PATHWAY TO PROSPERITY

Asue Ighodalo will grow the economy and provide access to opportunities for all, argues JOHN MAYAKI

The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Dr. Asue Ighodalo, has once again demonstrated his superior position in the Edo governorship race as the most prepared candidate. In recent media engagements, he delivered a clear, concise, and compelling outline of his vision and plan for Edo State. 

Speaking to his “Pathway to Prosperity” manifesto, which is anchored on five strategic pillars beginning with improved security, he explained his mission as seeking to grow the economic pie so that Edo people can enjoy more, unlike those who are seeking a return with a bitter vengeance to consume the pie because years outside of governance have left them starving.

On specific investment needs to address the seemingly intractable problems of water and infrastructure gaps in some local governments in the state, he detailed his agenda to revamp the state’s polity and economy to attract investments. 

The state’s revenue profile has grown under Governor Godwin Obaseki, but so has its financial obligations. To solve the urgent problems of today and position the state for growth, the government must creatively mobilize resources from sources that share its vision. The federal government is attempting this at the national level, and it is here that the distinction between Ighodalo and his closest rival, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Monday Okpebholo, couldn’t be any clearer.

If the interview was a pitch for investment, it was obvious who carried the day. While Ighodalo impressed and persuaded, Okpebholo did not even make an appearance. The APC candidate remains in hiding because he lacks the courage and competence to engage without support and directives from his programmers, the whispering elder and pastor. 

The news anchors confirmed the sad reality, with one of them remarking on Ighodalo’s capacity for clear communication, unlike his rival whose utterances cause so much controversy that his party and supporters find themselves fighting everyone over the intended meaning.

Ighodalo made a cogent point: everything rises and falls with security. This can be guaranteed with increased deployment of well-trained security personnel and better corporate governance. 

Criminals and thugs spreading terror must be shown no hiding place. Investors must also trust that the state is a safe haven for expensive projects and that their money, when it arrives, will be used to unlock opportunities for young people, not appease godfathers.

Ighodalo has spent decades of his life raising funds from the international community and building trust. Okpebholo’s only known contribution is being a willing and pliable tool in the hands of the godfathers whose obsession with power and control exceeds their concern for effective governance and development. One of them has been caught on the record disparaging education, while the other is hopping around with an evil message of ethnic division and strife.

Okpebholo’s campaign has been about sharing the money. Those who are excited by this make the mistake of thinking the “sharing” will get to them. They are the unwitting chickens celebrating the declaration of Christmas, painfully oblivious to the fact that their slaughter is what makes the occasion merry. 

Ighodalo, meanwhile, has underscored that he wishes to share prosperity with all. In other words, he is not running as a placeholder for shadow men seeking a return of the days when their expenses and taste for the finer things of life were settled with government funds. He is seeking the opportunity to lead so he can apply his knowledge and network for the betterment of the people’s lives.

He wants better education for Edo children because unlike the Pastor-Politician, he does not believe in the ‘school-na-scam’ message. His success is, after all, a direct product of sound education. That is why he can stand on his two feet and defend his records on any stage, not hide behind old men dancing for attention when they ought to be nursing their legacy.

He wants to grow the economy and provide access to opportunities for all, not divert state funds to those who consider politics a means to self-enrichment. That is his pitch to investors and Edo people, and it is a winning pitch.

Mayaki, a Journalist, Historian and Diplomat, is an Oxford and Cambridge University-trained entrepreneurship, leadership and sustainability expert.