Ighodalo: I Will Remain Loyal to Edo Citizens Not Individual If Elected Governor

Emma Okonji

A governorship aspirant under the umbrella of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the forthcoming Edo State governorship election holding in September, Mr. Asue Ighodalo, yesterday, stressed that his loyalty would be to the people of Edo State and not to any single individual, if elected as governor.

Ighodalo, who spoke on ‘The Morning Show,’ on ARISE NEWS Channel, the broadcast arm of THISDAY Newspapers, said he was invited to run for the governorship election by his close associates and the good people of Edo State, insisting that he would give his full loyalty to the citizens of the state and not to any individual, no matter how highly placed such individual may be in the political hierarchy.

Ighodalo, a lawyer by profession who officially declared his interest last week to run for the state gubernatorial election, said his mission would centre around wealth creation and infrastructural development of the state, including construction of roads.

“I declared my interest to run in the gubernatorial race because I want to pull the good people of Edo State out of poverty.

“The previous governments have done relatively well, but I think I can bring to bear, my immense experience, to improve on what they have done.

“It is clear to me that Edo State people are suffering and I want to contribute my quota to help lift up the state economy and to pull people out of poverty. My ambition is to move Nigeria from the third world to the first world, by working from Edo State to transform the state and the country,” Ighodalo said.

Reacting to the insinuations from his political opponents who see him as an outsider that does not have public sector experience and has no political grip of the state, Ighodalo said such insinuations were deliberately targeted at him to distract his good intentions for the Edo State citizens.

“I am not new to life in Edo State because my father lived in New-Benin and I spent most of my time and holidays in Benin City. Again I have worked as Special Adviser to former Governor Adams Oshiomhole and I was in and out of Benin during the eight years administration of Oshiomhole in Edo State.

“I also headed the Private Sector Think-Tank of Governor Godwin Obaseki and I have friends in the state that I visit frequently. So no one can rightly say I am an outsider and therefore not known by the people,” Ighodalo said.

He listed his approach to debt reduction in the state if elected as the next governor of the state to include regenerating the economy to pull people out of poverty and grow the economy at a rate that can give the state the revenue base to repay debts and boost revenue for infrastructure development.

“I am not going to be scared by the volume of debt the state is owing because I will device means to block internal leakages and generate revenue that will be sufficient to pay the debts and still develop the state.

“Borrowing as a state is not a bad thing in itself, what matters is how the money is spent on recurrent expenditure. My priority will be on education, palm oil production, job creation, aside infrastructural development such as roads,” Ighodalo further said.     

Giving explanation about his relationship with Governor Godwin Obaseki, Ighodalo said they have been business friends for quite some time, even though Obaseki was an investment banker and him a lawyer.

“We have been friends and he believes in me and I also believe in him, but he is not influencing my governorship aspiration and he is not going to use me as a point man for a third term agenda because I know he has no term agenda,” Ighodalo added.

He said he believed that members of the National Working Committee of the PDP would do a credible job in the screening of party candidates on January 29 for the next governorship election in Edo State.