The leaders of the All Progressives Congress stormed Benin City, Edo State for a political rally yesterday at the Samuel Ogbemudia stadium.
Women, youth and other political supporters assembled to mark a decorated event that also coincided with the instance of the 5th year anniversary of the Edo Governor’s tenure.
In attendance was the leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu; former military ruler, Muhammad Buhari; First Executive Governor of Edo State, Chief John Oyegun; Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chief Tom Ikimi and other party leaders.
Oyegun said the battle for 2015 would not be easy but that God had planted a grenade in the ruling Peoples Democratic Party that was separating the goats from the sheep.
According to him, “The battle ahead of us is not an easy one. We must be ready for every possible eventuality. The PDP will not surrender power. The APC must seize power. That can be achieved by all of us. The mobilisation must start today for us to seize power. We must make it expensive for anybody to attempt to rig the 2015 election. The APC is a serious party.”
Ikimi said, ” “The PDP is dead and buried. It is finished. It is dead, in Edo, Kwara, SOkoto, Kano and all over Nigeria . Arising from the ashes of the burial of PDP is the APC.”
Buhari said the APC would win the 2015 elections. His words, “We know the difference for five years now in Edo state. We are happy that the governor is coming along with the APC. The APC would ensure peace and stop terrorism and reconstruct the infrastructure for Nigerians to enjoy. It is important for you to pass the message to others that APC is determined to take over in 2015 and manage the country effectively. Nobody will ensure that the votes count excepts you.”
Tinubu slammed the Federal Government for lying about the progress of the country.
He said, “Power is not easy to surrender but we want it in an honest manner. We are tired of failure. How do you give statistics that the economy is growing and we are still suffering? You have GDP that is growing and we have army of unemployed youth. We have to change this government.
“The APC has come with a rescue boat to rescue Nigeria from the thieves. They steal in hundred, of billions. We have to send them out. Oshiomhole has enough ambulances to send them out of here, out of Abuja and out of Anambra.”
Governor Oshiomole said his party had delivered on his electoral promises.
Oshiomhole said “the challenge is to focus on the economy. Having spent so much to build infrastructure, this is meant to create enabling environment for business to thrive. I am happy at the response we are getting. The private sector, from agriculture to palm oil, they are all coming to Edo State to set up business”.
“We have people who are coming to Edo state to set up fertilizer plant. We are refocusing on security and appreciate the role of our security agencies. Our House of Assembly have risen to the occasion and has approved death penalty for kidnappers and Edo state is no longer safe for criminals because this governor will sign death warrant as soon as it comes my way.
“We are delivering and not just talking. In our second term we have started commissioning projects. Over the past three days we have commissioned five roads and the five junction and we have more than one hundred projects to commission between now and December, you will see all the things that we have been doing with your money.”
“Between November last year and November this year we have paid to major contractors about 36 billion naira certificate generated from road construction, schools construction and hospital construction and we recognize that our allocation from Abuja is barely over four billion” he said.
Oshiomole declared “every month we pay to contractors about three billon naira. Edo State devotes about 85% of the federal revenue on capital projects that people can see. Our market women who were in the past used during election and abandoned, we have empowered them by giving them cash to rebuild their markets.
“Today I want to remind you of how we started. In the past Edo State was a one party state, controlled and manipulated and dehumanised by a few godfather who turned the state to a personal estate. The were celebrated not for fixing roads, electricity. Education or healthcare, but celebrated for declaring winners as losers.