| Photo caption : Dr. Asue Ighodalo |
Any effort to indoctrinate and assimilate the real or perceived adversarial forces of the Asue Candidacy into becoming authentic vanguard, loyalists, and apostles of the Asue Crusade is a worthwhile investment. And the time for that is now.
Therefore, the transformation agenda should extend to transforming the minds and souls of real and perceived haters, as well as those still sitting on the fence, undecided. Anything worth doing is worth doing well. We must reach out to them and incorporate them into the struggle.
Be that as it may, you cannot love Asue and remain unrelenting in your resolve to deliver your unit or ward to your party, be it APC, SDP, or Labour. No, that is unacceptable.
If you love him, if you cherish the promise of his candidacy, you must join hands to deliver your household, your unit, and your ward to Dr Asue Ighodalo on the day of the gubernatorial election, irrespective of your political affiliation. This is a struggle for the ages, defining the course of the transformation of Edo State for decades to come. And we must not falter in our resolve.
Only Barr Asue Ighodalo is defining that course and articulating the process of its culmination if given the mandate. As I write this essay, he is at Benson Idahosa University, meeting with the administrators, lecturers, and students, making speeches and taking questions on the mechanics of the actualization of the mandate he seeks. That has been the trend since he became a candidate in late 2023.
Let’s call a spade a spade – the other candidates, with all due respect to my learned Call-Mate, Barr Olu Akpata, are mere spectators in their own game. This election is about what is good for the men and women of Edo State as well as the future generations. This is not a child play. It is a defining moment in Edo State’s structural and institutional rebirth.
My Dear Esan Folks, what has Senator Monday Okpebho done for us lately or since he became a Senator? What happened to the Palliative infrastructure of the stomach, fatherly and compassionately provided by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu through the National Assembly?
If Baba Asiwaju is not known to be comfortable supporting and campaigning for candidates with doubtful work history and accountability questions in Lagos State as his successors, he cannot in good conscience support a candidate who knowingly sabotaged his palliative initiative in Edo State. If indolent is not acceptable in Lagos State, invariably it should be unanimously rejected in Edo State. What’s good for the goose is also good for the gander.
On a sober note, the APC candidate is not a candidate the indefatigable and irrepressible Comrade Adam Oshiomhonle would want his honourable people of Akoko Edo and the general Afemai tribe to vote for or send to Osadebe Avenue? Sir, you’re more than that. You’re the epitome of excellence – a voracious reader to boot. There is not a modicum of you in him.
If the stakeholders in this election truly love the people of Edo State and wish us well, the benchmark or deciding factor shouldn’t be the certainty of the next Governor consistently bowing or maintaining subservient status in dealing with known bosses. Rather, the measuring rod or eligibility test should be the certainty of the next Governor, exhibiting unqualified managerial and administrative expertise in deploying the human and natural resources of Edo State to meet the expectations of the people, while making reservations for future generations. That should be the test – a global test, as well as the UN standard for qualifying sustainable development.
A Senator who doesn’t reckon with the concept of accountability and transparency in government and, at the same time, is incapable of articulating public policy statements when prompted, shouldn’t be trusted with the future of Edo State. His major handicap is not just vocabulary-related, it’s acute ideas deficiency syndrome. You cannot articulate the future you don’t see. It’s about the dreams you hold. Period.
I am not questioning his vocabulary skills, I’m simply saying he is vision handicapped, whether innate or academically acquired, to govern Edo State in the age of the internet and artificial intelligence.
His creative skill is zero. He is not abreast of anything economics, social growth, or sustainable development.
The ability to develop and harness ideas and the wisdom and intellectual zeal to put together a formidable team to bring those ideas to fruition are what make great leaders.
So far, Akpakomiza has exhibited morbid deficiencies in those areas. It’s simply not about vocabulary, it’s about incubating ideas.
Barr Asue Ighodalo is not just eloquent, his communication skill in the art of governance is a reflection of his abundant wealth of wisdom and the accumulated years of managing funds, institutions, and human resources, with proven successes.
Show me your friends and I will tell you who you are, goes a popular saying. Baba Asiwaju and Comrade Adam shouldn’t fall for this scam. Akpakomiza is not in their league in any shape or form. The fact that a candidate has a humongous bank account to buy votes, whose sources remain indisputably opaque, shouldn’t be allowed access to a Government House or leadership position anywhere in Nigeria.
The credibility and preparedness of the protégé our leaders are disposed to entrust with the future leadership of this country must be of great concern. It matters, and that was what fast-tracked the overall economic growth and industrial revolution in Singapore under President Lee Kuan Yew. Leadership grooming and diligent succession process are integral to the successful implementation of the developmental blueprints of any political party or establishment. Otherwise, your labour will be in vain. Continuity is key, and that’s how great empires and institutions are built.
The credibility, integrity, organizational acumen, and trust factors of Barr Asue Ighodalo surpassed international standards and global best practices. His doctrine of social and economic upliftment, anchored on spiritual values, is in alignment with what the overwhelming majority of Edo State citizens and leaders of thought stand for. We mustn’t forget that.
Therefore, Chief Odigie Oyegun, Sir Igbinedion, Comrade Adam Oshiomhonle, Chief Dan Orbih, and Arch. Mike Enolemenmen should consider the interests of Edo State and mobilise in unison for Barr. Asue Ighodalo as the next Governor of Edo State. Our future generations deserve that.
Thank you and God bless
· Barr. Alex Aidaghese is legal practitioner based in Lagos
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