As the jostle for who takes over the mantle of leadership of Edo State come 2024 gathers steam, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party and consummate politician in the state, Chief Anselm Ojezua, has declared that he is the best man to take over from Governor Godwin Obaseki.
Ojezua made this known while speaking exclusively with GRNDNEWS ONLINE. The lawyer turned politician argued that the development of the state since 1999 has always been stalled by what he called “political clashes” usually between the governor and political leaders.
Citing his political experience since 1982, the many public offices he has held meritoriously, his disposition and comportment, he declared that he has the formula to arrest the situation and set the state on the path of rapid growth, building on what the present governor has done.
In his words, “The first thing is that you would have noticed that from 1999, there has been a lot of initiatives to try and deepen the economy of our dear state, and you would have discovered that most of the time, the efforts being made to achieve those objectives have virtually being truncated by political clashes resulting from sharp disagreements between the major political players. In most cases, it is between the Governor on the one hand and the political leaders on the other.
“And so, from 1999 till date, if you do the analysis, you are going to discover that has been a recurring decimal in our process. And the result of that is that we don’t achieve what we intend to achieve in governance because of the issues of politics. So, while I subscribe to the policies and the objectives, I also recognize that you cannot achieve up to the maximum if you don’t resolve the political situation, which brings me to the reason why I believe I am the man for the job. I am sufficiently experienced in politics, having been involved in partisan politics from 1982 till date, I have been sufficiently experienced in government having held several government positions meritoriously and without blemish, and I have the disposition to ensure that the political climate is stabilized in a manner that will enable governance to take place,” he argued.
Continuing, Ojezua stated that time was running out and Edo State must move quickly to productive engagements than being stuck with political clashes all the time.
“We are in a particularly bad situation because in spite of the efforts that were made, Edo State is still not in production, not to talk about processing or manufacturing. And without these indices, there can be no development. We must deepen our economy and time is running out on us. During my life time, the Dollar was 50 Kobo, rose to 80 Kobo, 1 Naira to 1 Dollar, today 1,000,000 Naira cannot buy 1,000 Dollars. What does that portend for our economy? If we are not in production then we are doomed. We cannot be in production if our politics is not right, which brings you back to a man like me.”
When he was reminded of the internal wrangling in his party and how that can potentially affect his dream, he dismissed it as portending any negatives for him. He said he relates well and positively with all warring factions and that he was sure, he wouldn’t be affected by it.
“Again, this underscores my conviction that I am the man that is required at this time. All the warring parties are related to me in one way or the other. And I mean this positively. The Governor is a friend of mine. We have been friends before he became governor and since he became governor. I have stood by him and other people who have been governors before him. And in doing so, I have done it selflessly and unconditionally. And I believe that in his heart of hearts, if he were to reflect, he would pay me back in the same coin. Secondly, if you look at all major players on all sides of it, you will find out that leaders like Chief Dan Orbih, are people that I have known over the years and we have related very well even when we have different political opinions, it has not affected our personal friendship. I believe this is one of those times when we draw down on our goodwill in the interest of our party and our state. I believe that should I have the opportunity, having regard to the central position of a governor or a candidate, I will be able to reach out and create that platform that will bring succor and peace to our party. I believe that it is about attitude and trust. These are the real issues. I have the right attitude and I believe they can all trust me,” he stated.
