Ondo guber primary: Validating Olusola Oke as a rallying point – Debo Akinbami
Ondo guber primary: Validating Olusola Oke as a rallying point
In a time like this, ambitions and their harbingers deserve dispassionate probe. Another way to say the intentions behind ambitions matter, and should be closely sieved, especially when things look as though gate-keeping has literarily collapsed and every person with a purse deep enough to purchase nomination and expression of interest forms is qualified to be in charge of the governance of a state.
To this extent, good care should be taken so that things are not mixed up while comparing the wheat and the tares. At this stage, denizens with the fairest idea of how much things have gone wrong with the affairs of the state should be sober enough to pause and think more critically, more in the interest of attaining tangible growth than upscaling puerile emotions from which none stands any advantage whatsoever.
The greatest interest, at this rate, should be that of the state, and of the highest number of people. And for those who truly care to know, Ondo needs more than games to grow. The state needs speedier growth. By growth, we refer to palpable and incremental socioeconomic remaking that can be measured on the streets and on the faces of the people. This sort of change, if you ask me, cannot come on the wings of accidental ambitions but a tenaciously processed plans nurtured overtime.
In the course of conversations around Ondo gubernatorial seat and political ambitions, folks have been served varied thesis and theories by persons who seek to lead the state from February 2025. At closer shave, however, there appears to be more rhetorics than reasons, which, for discerning minds, are not unexpected because one cannot give what he does not have. This same fact reinforces the need to weigh each man, even now, by the quality of his vision.
A vision can neither be bought or borrowed. And, where there is one, it has to be clear, interpretable and actionable within a given time frame. And, this is how, amongst the lot, the plans put forward by Chief Olusola Oke, SAN, ring more attainable and in the interest of progress. Oke, in explaining his intention to govern, aptly placed a finger on the relatable faults; he masterfully traces the wrong routes taken in public affairs and offers remedial options, going forward.
Oke’s plans speak to his capacity to gainfully govern, not just the state but also the party. The depth and profundity of his offerings explain his place as a long distance racer who, over the years, has evolved through the rungs; the type of agenda that should be taken seriously by a people that prefer practical governance to curried mundanities. He also ranks tall as a fella who, all his life has lived among the people and shared their sweet and sour seasons.
Ondo needs a man of Oke’s stature and status to retain his place of pride in the comity of states. The state wing of the party needs the clout of Chief Olusola Oke to plug its leadership gulf and forge a more united front. His preeminent experience should be harnessed in the interest of revamping ailing structures that should work in favour of corporate progress. This is not a time to experiment with new men or risk malnourished situational leadership.
The All Progressives Congress, APC, would do well to embrace a prepared mind in Chief Olusola Oke so that inter-party win becomes more assured and governance becomes a pleasure to many. And, given the fact that only a person would pick the party’s ticket after all, it is important to look in the direction of a personality that has the surplus learnings and language of the trade for relative ease of reconciliation and realignment toward eventual win.
Oke has so much to offer all, irrespective. Like an oak tree, he is well spread and rooted to accommodate and reconcile diverse interests and longings; the requisites necessary for formidable leadership which are not in short supply with the man called Olusola Alexander Oke. He looks good enough as the man for this season, a rallying point.
*Akinbami writes from Igboegunrin.
