The National Vice Chairman (Southwest) of the All Progressives Congress, Hon Isaac Kekemeke, has explained why he joined the Ondo governorship race.
The primary election of the party has been slated for April, this year.
Kekemeke said that his intention to run was to enable him genuinely and committedly utilize the people’s resources to directly impact their lives in a visible and sustainable manner.
He said this during an interactive session with Association of Retired Permanent Secretaries, Retired Senior Civil Servants in the state.
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According to him, “l decided to run because God has anointed me to turn around the fortune of the state through developmental programmes and policies.
The former Secretary to the State Government said his vision is to clearly work with all patriots to create a prosperous and peaceful Ondo State where citizens are productively engaged to enable them live meaningful, comfortable and decent lives.
Kekemeke who said that his experience as the former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice; former Commissioner for Works; former member of the State House of Assembly; and pioneer Chairman of the National Examination Council, NECO, said he is in the best position to turn around the fortune of the state.
“While we aim to make government in Ondo State seeable, touchable and feel-able, our objectives are to use the entire governmental powers to fight hunger, poverty, joblessness, insecurity and a rescue of our decayed basic infrastructure.”
On his plans for development of education, Kekemeke, said he will deliver free and compulsory primary and secondary education for the ultimate benefit of the State.
He promised that his government will subsidize tertiary education, most importantly for the indigent students and bring back scholarships for hardworking students, including provision of quality and affordable health care.
“On education, there would be free education for primary and secondary school students, there would be compulsory primary schooling for all children in Ondo State.
“We are going to encourage our students to attend technical school in order to learn more basically on entrepreneurship.
“The tertiary institution would experience a new dimension such a way that indigenes will pay lesser than people coming from other states.”
He also assured that his government will invest heavily in agriculture as in the days of the Farm Settlements by Obafemi Awolowo, through innovative Civil Farmer programme to ensure self-sufficiency in food production and to earn meaningful income and provide the raw materials for the agro-based industries.
“We are going to cover education, entrepreneurship, industry management, agriculture and all sector of human resources development.
“My little time in governance helped me to have knowledge of many things, we should be talking about government for the people, all money generated must remain the money of the people”.
He said “For retirees in the state, there would be establishment of knowledge bank, for retired senior civil servants, those who are still strong and mentally stable would be engaged so that would add value to government.”
Earlier, the President, Association of Retired Civil Servants in Ondo State, Prince Enouch Bajowa said the group took a decision as elder statesmen and women who have seen it all, to identify the capability of all aspirants who want to lead the state.
Bajowa said that “having observed what has been happening in the recent times in Ondo State, lots of people have showed concern, and people have said there is no governance.
”Besides, lot of problems within the political space have emerged, and we took a decision as elder statesmen, and women who have seen it all, to make sure in a little way as a way of giving back to our own people for making us what we are today to serve as facilitator trying to identify the capability of aspirants.
Bajowa said that “We are satisfied with what the aspirant (Kekemeke) said, but words can be different from deeds, when politicians get to office, some of them do change but we’ve advised him to live according to his promise and do the right thing in the interest of the people and the interest of the state.”