LAGOS 2011: FASHOLA'S PERFORMANCE, PDP NEMESIS – AC CHIEFTAIN

A former governorship aspirant of the Action Congress (AC) in Lagos State, Otunba Niyi Raheem, has described as 'day dreaming' the Peoples Democratic Party's (PDP) intention of capturing the state in 2011.

Addressing a news conference in Lagos at the weekend, Lagos State-born politician stated that 'the superlative performance of the party under Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN), has shattered the PDP's dream,' pointing out that 'even not a few members of the PDP are satisfied with Fashola's performance.'

Speaking further, the grassroots politician asserted that 'in actual fact, PDP is non-existent in Lagos,' wondering, 'how could a non-existent party dream of winning an election in a state like Lagos where the enlightened electorate value performance?'

According to him, the people of Lagos were not known for playing politics of sentiment explaining that 'they are the people who will pitch their tent with whoever makes dividends of democracy available to them in the real sense of it.'

The Switzerland-based politician, therefore, urged members of the PDP in Lagos to stop daydreaming, enthusing that 'AC will rule Lagos and other states beyond 2011,' just as he commended the leadership of the party under Asiwaju Bola Tinubu for its political ingenuity that made the AC the pride of the Yoruba nation.

On the nomination of Professor Attahiru Jega as chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the hotelier cum politician said the university don might perform if given free hand by the executive adding, however, that 'the ongoing electoral reform is non negotiable.'

Electoral reform, Raheem reasoned, would go a long way in curbing other forms of electoral fraud stating that 'any Nigerian who has the love of this country will support electoral reform as well as electronics voting in their entirety.'

While asserting that nemesis of the annulled June 12, 1993 election would catch up with former president Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, the youthful politician expressed conviction that 'IBB will soon chicken out of the 2011 presidential race,' saying 'he must have read the bold handwriting on the wall that the evil he once did still lives with him.'