The immediate past communications minister, Barrister Adebayo Shittu, has revealed that the Oyo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress needs a collegiate leadership
He stated this during an interview on Splash FM while responding to questions on whether he sees former governor Alao Akala as the leader of the party in the state.
Speaking on the ongoing reconciliation of aggrieved individuals in the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Oyo State, Shittu explained that they have all decided to bury their griverances and work for the success of the party.
However, when asked why some people who left the party ahead of the 2019 elections are not back yet, he said, “You can’t beg anyone to join any party. Anyone who leaves can’t be forced back because we were not the one who sent them away. But you will see that some who were not with us before are now with us.
When asked whether he will accept former governor Alao Akala as the party leader in the state, he argued that what the party now has is a collegiate leadership system.
“Without doubt, Akala is an elder and he has served as a governor. And even me as a small boy, I have been a politician for several years and I have been a minister too.
“When we had only one leader we discovered that it is not advantageous So what we now want is a collegiate leadership something like a committee of elders,” Shittu said, adding that “We respect Akala all but we will have many leaders. A leader is not something important. There will be elders.”
Speaking on whether he still wants to be Governor, he said:” I don’t know If I still want to be Governor. No one knows what will happen yet. If I say I want to be governor I might end up becoming president or senator. So only God knows. But for now I am yet to make a decision. No one retires from politics except if the person is incompetent. For now, I am yet to make a decision but God will guide us.”
When asked whether he thinks Nigeria deserves to celebrate its 60th anniversary, he said, “As long we are still alive, we should always celebrate. For example, Libya used to be a great country but today it seems like they don’t exist. We should not only celebrate anniversaries but every living day.”
Reacting to questions about the recent rise in food prices, the Saki-born politician explained that this is not the fault of the government but that of middlemen who have hiked the prices of food noting that “the government has tried its best”
He also revealed that the rot in the system is the main reason why Nigeria still has to export crude oil for refining.
“I think the problem with our refineries is corruption. Government releases money for their repair yearly. If we say we can’t repair the government owned….Government gave licenses to like ten individuals. The first one in Edo will be commissioned soon. Dangote is building one too. Maybe when these have been completed there will be a change,”he said.
When asked to assess Governor Seyi Makinde, he said, “On a lot of radio stations, people ask me this question but I used to tell them to let us give him two years because we gave his predecessor eight years. So when it’s mid-term, I’ll access him.”
He added that the Governor is his friend and not enemy.
