AJINJIDE'S AGENDA IN 2015
Those who have been watching with keen interest the political activities of Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide, the current Minister of State FCT, in the pace setter state have continued to heave a sigh of relief that the Minister that Oyo State produced is living up to expectation.
The gladiators in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP are particularly excited that with the way the Minister is coalescing efforts to drag out the party from the quicksand in which it is currently mired, the party is bound to bounce back stronger in no time.
Like an English Essayist, W. Hazzlit said, a statesman is never less alone then when alone. Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide is never alone, if she's not thinking of how to better the lots of her people in Oyo state, her mind will be preoccupied with how the satellite towns within FCT will have accelerated development. It bears excerpting a few words from her first comment on what people should expect from her as a Minister - ' I have a dual focus as a Minister, one is to make Nigeria one of the top twenty countries in the world by giving vent to the Transformation Agenda of the president using the FCT as a model. The other one is to create a platform for stability of PDP in Oyo State to reclaim its mandate.'
The unprecedented crowd that usually throng, the family house of the Akinjides to welcome the minister whenever she's in Ibadan is a good pointer to the people undiluted love for Oloye. In her own way of showing appreciation to the effusively elated visitors, Oloye would not let anyone departs without wining and dining. Thereafter, they would form a seemingly endless queue to collect transport fare back home. And people are now literally counting days to know when next Oloye is coming to Ibadan to see them.
It's equally exhilarating that hundreds of political adherents who benefited recently from Akinjide's Hajj and Jerusalem slots have now redoubled efforts in working passionately for the party through which they secured their tickets to the holy lands. All the 33 Local Governments in Oyo State produced one or more candidates that enjoyed this uncommon gesture of the Minister. In another development, the empowerment programme that kicked off from Mrs Akinjide's Local Government in Ona-Ara is now fast spreading into other Local governments. This and her sustained efforts in generating employment for some jobless youths in the state within a short spate of time have been described as the beginning of a new dawn. Each passing day, the youth in the state are now full of expectations that sooner than later, their own fortunes will be turned around by the amiable Minister.
A bridge builder that she is, Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide is leaving no stone unturned in uniting warring factions within the PDP in Oyo state. The olive branch she's waving at those who have left the party with annoyance to come back to their political roots is currently yielding result with thousands of decampees from ACN, PDP faithfuls in Oyo state are asking with great excitement - what is the ambition of Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide towards 2015? But strange enough, before she could venture an answer to this poser, opinions are already formed that she's eyeing the governorship position in 2015.
When confronted recently with this mind boggling question that have been circulating albeit in a hushed tone by some politicians, that she's planning to win the state back to PDP to pave way for her to become the next governor. The Minister was quick to state unequivocally that 'I don't have any agenda to vie for governorship seat in 2015, my only agenda, if it can be called one, is to build a strong and united PDP and also ensure that in my little way I put smiles on the sunken faces of my people who are yet to enjoy dividends of democracy'.
In spite of this self confession, the politically expedient question is still raging - why must any one dissipate such energy and pool such big resources in building a party without expecting anything in return? The more they ruminate on this strange act of chivalry and commitment of Oloye Akinjide, the father they seem to be to the clue. To them, this is a walk in an unfamiliar path.
Kehinde is Media Assistant to the Minister of State, FCT