Ibadan-born academic, political scientist, and clergy, who currently serves, in the government of Senator Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State as Chief of Staff, Dr Gbade Ojo, has said that he won’t contest election because he is a poor man in the sense and a salary earner.
According to the University of Ilorin lecturer, “It is difficult for a salary earner to nurse ambition. It is difficult in the sense that for political scientists, what most people in politics or people that participate in politics could desire is to be what we call political gladiators, and to function as a political gladiator, that means you must have the resources.”
In a recent interview, Ojo, who is a former political adviser to Ajimobi, said that “So for a serious-minded person like us, and a salary earner, it would be difficult nursing any political ambition because in Africa and other third world countries, politics is too expensive. We have not reached a stage whereby a person like me could say I want people to vote for me.
“People will not vote for you no matter how good intention you may be. Even in this small position I am holding, it is a serious burden on me in the sense that friends are no more coming.
“They expect you to help them finish their building project just because you are a Chief of Staff; they think I should dole out money to them when I am still living in my own house, and when I am still riding my own personal car, that I could not even be able to add to my fleet of cars. They don’t want to believe that. The burden of dependents in politics in Nigeria is seriously discouraging people like us from nurturing any political ambition.
“For instance if I want to contest as a local government chairman, where will I get the money as a university teacher? To fund campaign for just 11 or 10 wards is a great task. If people like us take such risk, one can end up becoming poorer for life.
So, I can’t have any political ambition. But for people like us, if invited to serve in government at any capacity or level, I am ready. You can say; ‘come and be our minister, ambassador or be whatever. I will be ready because of the intellect; it is better that way rather than criticising government inside the classroom.”
