Oyo State governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Teslim Folarin, has said he will govern the state, using agriculture and education as the fulcrum of development, if elected in 2023.
He said this, on Wednesday, while speaking as the Special Guest of Honour at Day-4 of the 2022 Press Week of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Oyo State Council.
Folarin, who is the Asaaju Olubadan of Ibadanland, was awarded the “Most Distinguished Personality (MDP) of the Year” by the Oyo NUJ at the event.
Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Professor Adeolu Akande, was also conferred with the “Oyo NUJ Most Valuable Ambassador” award for his contributions to journalism in Oyo State.
Responding to a question on what would he do differently if elected as the governor in 2023, Senator Folarin said there was a need to go back to the history of the state in order to proffer solutions to its problems.
Folarin said his administration, if he becomes the governor in 2023, will replicate what the late Premier of the defunct Western Region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, did to transform the region.
Senator Folarin, who is the chairman, Senate Committee on Local Contents, said the state, nay the entire old Western Region, witnessed the most impactful development when Chief Awolowo was in power.
“On the question of what I will do differently if I become the governor, I want the make it clear that we don’t want power for the sake of power.
“We have looked into the history of the state to understand its problems. The last time we made most progress in Oyo State was during the era of Chief Obafemi Awolowo [as the Premier of the Western Region].
“Chief Obafemi Awolowo built the economy of the state around agriculture. We must go back into this and seek again to build the economy around agriculture.
“By 2040, we would not be using fossil fuel again as vehicles will no longer be powered with petroleum. We must set up a very sophisticated value chain system. We must create wealth.
“How do you create wealth? Our strength in Oyo State lies in agriculture. We have to go back to the basics. We must embrace agriculture. We must also look into and revamp our educational system and ICT,” Senator Folarin said.
Also speaking at the event, APC candidate for Oyo South Senatorial District in the 2023 elections, Chief Sarafadeen Abiodun Alli, alleged that campaign posters of candidates of opposition parties in the 2023 elections are being defaced and pulled down.
Pointing fingers at the present administration in the state, he said the dastardly acts should be stopped, warning that nobody has monopoly of violence.
In his goodwill message, the chairman of SDM Tavern, Prince Niran Adeyoju, said rescue Nigeria from its abductors is the responsibility of all.
“Nigeria is not in a good stead at the moment. It is unfortunate that we are in this situation because we have all what it takes.
“We are abundantly blessed with all the materials, both human and natural to transform the country into a first-class country,” he added.
Speaking on the theme, “Rescuing Nigeria From Its Abductors”, the Guest Lecturer, Dr Oludayo Tade, said Nigerians should be held responsible for the crises bedeviling the country.
Dr Oludayo teaches sociology of crime and deviant behaviour, social problems, social control and crime and sociology of mass communication and public opinion at the Department of Sociology, University of Ibadan.
“For a particular problem to happen to a family, it must have the hands of an insider. If we are able to track the abductors, then we on the path to rescuing the country,” Dr Oludayo said.
The university lecturer averred that the country cannot make progress until critical stakeholders drop sentiments and genuinely addressed issues affecting public governance.
He identified the problems to include ethnic and violence-induced political campaigns, stranglehold of religious leaders on their followers and voter apathy, among others.
Dr Oludayo spoke on the need for Nigerians to exercise their voting franchise in 2023, saying “God will not be available to solve the problems He had solved for some other countries centuries ago.”
He said ethnic and religious political campaigns must be discouraged, adding that religious groups and leaders, who he said have abducted the country, should stop holding the people to ransom.
Dr Oludayo said the division along religious divides has become more apparent with the Muslim/Muslim ticket controversy, adding that the pervading hardship and poverty across the land transcend ethnic and religious sentiments.
He also identified as abductors of Nigeria those he described as endorsers who go about endorsing all manners of candidates, despite the fact that most of them did not have Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).
The don admonished politicians to avoid the endorsers who he said were only endorsing to trade with the lives of their fellow Nigerian citizens.
He did not absolved the media of complicity in the rot in the political system, just as he admonished media practitioners to be careful of sensational political reports, especially bothering on violence.
Dr Olutade said it was good that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) came up with the Bimodal Voter Registration System (BVAS) for the conduct of the 2023 elections.
BVAS is a device which would allow for accreditation of voters through biometric capturing, uploading of results and other functions as regards the electoral process.
Dr Oludayo said, as good as BVAS introduced by INEC was, the final decision to have a smooth and meaningful election lies with the electorate.
To rescue the country from its abductors, he said champions of ethnic and religious campaigns should overlook such sentiments and seek to enhance progress in the country.
