Comrade Wale Ajani, an aspirant for the Senatorial position in Oyo Central Senatorial District, Oyo State, is not a novice in politics in Nigeria. A former President of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Ajani had carved a niche for himself. With a background in civil engineering from the University of Lagos (UNILAG), he worked within the civil society and was pioneer young delegate to the United Nations from Nigeria and also served as a member of the Global Youth Advisory Panel of the UNFPA and United Nations Alliance of Civilization (UNAOC). Ajani worked also with issues that have to do with disability and was pioneer youth consultant at the African Refugees Foundation. While in the university, he formed an organisation called Public Enlightenment Network. He later worked as a professional in a structural engineering company but has always had interest in anything that has to do with young people from the angle of leadership.
Sensing one of the nation’s challenges to be non-availability of good leaders, he joined the National Youth Council in 2000, contested its election thrice before becoming the president in 2010.
Taking cognisance of unemployment in the society, he initiated the youth employment strategy with the Ministry of Youth Development then. He got funding from the United Nations Fund for Population (UNFPA) and PTDF to develop the National Youth Action Plan and the first National Youth Manifesto respectively.
In a parley with the media in Ibadan, Oyo State on Thursday, January 27, 2022, the aspirant said that his ambition to contest the senatorial election in 2023 informed by the quest to promote the welfare of the people of Oyo Central Senatorial District, is people-oriented. Making known his intention to contest the 2023 elections, he spoke with confidence about knowing what it would take to lift the people out of poverty.
Below are the excerpts of the media parley:
My entry into Oyo politics
At the National Conference where I led young people, I used to protest the way young people were not allowed to make contributions on the future of Nigeria. And they are the future!
That was how I met Senator Rashidi Ladoja. He invited me to join politics in 2014. He was in Accord Party then and I agreed with him. That was my first political party. I wanted to run for House of Representatives but the ticket had been given to the incumbent.
In 2018, I wanted to contest for House of Representatives but it was given to the incumbent as automatic ticket again. I was offered House of Assembly and that was when I learnt more about grassroot politics. While some will tell you, ‘oh, you are the best,’ they will go behind again and say the other person is the best. You will get confused who is actually the best. It was a good training ground for me and after the election, I congratulated the winner. Politics to me is service, what you can contribute. If you people want you, fine, and if they don’t want you, move on, go back to your family and serve your God diligently.
“Recently, I came back. The urge started coming. The gear has changed now. When I also looked back, I looked at Oyo Central, where I come from. The truth is that we’ve had wonderful Senators and they have really done their best, but it could be better as far as I am concerned.
We are now in the generation of ‘soro soke’ (speak up). What do you know about National Assembly? National Assembly is purely for legislation. National Assembly is where you go and advocate for your people.
If I could check well, our people rarely talk. And there is this Yoruba adage that says ‘aile soro, ibere oriburuku ni’. Again, I looked at so many indices and I felt like, yes! I can do it. If it’s about age, we have the age. If it’s about the requisites, we have the requisites academically. Talk of anything, we have it. We can do it. That is the way I see it.
My goal
So, for me now, I am here to present myself to the members of this forth realm to share my ideas with you because I believe that, we can change the narrative. We can bring a new order to legislation within Oyo Central.
There are a lot of people that are coming out, and some are saying: ‘that young man.’ The truth is that I know in National Assembly, apart from your salary and statutory, if you are bringing things to the National Assembly, you have to struggle for it. Failure to do so, you may end up not getting anything. To me, sharing motorcycle, sewing machine and so on is not real empowerment per say. Leadership is not about building structure but it about building people. It is about making sure that we empower our people so that they can have global recognition and education.
For some of us that have the privilege to study abroad, we know that we were just playing when we were in the university because the kind of training and courses they will give you, you will see that they are not relevant to what you are studying. There is no reason studying Engineering in the university for five years. Education is very key and it is part of what I believe. The role of a senator is to lobby. We can lobby, irrespective of party, because it is all about national development. It is not only about party issue. There is no way you can go against your party, but when you have issues that have to do with the interest of the state, you have to make sure that you drop party interest.
I believe that if I’m given the opportunity, I can make difference. I can work with other young people, even outside politics. I developed a platform which I called any work, 24/7 and the platform is actually meant for the rural people. How can you be selling in Oyo State and nobody is buying from Lagos or Abuja? Then you are not doing business. I developed this platform and it supposed to be free of charge. Go there, put whatever you are selling there, and you can have customers outside your communities. It is actually designed for artisans and technicians. But when they are paying you, the money will be in escrow account, you won’t have access to the money until you deliver. But you will see the money hanging. If you do well, then the money comes to you. So many fantastic initiatives that we think we will bring onboard for our people.
Finally, I believe I am reachable, young and open to ideas because I don’t know it all. I believe I can work with everyone to achieve greatness in my state. To me, it is not a do or die thing. It is all about service, if your people want you, fine and if they don’t want you, move on with your life.
Reason for aiming at the senate
I’ve heard it before. You’ve contested for House of Assembly, now Senate, not even House of Representatives. But for me, I think the race is not meant for the swift, and I told you my story. I’ve never been interested in Assembly. I took that ticket on one basis. Politically, I was advised that if you reject this again, this is the second time, they will say you’re proud. So, I took that House of Assembly and I thank God that I didn’t win. I’ll rather not be part of something than to be an onlooker. If I’m elected and I cannot talk, I’m not going to be a part of it. For me, going to the Senate is not a big deal. With all sense of humility, It is not the senate that will make me to be known at the national level. There is nothing taking me to the Senate apart from the fact that I want to render service to my people and make them happy.
And again,I have a long way to go, I don’t want to stop as a senator, I have higher calling and that higher calling, if I go to Senate, I need to do well so as to get to the higher calling; that is the purpose of God for my life.
Seyi Makinde’s leadership in Oyo State
As far as the leader of the party is concerned in Oyo State, I submit to the leadership of Governor Seyi Makinde. Governor Makinde has done well in the last three years considering the available resources.
On my chances, Chief Bisi Ilaka is my elder brother and leader, contest does not mean we should not recognise our big egbon. But the fact remains that he is a Nigerian, I am a Nigerian, he is from Oyo Central, I am from Oyo Central and we are only contesting. It is just a contest, It is not a conflict.
There is nothing like governor’s support anywhere. I understand governor’s countenance to some of those things. When he (Ilaka) did his declaration, I didn’t see anybody that went there to say governor said I should come. If that person can come out, then I’ll tell you I am not running because I won’t want to waste my time if the governor has made up his mind on him. But to the best of my knowledge and to what I know that is happening, I am aware that the governor has not pitched his tent with anybody on Oyo Central and the chances lie within what you are ready to showcase; that you have the capacity. If I lose election, I am also not going to be crying in one corner as I am not getting loan to run an election. That’s clear.
Target on empowerment
We are going to put our empowerment in different sections. People that are educated, those ones that are elites, we would have programmes for them that would enhance what they know and give them leverage globally. The new thing we are bringing into it is yes, if we are giving you a dryer and you don’t have a shop or you don’t even have the skills that will make people to come and patronise you, what is now the purpose of giving you a dryer? The dryer will end up under your bed. So, we are going to add skill development to it and open your eye to the fact that you can do this job and still become a better person. It isn’t going to be purely for the elite, but it is going to be all-round and we are going to carry everybody along.
On Nigerian Constitution
As a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I believe that in the area of constitution, of course we are doing amendment. The truth is that we can’t throw out what we have now, you just need to come up with different amendments. It’s a process.
I am not against oversight functions. As a legislature, you are not supposed to be the one that will bring contractors, that’s number one error. If everything has gone through the due process, your job is to oversee that project that you have lobbied for because you are not an implementation agency. But in this situation we are now, you push for the project. Why you are pushing for it is because you have interest in who the contractor would be, where to be sighted and at the same time, you will now do oversight on it. You are only overseeing what you have interest in. If you bring a contractor, what is the purpose? For kickbacks, nothing more, nothing less.
If I don’t get the PDP ticket, I wont leave the party. I move on with life, support Governor Seyi Makinde’s second term bid because he is a performer.
