MY AGENDA FOR OGUN EAST, BY ODUNEWO, PDP SENATORIAL ASPIRANT

Why I'm in the race
Well, I used to be on the other side. And after watching things go wrong for so long, I decided to change position.

Squaring up against a governor and a serving senator

Well, I have a very good chance, because it is about change and the time is now. And it is nothing personal.

My programmes
Basically, we will move to effect change. Change must first start from within. We need to restructure ourselves. We need to have a vision. A vision for the state, a vision for the senatorial district. Like the popular saying goes, 'without vision, the people perish.'

Others have actually done a lot, but there are just a lot more work to be done. And things just have to change. There is a lot of suffering in the land.

In the area of basic infrastructure, we are behind. Water for example; in Ijebu-Ode we still have water problems. In Ogun State since the state was created in 1976, there are too many things that are wrong. You see polio, cholera coming back into the system. That is totally unacceptable.

My first bill
Well, the first thing for me is basic. Our health care system really needs to be addressed. If you do your calculation very well, we need roughly about 150 public health centers which we do not have. I think that seriously needs to be addressed.

Number two, the roads and accessibility needs to be addressed. Three, for a state that makes most of its money from agriculture, we don't have enough to support agriculture.

Why the people should support me
You see the most important thing sometime, is not what you want, It is what you don't want. When you are confronted with four things and you know that three out of the four things you don't want, what do you do?

Actually I tell a lot of people; and I am going to use an example - stock market. When you are investing in a stock, or you are buying any kind of stock, you have to look at the man behind the wheel. Parties are good. PDP, ACN, but sometimes you also have to look at the caliber of the aspirants or the candidates. That tells you a lot.

You see in the advanced countries, they have moved past the party system. Individual background and the quality of your candidate is very important. So, sometimes I want people to understand me for what I stand for.

We have seen the past. We have seen our predecessors; we have seen what they have done. We are the future. The change stands now.

I am not afraid of ACN
It is a good thing that they (ACN) are doing and it is a good motivating factor for PDP. And that is a good competition for us. That is why among the PDP dominated state, you will see a major change. PDP now is transforming.

The present Senate
I will say that better job can be done. Most of the people in the Senate they are doing a great job but there is large room for improvement.

No fears about the 2011 polls
We pray that the election will be fair. Very fair. Because we want the people to decide whom the candidate would be. There should be freedom of choice and transparency should be maximum. I pray everything goes well. We have fears of rigging. But the way we are looking at it. It is going to be very hard to rig this election.

We have a visionary leader that has a vision for the country as a whole. Then external forces. Once we have enough microscope from the outside world, I think we will do the right thing.

The judiciary.
We are getting on in the right direction. Basically the whole system needs to be reformed, but they are doing it gradually. We have a long way to go, but we are getting there. You could see a lot of the results from the ACN; finally people are getting what they deserve.

Thuggery and money politics.
Thuggery and money politics, in our country, they both go hand in hand. Because if you notice in the outside world, people give you money to elect you. They donate money. But in our country, it is not so. So, basically that gives us different roles. In a country like ours, we need to be able to see the big picture. We need to think about our children and children 's children. And not sell our souls. And not settle for just money.

Ogun PDP crisis
You see what is happening with most of our leaders. They are trying to bring a solution. They are trying to close the gaps on the PDP in having Ogun State. We are doing a good job in getting all these things resolved.