One of the front-runners to the Championship position under the All Progressive Party (APC) for Abeokuta South Local Government spoke with us on his political aspirations, the LGAs Transitional Committee and the current administration of Governor Dapo Abiodun.
We bring you excerpts from our reporter’s interview with Alhaji Farouk Akintunde, an aspirant for Abeokuta South Local Government Chairmanship position.
TNV: Can we meet you sir?
My name is Alhaji Faruq Akintunde, I am born, bread son of the soil from Egbaland here precisely, from seriki compound in isale ijeun Abeokuta. On political ward, i fall at ward 10 Sodeke isale ijeun in Abeokuta South Local Government Area.
TNV: Can you share with us your political aspirations sir?
I have decided to aspire for the number one exalted position in Abeokuta south local government, my local government, that is the chairmanship position haven been equipped with the fact that I have what it takes to be the chairman. I have gathered enough experience in my different political sojourn in Abeokuta south local government.
I have served the local government in four different capacities under different chairmen. I have served as adviser in charge of economic matters and political matters; I have equally serve as a supervisor for works and housing in that local government, I have served as consultant at internal generated revenue and when Former Governor Chief Olusegun Osoba first created the LCDAs, i had the opportunity to serve as Vice Chairman.
So you see that I have traversed the local government and I have what it takes to lead my people
TNV: You have highlighted where you have served over time and your political ladder so far can you tell us your archivements during your service?
Well in my first tenure while I serve as special adviser, I was like the bridge between the government and the traditional institution, because I also cover chieftainship matters and as at that time I make sure we made use of traditional institutions in all the programs and such they were carried along in the program from time to time. We seek fatherly advise from them and it has really help the local government under our chairman then in person of Chief Dare Gbolahan popularly known as “sherubawon”.
Equally as somebody who was in charge of advising council chairman on political matters that was when we decided we make sure we bring the political leaders closer to the government, and when I served as internal generated revenue, well the records are there and that is one of the reason why I am confident that if I become the chairman of the local government I know what it takes to generate revenue, because I know as at that time under my leadership which is the internal generated revenue all the market people, the lock-up shops, business permit during my tenure we were receiving the most revenue because there were strategy that I put in place then and I can also tell you that as at that time I was also the person that introduced different taxes and rates to all the banks in the axis under Abeokuta south local government, there was no bank that did not pay less than a million Naira to the local government then, so we equally generated a lot of revenue but sadly the last administration has taken over completely all the revenue generating arms of the local government, but with the present administration which is focused and ready to give back to the local government what belongs to them and with all the strategies we have I think all those things will come back on board and more so we can archive more.
TNV: Sir recently the Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun inaugurated Local Government Caretaker Committee. What is your relationship with the Chairman and members of the committee in Abeokuta South?
Firstly, let me use this opportunity to thank the Executive Governor of Ogun State for giving us those calibre of people, they are fantastic set of people that are ready to turn the table around, I want to tell you since they have assumed office they’ve been doing all their best and I am aware of most of their effort and we are complementing them in areas we can do.
Those set of people are seasoned politicians and they are operating what I refer to as a ‘collective governance’. They caring everybody along both the party, traditional institutions and all other sectors of the local government are being carried along. They have been doing wonderfully well and I am very confident that they will bring out the required success.
TNV: Although, it is not time for campaign yet, but for the benefits of doubts if you are nominated as your party flag bearer for Abeokuta south and subsequently elected. What are those things that your people should expect from you?
By the special grace of God I am confident that I am the candidate to beat in term of being the party flag bearer at the local government elections because I know I have the support of everybody, of every sector, all groups and all who you can think of in the party because I have contributed immensly to the growth of this party. I have also contributed very very much to the success of this administration. I can recall that when our governor showed his intention for contesting, I was the chairman of his political movement in Abeokuta south. I said earlier that I have what it takes to lead the local government and my own objective is to enthrone good governance into the local government. If you want to enthrone good governance you are saddled with the responsibilities of ensuring that there are proper and good roads within your local government and that all health centres are properly equipped and functioning and all primary schools are well rehabilitated. You know a situation where by some of our primary schools cannot afford chalks, the teachers purchase all this things within themselves. So I am also committed to ensure that I lift the status of the traditional institutions giving them a voice in this government, because we are talking about local government we are talking about the local people at the grassroot, you cannot know more than them because they have the records, they have the history they can pilot you and advise you so I am going to give them a voice in that administration to achieve more. I am as well committed to empowering our women, most of our youths, there are a lot of youths that after graduating, they have things to do on their own to earn a living but there is no fund and support so I am committed to identify this kind of youths within the locality and empower them to make sure they are on their own. I am also irrecoverably committed to make the local government staffs more happier than what they were now because if you encourage them, if you give them their needs they are in turn going to give you more than what you expect. So the cardinal objective is that we are charged to enthrone good governance that will be piloted with this public private partnership of the present government. If you are operating a government and you allow more private (investors) to come in, you allow a lot of competition on different aspect, there will be development. In everything we just have to make sure we carry all our people along in all decisions we are taking
TNV: What is your assessment of the present Government of the Prince Dapo Abiodun led administration?
I am extremely delighted that I am part of the people that gave and threw their support behind this present Governor. He is a fantastically made man, there’s this adage which says “if you fail to plan, you plan to fail”. At the inception of this administration some people have been of the opinion that the government is all about setting up committees, but they fail to understand that you have to identify issues and challenges that you have before you can profer solutions so this is one of the things that makes this man distinct to other sets of governors we’ve had and I can assure you all the steps he has taken so far will give us more than what we are expecting and you can equally agree with me that his last overseas tour you have seen a lot of investors that are ready to do business with Ogun state, from the agricultural sector, from the business sectors from other sectors. See let me tell you, Ogun State stand to benefit more than what they expect from this man even before the four years tenure end I know it is the people of Ogun state that will clamor for his second term with the way he’s going about the governamce now. You can imagine the set up of the calibre of people he has put on board in his cabinet. These are set of people that really know what that are doing, we have technocrats that have distinguished themselves in their various callings, so with the combination of the people and Mr Governor I can assure you Ogun state will be one of the most better progressive and improved state in Nigeria.
TNV: The last time we spoke you emphatically said that in Abeokuta south, you are the most qualified candidate to occupy the post of the chairman and today you’ve mentioned it again that you are a candidate to beat. Why are you so confident?
Well, this is a contest and it all about election and i have been involved in situation whereby I worked hard for so many chairmen to come onboard.
Yanju Olipede, I was part of that struggle; Sherubawon I was part of that movement, I know all what it takes and if you see for yourself today no other person can gallantly say they have gathered the kind of experience I have gathered.
Let me tell you in term of political participation, this is almost my thirty eight years in politics, I have held different political positions in different political parties both registered and non registered. I have been in NRC, I have been in DPN unregistered, I started my politics in 1982 as one of the youth wing of the followership for SOA, Bankole gubernatorial election in those NPN days, I have been one time Assistant Secretary of PDP in Ogun state, I have been a member of state exco of APC. In the political arena non of them up till today, non of the other aspirants can boost of this credentials in terms of political participations besides I have passion for humanity, I belong to a community, I am a CDA chairman in my community. In term of serving humanity I am a member of Special Marshal of Federal Roads Safety Corps (FRSC). I am today one of the highest ranking member of Police Community Relation Committee (PCRC) in Ogun state, as at today I am the PRO for zone 2 Lagos and Ogun state PCRC, I am also the South-West admistrative secretary, I am the state secretary for Ogun state PCRC. So I have all what it takes and when you talk of this community, part of my various contributions have earned me a lot of traditional titles, both in the township and religious aspect, so I have move vast in the society so when you talk of A Faruok is there, when you talk of B faruok is there and when you talk of C faruok is there also, there are a lot of people within the community now that are ready to vote, some of them they don’t even realize we have to go through the primary first before the general elections they’ve been asking when is your election coming up and its because I am acceptable to them , it is because I am conversant with them. With all this I think I am more ahead of any other aspirants that have shown interest.
