The rank of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State depleted, last weekend, as the party lost over two thousand members to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Igueben Local Government Area of the state.
Governor Adams Oshiomhole who received the defectors led by Eronmosele Aisabor said the Government has upgraded the College of Education, Igueben to a campus of the University of Education, Ekiadolor.
According to him, “I have come to assure you in the next two years and half of my stewardship, there is more good news for the people of Igueben. The future of our state would be replaced from the politics of wuru wuru to a politics of educating our people. That is why we are building schools. We need teachers who are properly trained to teach our children.
“We decided to upgrade the Colleges of Education to degree awarding institutions to give people the chance of taking teaching jobs by upgrading Ekiadolor to University of Education. By that decision, the Igueben College has become a campus of the University of Education.
“I have not spent eight years only six and by the time I have spent eight years I would do more. So don’t listen to them when they tell you to decamp to a torn umbrella that has failed to produce any meaningful development in years. Did the umbrella build schools, roads and water? So ask before you act,” he said.
“I call on you to listen so that we can rescue Nigeria. I won’t listen to anybody who wants me to do the politics of the individual rather than politics of development. I would not listen to these people because Nigeria is failing as leaders are putting themselves before their people.
“You must understand the basis for political contestations. The times are gone when people would vote without asking questions. The times are gone when the welfare of the few is seen as the basis for the decision of the majority. This is why I ask an open question: in the ten years of PDP, what can any of you count. That was why after leaving as the president of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), I came to Edo state to join the other Edo politicians who were also angry for the failure of PDP thereby founding alternative platform which became ACN and today it is APC,” he said.
Oshiomhole declared, “Today we have not fixed all the problems in Edo state but I want to be corrected that when I came here for campaign in 2007, to go from Igueben to Ewohimi was impossible. Every road in Igueben was bad. It was already failing. Today how is that road? Who did it? Nobody can put cotton wool in our eyes. What is good the eyes see and what is bad the eyes also see.
“Now in Igueben local government you now have many roads, classrooms and red roofs with Aluminum window and beautify tiles. We need bore holes in Igueben so that many people can get water. We are doing schools which you all know.
Leader of the decampees, Mr Aisabor said he decided to pitch his tent with the APC because of the vast infrastructural development undertaken by the Oshiomhole government in Igueben Local Government Area and in other parts of the state.