A frontline candidate in the forthcoming Local Government election in Moro of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Hon Moshood Alaka in this interview with ACTING EDITOR, MUMINI ABDULKAREEM, speaks on the forthcoming local government election among other issues in the polity. Excerpts:
Why are we on the issue of local government, are you still in the race?
Yes, we’re very much in the race. We are hearing that there is going to be a caretaker arrangement. But stakeholders, leaders of the party and those in government are solidly behind us to be appointed. We have been selling our agenda to the people and very confident that we can deliver in line with our mandate. So we have not stepped down or back out but we are meeting people and furthering our engagement. Out of the 17 ward chairmen in Moro, 15 of them have been going round meeting stakeholders and leaders at the local government and ward levels canvassing for my candidature either as the caretaker chairman or elected one.
Have you been informed officially that we are going to have a caretaker arrangement?
There has not been any official information regarding this but there are certain things that we need to put on ground if there is going to be local government election. The tenure of the suspended chairmen is going to expire on the 18th of this month or thereabout and I don’t think there is going to be a vacuum. The suspension of the local government chairmen has been extended and we know there is a law that is guiding the conduct of the exercise which stipulates a 3 month notice that should be given to the Kwara State Impendent Electoral Commission (KWSIEC). All these things must be put on ground before we can go to the election. But when these are not on ground yet, definitely we have to go for caretaker and that is the assumption across the local government on the issue.
Now that we are talking about caretaker arrangement, how confident are you that your people will still prefer your choice?
Because the governor is looking for a credible candidate that can make things work, not people that are waiting for him to give them money and tele-guided them before they can take intuitive decisions or do anything. He wants somebody who can bring in new ideas, who is very creative and very popular among the people, who has the requisite business acumen to change council administration in the state. It is glaring that I have all these criteria and Insha Allah, have exhibited it far better than those that are also gunning for the seat. Agreed, there is no nobody that doesn’t have his/her own idea, but let people come out and tell us what they’re going to do when they get there. We have been telling our people what we intended to do. Even now, we are assisting our people to facilitate loan and I have sponsored over 70 people to access amount ranging from 2-7million naira. We thank God for giving us that kind of opportunity. We are going to ensure that Moro local government will be the food basket across the nation by Allah’s grace in the next one year of our tenure which will complement the Governor’s efforts and plan towards food sufficiency. We have a lot of plans that we’re putting on ground and we will exploit our connections at the federal level to facilitate getting at least 22 tractors to assist our farmers in Moro. And if we can get that, what do you think will happen in terms of farming to our people. We need to develop our people’s skill in farming and fishery. We have dams in Moro which can serve our people very well. This will reduce the issue of Okada riders our domain. What the government need to do is put in place enabling environment. I’m a consultant and also train people on fish farming. We can also assist them to facilitate loans from CBN, DVID in UK, NIBRI, BUA, Dangote and others will train them in farming, ICT and other skills acquisition, empowerment like tailoring for women, artisan and educational support. So that they will not depend on anybody but will even create labour and if we can take ten people per ward, imagine what will happen to fishing industry in Moro.
But don’t you think TIC arrangement will limit your chances of being elected for you to make desired impact?
When a child passed a class, what do you expect of him? He will be promoted to the next class. When we get to the bridge, we’ll cross it. The community will decide that, once we have laudable programmes that will arouse and stimulate the interest of the people, they will definitely key into it. And what is the function of the office of the Local government chairman in the first place if not to assist our people to develop the local government?
What is your message?
My message to our people is to be calm and abide by the laws of the country, especially our youths. We don’t need to do anything that is going to tarnish our future, but try to do something that will assist us in future. We are the leaders of tomorrow and the leadership will be starting from today. I urge the people to continue to support the administration for the Governor to deliver on his campaign promises to the people of the state.e
