As Nigerians battle negative effects of some economic policies of government, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and entrepreneur, Mr Tele Oyegoke, talks about ongoing realignments in the political space.
You must be deeply worried, like every other citizen do, about the state of the nation. But do you think we have learnt one or two things from the recent protests that rocked the land over economic hardship?
If nothing, we have learnt that Nigerians are now more awake to their rights and the powers they have to hold government accountable. The protests showed that there is real anger in the land, and government at all levels must work quickly to avert crisis that may stem from acts of civil disobedience.
Was the crisis necessary in the first instance, given the vast opportunities this country is endowed with, in terms of human and natural resources?
We naturally should not experience food crisis in Nigeria. We are immensely blessed with every imaginable natural resource. However, years of poor planning have landed us in the sort of crisis we see today. We have taken our blessings for granted and thus failed to harness all of the capacities we have, not just to feed ourselves, but also the rest of the world. We must make both policy and attitudinal adjustments if we will get out of our current problems.
Some Nigerians are already comparing the era when the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in power to the period that the APC became the ruling party in the country. Some Nigerians claim that they wished we could return to the PDP period. To what extent do you subscribe to that school of thought, not minding your political affiliation?
Well, it is quite easy for people to judge issues at the face value. However, the decay we see in Nigeria today did not start five years ago. All of our wrong decisions, over many years ago, are coming home to haunt us today.
Some of us have been saying these things for many years that our poor handling of issues would one day backfire. We are here now, and it is only unfortunate that the chicken came home to roost at this time. It must be said, however, that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has shown immense courage in tackling the issues headlong. I believe that we will get results shortly.
The belief in certain quarters is that Nigeria is facing the worst time in its chequered history, due to some unfavorable government economic policies and reforms, not well thought out before implementation, multifaceted crises and challenges confronting the citizens. Millions of Nigerians no longer have access to the basic needs of man, including feeding, shelter, shelter due to weak purchasing power and prohibitive prices of food items.
This is not correct. The worst time in our history was the times we made poor decisions that led us here. This is a turning point in our history when we have a government that is doing so much to correct the failings of the past. This is our period of re-alignment, in my honest opinion.
A clear example of this re-alignment is the progress we have now made in returning power to the local governments that are closer to our people. It took President Bola Tinubu a lot of courage to make this happen. This is one step we should have taken a long time ago!
Some individuals claim that we appear cut between the devil and the blue sea. What is the way out of the quagmire?
The way out is for us to begin to do the right things hereon, from leaders to ordinary citizens. We all must see to the success of important policies that will drive our growth and give us prosperity.
Many are surprised that you are into party politics instead of remaining in your comfort zone of business where you are key player as an entrepreneur. You joined APC, particularly in Odo-Otin Local Government area of Osun State since every politics is local. So, what actually informed your decision?
I made the resolve to join partisan politics a long time ago. However, I had to study the blueprint of the major political parties and I found the APC’s to be quite pragmatic and truly progressive. I joined the APC because I am in alignment with the people-centric manifesto of the party.
But with the gale of defection currently hitting the Osun polity, do you still think the APC is capable of dislodging the PDP in the state and why do you think so?
The wave of defections favours our party, the APC, and that testifies to the fact that Osun people have now experienced the difference between a government led by the APC and the one led by the PDP. When election time comes, this new realisation will make all the difference, and Osun people will overwhelmingly vote the APC into power.
What is your message to the people of the state and Nigerians as a whole?
I just want to urge us to join hands with the Federal Government to execute the progressive policies of the Tinubu-led administration so that we can bring the nation to the days of abundance and true growth we are all yearning for.
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