Dr Hazeem Gbolarumi
Dr Hazeem Gbolarumi, the only governorship aspirant who contested against Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State for the Peoples Democratic Party’s governorship ticket, that the exercise where the governor won a second term ticket was a charade
Why did you decide to challenge Makinde in the governorship primary election?
I did that because I am eminently qualified to contest the position and to occupy the governor’s seat. If you look at the Peoples Democratic Party in Oyo State, many of the key members who have been there since the party was established years back have left for an obvious reason.
What is that reason?
They all believe in the supremacy of the party. They believe that the party is bigger than any individual no matter the person’s position or status and that is how it is supposed to be. They also believe that impunity must stop and as far as I am concerned, I decided to contest to make the needed difference. I want the people of Oyo State and the party to have a different leadership and a better approach to governance.
Were you confident of winning the contest?
I was very confident of winning. I am still confident that I will win if the exercise is free and fair.
You complained before voting started that your delegates were chased away by hoodlums. How did that happen?
You all know. Were you not present when armed thugs were attacking my delegates and chasing them out in the presence of security men? You just want me to talk. But I will tell you again. We mobilised our authentic delegates and we were together. But they brought some people who were not delegates to come and vote. By the time the genuine delegates arrived at the venue, we saw armed thugs, motor park thugs and they attacked our delegates. The attack was brutal and over 90 of our delegates are still in the hospital. The hoodlums were shooting everywhere and the policemen were there. They even attacked a police officer there, an Assistant Superintendent of Police. You can imagine that kind of situation. But that is unfair. They know if we were to conduct a peaceful and credible election, I would win the contest. So, what happened was that only Seyi Makinde did the primary and defeated himself. That was what happened and everybody saw it. They can’t match us in a free and fair election and they know it.
Has the governor reached out to you after the primary election?
He has called me. We spoke as brothers and members of the same family. We are brothers, there is no enmity between us. Everything is just about politics and politics is a game of interests. What happened did not mean we would be at war. He is my good brother.
What did he promise you when he called after the exercise?
Did he need to promise me anything? No. We just talked like friends. That was not the first time he would call me. Whenever he called, we talked as friends. He has been calling me before now and I have been calling him.
Did he ask for your support?
Must he ask me to support him? Everybody knows that I will work for the party. I am a loyal party man and I will do everything to ensure the success of the PDP.
You and some aggrieved members of the PDP said Makinde did not do well at all before and some left the PDP. What really did he do wrong?
You know that already. They complained against the leadership style of Seyi Makinde. They were not happy with the way they were treated. Why should the governor neglect party faithful and be giving audience to those who are non-members? If he is looking for technocrats to assist his government, there are a lot of technocrats within the party. We have engineers, doctors, lawyers, accountants and so many other professionals who are very good within the party. Why must you bring outsiders on board after some set of people helped you to win?
It is not fair and it won’t help the party. The outsiders he brought do not know what is happening in their constituencies and these people at the grassroots are the ones the party would run to when elections come. That was why we were complaining. They complained to the headquarters of the party and they intervened. But he did not change; he feels he is the governor and he can do anything.
We have all accepted him as our leader in the party based on our party’s constitution. He must reciprocate by accepting to work with us. He can’t do it alone. He cannot run the party as if it is his private business, it will not work. Those ones could no longer stomach that and they left but I said if they were going, I would not leave the PDP for anybody. I was ready to be the only one left. Those who left have very good reasons for leaving. We all made him the governor with the coalition, so why must he treat us that way? They are not asking him to give them money but they want recognition, which is normal. So, they left because they were not recognised and they felt they should go to where they would be celebrated. If you were in their shoes, would you not do the same thing?
You complained that your delegates were attacked and chased out of the venue before voting started during the primary election. Are you considering leaving the party as others did?
I will never leave the party. I have never defected from the PDP since its inception and I will not leave the party. I don’t do that. This party made me what I am.
Will you seek redress in court?
I don’t need to do that. I will consult with the leaders and elders of the party to know what to do next. I believe in collegiate leadership. The leaders and elders of the party will tell us where we will go and what will happen next but I will not leave the party.
Will the exit of notable leaders of the PDP not have a negative effect on the party in the 2023 elections?
I know with time, that will be addressed. This is the party they all laboured to build and I believe they will not allow it to be destroyed.
That means you are still working to bring them back to the party?
Of course, yes. What are they doing in the party they are at now? They are not doing anything there. They have nothing to gain there but they wanted to prove to the governor that he cannot do it alone. Yes, he cannot do it alone. We have to work together to succeed because everybody is tired of the APC. We will look at it to see what we can do to salvage the situation before the coming general elections.
Do you think the PDP can retain Oyo State in 2023?
But the governor has won the second term ticket. So, who else do you think will be the standard-bearer if not the winner?
That is according to you.
Are you saying this can still change?
From what you people saw, will you describe that as a credible primary election? Was that done according to the provisions of the Electoral Act?
So, you are saying that the PDP has not got a candidate yet for the 2023 governorship election in Oyo State?
Of course, yes. That was a kangaroo primary election.
Does it mean the party can order that the primary election should be conducted afresh?
Anything can happen. I am not God but I know that was not the best primary the party could conduct. If the authentic delegates were not used or the genuine delegates were not allowed to vote in a primary election, will you say that is valid? So. Why are we just deceiving ourselves? Except we find a political solution to it.
Everything is not about going to court, I am a lawyer. Before you approach the court, I believe you must have explored alternative dispute resolution before seeking redress in court. I believe the party will surely do that in due course.
So, Makinde’s supporters who were jubilating after the poll should not jubilate yet?
Who are his supporters? Are they not supporting the PDP? They should continue because everybody is jubilating. We are all jubilating. His supporters and my supporters and others are doing so for the PDP because we are one when it’s time for the election proper. But the governor should do the needful and I am sure he will do the needful.
What do you mean by doing the needful?
He knows what to do concerning these leaders who have defected from the party. He can’t do it alone; they should be brought back to support the party. They should be carried along if the party wants to win. What I mean by the needful is that he should look at the coalition as well and find one way or the other to accommodate everybody.
Are you sure they are satisfied with where they have returned to? Have they given them what they want?
They can still come back to the PDP when the governor does what he should do.
