He also explains why the party has resolved to accept aggrieved members of other political parties into its fold to actualise their ambitions. Excerpts
How prepared is LP for 2015 general
election.
Our party is
well prepared for 2015. Preparedness does not necessarily mean that a party
must have candidate for all offices. But for us wherever we have candidates we
will ensure that our performance will not disappoint Nigerians. Let me assure
Nigerians that there will be surprises. It is going to be a season for the fall
of high and mighty. In 2007 we surprised the nation; we repeated the same feat
in 2011 and 2012, now we are even more prepared.
In 2011, LP worked with PDP in the
presidential election. Are you planning to do the same in 2015?
A party does
not necessarily have to produce a presidential candidate, nor is a party not
producing candidate bound to support another party’s candidate. The situation in 2011 is not what obtains
today. Today the variables are multiple and demand even more principled
approach. People who have penchant for carpet crossing have demonstrated their
notoriety than before; unprincipled alliances are much more rife, and political
prostitution the order of the day. So any serious party must think twice before
making any move. You will surely hear from us.
Why did you adopt Alao-Akala as your
candidate in Oyo State?
First and
foremost, we will like to make the point clear for all those willing to lend us
their ears that, Alao-Akala is not a stranger as far as Labour and the ordinary
people are concerned. During his tenure as Governor of Oyo State, he carried along
the workers in the various unions, including the National Union of Road
Transport Workers (NURTW).
While other
governors in states controlled by supposedly progressive and pro-people party
placed embargo on employment and were not ready to implement minimum wage,
Akala employed more workers and did not denigrate the position of the working
class.
He is more
than qualified to vie for office on the platform of the Labour Party. And
remember when he started employing more workers and increased salaries the
supposedly progressive party called him names and alleged that he was doing it
to get votes, can you imagine that.
Secondly,
Alao-Akala did not just get the Labour ticket in Oyo State on a platter of
gold. It was not also a matter giving the ticket to the highest bidder.
Alao-Akala worked his way rigorously and painstakingly up the ladder. He was
endorsed by all those who matter in the party after a thorough check on his
renewed commitment to the cause of the common man. Lastly, we also have in
Akala a candidate who had been there before, he had won election before, and he
was a governor and has the experience to stir the ship of a state. He has all
the credentials.
How would you assess the candidature
of Jonathan and Buhari for 2015 presidency?
From all
indications, the 2015 presidential election is bound to be most interesting. On
the one hand we have a candidate who is a sitting president and who has been on
the political field since the inception of our current democratic experiment.
Then on the other
hand we have one a candidate with a well-known military and dictatorial past
and who has recurrently failed to be relevant in the democratic polity.
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