear that the South West was gradually slipping away and that it may spell doom if the ACN is able to woo Mimiko to the party.
Infact, Mimiko has become the bride of the ACN and the PDP in the last few days after the Osun verdict.
Vanguard learnt that the ACN has been mounting pressure on the new bride even before the Osun verdict in its consolidation bid.
Yesterdays visit by the two governors was seen by political annalist as a planned visit to still pile pressure on Mimiko to join ACN on the order of Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu judging from the fact that the two governors were said to be coming from Ghana where the Ekiti State governor went to deliver a lecture.
Aregbesola came in company of his Deputy Otunba Titi Laoye Tomori in a white Pajero jeep said to be his personal vehicle while Fayemi rode in a black official Jeep.
While Fayemi wore a black shirt and a pair of trousers, Aregbesola was wearing his normal native attire together with his deputy.
They arrived the government House ground by 10.30 am yesterday.
It took some minutes before Mimimko could attend to them because he was not expecting them according to one of his aides.
Vanguard learnt that there was no private talk between the three governors aside the courtesy visit in which all including journalists witnessed.
On insinuations that the governor may buckle to pressure, one of his aides declared that the governor is comfortable with where he is and that he has friends in both parties.
Information Commissioner Ranti Akerele said that governor Mimiko has said it “times without number that he was elected on the platform of the Labour Party and that there is nothing he wants that he can not actualise in Labour Party.
Akerele added that LP is a Party with social democratic bent and kind programme that makes it comfortable to work for ordinary man .The Labour Party is the right platform there is no reason for him to change party.
On the visit of the two governors, Akerele denied that they came to put pressure on Dr Mimiko to join the ACN.
“It was not a political meeting at all, the two governors were coming from Ghana where DR Fayemi went to deliver a lecture and they both landed at the Akure Airport.
“They later, at the Akure Airport, thought it would not be nice for them to find themselves in Akure and not visit the state governor. It was then and there they decided to pay a visit to the governor.
You can see that the governor was still at the government house and has not come out from his private quarters when the two governors arrived at the government House.
Akerele added that it was a brotherly visit that is devoid of politicking. The visit has no political undertone.
It is a visit by governors who had common experiences on their way to office which was made possible through their doggedness and determination. They were able to reclaim their mandate through the divine help from God who is a God of justice and equity.
After the courtesy visit journalist who laid ambush for the three governors were shocked when the two visitors said they came just to say hello to their brother governor.
Fayemi told newsmen that; “we are here to agree to form economic bond towards the upliftment of the lives of the people in our state.”
According to him; “there was need for regional integration among the states of the zone.”
He added that the state governors should not allow complacency so that there would not be disconnect between the government and the people of there respective states.
According to him “we must not allow complacency. Our people love us but we have burden of the mandate. There are lesson to learn. There are core values people know us for and these values must not be jettisoned because of politics.
“We have to deliver dividends of democracy to our people. We have ties and we must not do anything to undermine the ties. If we allow the tie to slack, the opposition will penetrate our ranks and that will not be in the interest of our people who voted us into office.”
On his part Aregbesola said “it would not be in the interest of the people if we see ourselves as separate entities since we are connected politically and economically.”
The Osun State governor who noted that he grew up in Ikare-Akoko in Ondo State said they “should work towards integrating policies and politics saying it was right time they resumed the Late Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s policies that made the zone the leading light among the committee of zones in the country.
In his address Dr Mimiko thanked God for ensuring victories of the two governors at the courts adding that there was urgent need for the regional integration for the benefit of the people of the zone.
According to him “since the three governors have recreated the politics of the region, they should now recreate the politics of the region.
“One of the ways to recreate the politics”, Mimiko said “was for the region to have zonal rail-line and Zonal Power plant that would guarantee economic development of the people”.
He advised his colleagues to create policies that would alleviate poverty so that the region would become global economic players in the future.
Dr Mimiko said the governors should allow their people to feel the effect of governance so that they will not be disconnected to the people who voted them into power.
Regretting the fall in standard of education he advised that they should focus of education, health and Information Communication and Technology.
“We must think of economic collaborative effort, we must have Yoruba rail-line, generate electricity and create market for investors. We must resume part to development,” he said.
The governor added that the governors should use any opportunity available to them to push for the practice of true federalism where the states would be able to use resources at their disposal for the benefit of the people instead of the quasi-unitary system of government being practiced by the federal government.
Political analyst in the state are still of the view that with time the coast will soon be clear as to where governor Mimiko will belong whether he would coast alone with his Labour Party or buckle to pressure from his two suitors.
But if the three bye elections held in the state within less than two years and won by his Party is anything to go by then Dr Mimiko may want to show that he is in charge in the state and may want to trash the opposition PDP in the state.
He may then decide to move by then he would have proved a point to the PDP which had vowed to reclaim the state by starting with the 2011 election.
SOURCE:www.vanguardngr.com
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