I’ll Emerge PDP Governorship Candidate -Omisore

Posted by African Examiner osun election 2014, Politics Friday, March 28th, 2014

Senator Iyiola Omisore,leading governorship aspirant of the People’s Democratic Party in Osun state has expressed confidence that he will emerge the PDP flagbearer in the August 9 governorship election in Osun state. He said this while responding to questions from Journalist after submitting his nomination form for the gubernatorial primaries at Wadata Plaza, the party headquarters in Abuja. Excerpts

Senator Iyiola Omisore

How optimistic are you that the PDP will upstage APC in South West, a stronghold of the opposition party?

South West is not PDP zone at all. We have to take that out of our psyche. APC came to south west through the back door. They came into power through justice Salami’s misjudgment which we contested in the court of law and tribunal. And salami paid dearly for it. So we are going to election to know who owns papa’s land. And I want to assure you that PDP will win South West hands down come 2014, June and August alike.

Would you align with agitations for the emergence of a consensus candidate?

Consensus building is part of politics, but where one person dissents to that voice then there is no consensus. The electoral act is very clear on the issue of primaries, that is a candidate must emerge through a process of electioneering and a process of collegiate system. So consensus candidate is not bad idea after all but the moment a dissenting voice comes on then there is no consensus. And PDP we know is second to none when it comes to internal democracy in this country. So we are known for that we are used to it and we are proud of it. So we are going for electioneering primaries and delegate congress on April 5 and by the grace of God I will emerge the candidate of the party.

Few months ago the state chapter came up with an idea that who ever wants to buy forms should be streamlined properly but in the last 42 hours more aspirants have come to pick forms flaunting the stipulations by the state party, how do you react to this?

The issue of obeying party structure, instructions and guidelines are issue of choice, discipline and obedience. Whoever comes out after the party’s instruction, well that is the choice of the person. You cannot force people to obey the party. It bothers on discipline,integrity and obedience to constituted authority.

What is your competitive edge? Also, in a Post primaries scenario, what will you do differently from the serving governor?

I am a party man and I am the main party financier and backer in the state. And my people in my state are knowledgeable and sensible to know their friends in times of need and in time of want and in times of position seeking. My capability will speak for me in the time of primaries which will see me pick the ticket of the party. The issue of APC versus PDP is of course a foregone issue. That is a man that came through the court, he forged police documents, so he was charged for forgery in a criminal court in Abuja here. The matter was put in abeyance beacuse of issue of immunity.

By now we are ready because of so many things that are going wrong in our state: infrastructural development, debt portfolio, public misuse of governance, lack of transparency in deeds and in thoughts, bastardizing our youths through merging of schools and same uniform ideas and all sort of Lagos ideas being brought to Osun state.

The debt profile in Osun state has now risen to 413bn with nothing to show for it. The government has in the last two and half years has used some time to do ground breaking and no single project has been completed in that period and we are owing so much money and so much money is going under the drain. He has not paid salary of workers in the last three months, he has not paid pensioners in the last four months, some days ago there was riot on the streets of Osogbo. The workers are causing crisis, the pensioners are causing crisis. Osun state is prostrate now.