THE former Speaker of Edo State House of Assembly, Honourable Bright Ehi Omokhodion, the intrepid tribune of regenerative politics of modern Edo State does not need further introduction. In a no-holds-bar interview with Trojan News Media correspondent in Benin City, the fearless stormy economy and media petrel was a delight while marshalling our his SMILE agenda for the restoration of the state’s glory to its designated zenith, if voted as the next governo2024. Excerpt:
Question: Nice meeting with you Mr Speaker. The Governorship race for Edo is around the corner and you have signified interest to run for the race. Why You?
Omokhodion: Why me? I’m sure every society deserves the best hands to be on, the deck especially when it comes to governance. I’ve had a history of unblemished service to Edo State and to society having serviced as a Hon Finance Commissioner in the Lucky Igbinedion administration, also served as Director of the Edo State Liaison Office in Lagos, Elected as Honourable member of the Edo State House of Assembly, and later became Speaker of the legislative arm of government. I was appointed the Executive Director of the Directorate of Conflict Resolution, later as the Vice Chairman of Edo State Economic and Strategy Team. I’ve a wide range of experience that span both the Public and Private sectors of the Economy, and i have the necessary contacts and links that would diversify the Wdo State Economy beyond its present dismal level of production through multi disciplinary approaches that reflects my background in economics, banking, finance and communications.
I’m properly prepared to take Edo State to lofty infrastructural heights as the next Governor.
Question: Do you subscribe to the clamour for Esan agenda, so to speak, now that nearly 90% of Edo people are saying the next governor should come from Edo Central?
Omokhodion: I fully subscribe to the rotation of power within the three Senatorial Districts for the simple reason that a state such as ours that is multi ethnic can’t run away from the fundamental aspects of humanity which is equity and justice.
It’s only Edo Central that hasn’t taken a bite at governance since 1999. Edo South would have done it for 16 years at the expiration of Governor Godwin Obaseki’s tenure next year. Edo North has done it for 8 years by Comrade Adams Oshiomhole. The only time Esan had it was for 18 months before the mandate was overturned at the Court. I believe that for the sake of equity, for the sake of harmony and for the sake of justice Edo Central should be given an opportunity in the scheme of things by way of concession and dialogue. I believe Edo Central has a lot of capacity and materials that can deliver on Social Contract and the mandate of the people. So, my straight answer to that question is yes. I believe it should go to Edo Central.
Question: Strictly speaking, what is your agenda for Edo people if you’re voted in as the governor of the state?
Omokhodion: We have thought deep into formulating and a workable and elevating agenda based on a program that will help us take Edo State from the level we are, and lunch it to a much higher level; especially in our desire for Edo to take it’s rightful stand and rightful position in the comity of states in Nigeria. Recall respectfully that Edo was once the flagship state of Nigeria. And for it to be so backward in nearly all indices right now is an unfortunate commentary in the growth of a State.
My Agenda is simply titled SMILES, and it is powered by the SMILES-vision 2024 team of progressives.
‘S’ stands for the socio-economic development of Edo State. This as been properly researched so that when we are voted into office we hit the ground running and make the face of Edo Cities and towns more tourism attractive.
And ‘M’ symbolizes a desire to achieve manpower development, create industrial and infrastructural hub in Edo State especially in Benin urban areas where we have a large number of Federal Roads and yet most of them are silted and are creating traffic jam and erosion in the state. As an old Capital City Benin is deficient in infrastructures and I believe this deficit has a solution. Our enormous resources shall be deployed adequately to recreate the wheel of change and install SMILES.
In the same vein, I believe that there are manifest agricultural potentials in Edo State that is bountiful enough to feed the whole of west Africa, yet this sub sector of the economy is grossly undermined. “I” represent creating an Industrial hub and that will challenge our professionals. “L” represents Leadership by Objectives. We also believe that the human and material resources that we are endowed with if properly maximized will turn Edo State into an agrarian/industrial state, where leadership shows the path for progress. When all are gainfully engaged in every sectors of the Economy, Edo will turn into a net food producing State, where law and order combine to attract investments in Tourism in our State. Our massive land resources would be maximized to create a veritable revenue base for the State.
“E” represents our desire for Equity, and Justice for all through affordable and qualitative education.
We also believe (in ‘S’ for) Security, which challenges can be resolved through proactive mobilization of our youths in the SMILES-VISION agenda. The security situation in Edo State has become worrisome and this can be handled through community policing to create peace and our people and ensure Edolites sleep with their two eyes closed.
Question: Talking about Security challenge, sometimes in 2021 you granted an interview to THE SUN and strictly condemned the insecurity in the country and you also condemned your party the APC leadership for having failed in leadership in terms of security crisis and the nation is in tumor and Edo is not exempted from it. So what specific terms do you need to and how do need to deal with the security challenge in Edo if you’re voted as the governor?
Omokhodion: The appropriation of power, especially as it is enshrined in the 1999 constitution (as amended) is at the Centre, in the hands of the Federal government. That I’m an a APC member does not conscribe my sense of judgment and ability to be objective in my analysis. I am a Social Communicator and my duty is to report and my duty is to analyze. Making observations of contemporary issues like security should be able to galvanize the reactions of constituted authorities into taking corrective measures. The APC government itself know that it was faced with tragic challenges when banditry and foreign sponsored terrorism haunted its desire for effective security. We never had it so bad in all the states of the federation in terms of failed security architecture. We’re only praying it becomes better. Edo State isn’t exempted from the effects of security failures We’ve had our fair share of banditry, fair share of murderous tendencies of criminal elements, call them herdsmen, call them bandits, and I believe that we can deploy adequately to ensure that these anomalies are brought to the minimum.
Question: Let’s deal strictly with the issues of security. This is the age of artificial intelligence, how do you hope to deal with virtual security collapse in Edo?
Omokhodion: My smiles vision 2024 program and projects is one that has given a detailed action thoughts to all these aspects of our living. In terms of security, we all agree we’re all in a global village and with satellite technology nobody can be hidden. I believe that with ICT and satellite devices, security can be improved. We shall deploy well trained private security providers even as we clamour for State Police and local policing.
Also, I don’t believe in gross unemployment and gross under engagement of human resources. Human resources are both skilled and unskilled, the ones that are not skilled can be harnessed through specialized trainings and made useful in maintaining Law and Order in the State. It’s like in education; whether you acquired formal or informal education, you have a role in Nation building. He can be useful, his sense of wisdom can emit a lot of informal information which can be deployed for the general good. So, what I am telling you in essence is that the majority of our people, the youths who are not too old can be deployed in specialized ways towards solving educational and security challenges Edo
I believe our teeming youth can and should be engaged in a special social scheme and made to work for Edo. There’s so much to do and there is so much to earn . We have enormous resources, enormous potentials in this State that can take care of idle minds through social re- engineering Our schools are not properly protected, our schools are suffering the deficit of dis- jointed education, our health sectors, our doctors are going abroad everyday. The health sector is grossly undermined. We once had a school of nursing in this state that has been closed down for almost 10 years and nobody cared. These are avenue of engaging middle man power. And I believe that if we recreate all these avenues in our state and put on our thinking cap, Edo State will not just become a model for others but it will become a place for international tourism.
Question: Now let’s talk about Education priorities lastly. What is your blueprint on education, specifically?
Omokhodion: The SMILES-VISION agenda is to revive public education. Public Education is the most accessible form of learning to the public. We went to public schools and I believe that the public school we went to then, if I still remember the kind of training we had was good. If I learnt how to speak English and how to write it was in the public primary school and secondary school. So I’m telling you specifically that if we revive public education and provide minimum training equipment’s, maximize its potentials we’d have done so much for the society. Today those who pay hundreds of thousands for secondary education every term will not want to pay fifty thousand naira in a university. Yet if their children were to go to private universities, they’ll be paying over N2 million a session. So, I believe that this is anachronistic and that the government must put recreate public education in our society and endow it with necessary libraries, laboratories , apparatus, books, supply it with materials, trained teachers. We used to have teachers’ training colleges, we used to have the Colleges of Education, technical and vocational schools; as we speak, they have been shot down by the government and should be revived.
While the present government of Edo State is busy closing down some vital infrastructures of education, we find it difficult to agree with the propaganda that education is making progress. Education cannot make progress when the teachers are not trained, so we’re going to revive those aspects of Education, we are going to revive the Edo State printing press to print books with due copyright for the children. Through schools we must prepare for the future rather than sitting down and wait for the children to go into ‘yahoo yahoo,’ and those demonic aspects of living that will make them vulnerable and victims of the Law. You see a time would come when the neglect of governments are despised by the people and held responsible for the ills in society. Hold government responsible for their actions, you cannot come and destroy the fabric of society and pretend you’re a government or you’re in government, that is unacceptable.
When we used to have public water reservoir in Benin City, there was public pipe borne water and pumped through reticulated pvc pipes and pumped from reservoir tanks at Iyaro, Aduwawa, Esigie, Ugbowo areas and so on, these shall be reactivated. In doing that, you’re not just providing water for them to drink, you’re providing water for industries, you’re helping them to reduce primary and domestic health challenges in the society. So, I believe there’s so much to be done. As we are in a hurry to reposition Edo State, so we pray and hope that if the opportunity is given to us, we shall recreate this state and make a foundation that others after us will build on. And the idea of lack of continuity is also a great disservice to us. I don’t believe there’s a government that didn’t do anything good, one or two things they may have done right they but they have also done many things wrong. Correct the wrongs and uphold the right so that we can make progress, that is my belief.
Question: Two double questions, perhaps the last. How much do you have for this governorship election because money plays major role in an election, second, who’s your God father?
Omokhodion: Thank you. We tired of money based politics. Talking about money, we have followed too much of money politics in this state (and in this country) that at the end of the day, mediocre are elected and servants become Bosses and elective offices become jobs for the ‘boys’. My source of funds shall come from the people whose conscience will determine my election. Wealth is in the hands of the man in the street whom I’m talking to as I want to be their Governor. If they believe that this is the man who has demonstrated expertise and proficiency in service and he’s the man they want, the money will come out in form of goodwill.
You spoke about Godfather. I’m against the concept of godfatherism in politics because it has not taken us to any enviable height and in all honesty, the issue of God fatherism has actually brought this state to its kneels, where it is today. The present Governor was a god son to somebody who brought him and imposed him on the people against her wish and today the state is miles behind on the pedestal of development. And the same person is already preparing another godson to come in as a puppet governor, yet this was the man that fought against God fatherism when he identified Chief Tony Anneni of blessed memory as a godfather. I put it to you that I quarreled with the impunity in godfatherism as an institution of mental burden.
I should be able to seat with you and we reason out an issue but when you open your doors for nonentities, and get influenced by them, you sacrifice the future of otherwise bright brains. OUR Destinies are in the hands of God not in the hands of man. I’m believing the voice of the people will be the voice of God. It’s not a money playing game. Obama did not have much when he started his race to be the
President of America. If everybody in this town out of their own conviction says we’re stakeholders and you’re becoming the next Governor of this state, obstacle you see in money in this project would be surmountable. For the record, the people collectively are my godfather and I’ll stand up anywhere and at anytime to attack anybody that believe he’s going to play god in the life of my humble self.
