Mike Oziegbe Onolememen, a former Minister of State for Defence and a former Minister of State for Works, is a technocrat (architect) and a businessman. As a politician, he was a founding member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) but now a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

In this interview, Onolememen speaks on why he wants to be governor of Edo State later this year when the incumbent, Mr Godwin Obaseki, is expected to leave office, why he dumped the PDP, where he was a founding member, for the APC and the role zoning will play in his ambition among other issues.

Why do you want to succeed Governor Godwin Obaseki?

It is no longer news that I am interested in the gubernatorial election in Edo State come the next season. Someone asked me why I want to be governor. The truth is that in the past four gubernatorial contests in Edo, I’ve always been interested. For about three times, I was prevailed upon by party leadership to let it go to other persons. But I believe this is the right time.

You can see we are all (aspirants) about the same age. So, we don’t have limitations. This is something I have thought about for the past 15 years. That is about four cycles of election. I believe this is the best time in a sense for this project to crystallize because, whether you like it or not, we have come of age.

Having said that, my driving force is the fact that governance, in Nigeria, has not really been stellar because we’re going from frying pan to fire. By now, one would have expected that in terms of governance, Nigeria should have by now been much better that what it is.

Why do you think you are better placed than other aspirants and what are you bringing on board?

As somebody who has been in government, who knows the purpose of government, I believe that I have experience in government; after all I served as Executive Director of the Petroleum Trust Fund and under President Olusegun Obasanjo as Minister of State for Defence where I had a lot of activities within and outside Nigeria boundaries.

If you look at the space, you discover that so many people are populating the space without any iota of experience in governance. Governance is a very serious matter. It is not a place for every person as it were. However, you cannot limit participation in governance.I believe that despite all that, if we are to excel in what we do in governance, people with requisite experience should be sought out.

Unfortunately, in our country, that is not done often. I have looked around the country and the present dispensation, and I know that, given the opportunity, I will be able to do things differently. That is why I threw my hat into the ring to be able to be nominated and win the ballot when the time comes and do the right things that Nigerians will be proud about.

What role do you think zoning will play in this election? There are arguments that 2024 is the turn of your zone, Edo Central.

From what I can say, zoning is cardinal in this forthcoming election because when we started in Edo, majority of stakeholders were asked to come to a roundtable to agree on a formula. This was to ensure that the process was not rowdy and, at that time, it was agreed that the most populous senatorial district would take the first shot. And that was how Lucky Igbinedion became governor. And, of course, when the leadership of the party took that position, we all queued behind them and we worked for the candidate and the candidate won. After Edo South, it was now the turn of Edo North and Comrade Adams Oshiomhole got that ticket and he ran with it for two terms. This was after Oserheimen Osunbor had his mandate truncated by the court.

At the end of his tenure, you recall that there was a bit of antagonism and Edo South wanted to come back to it but were prevailed upon not to do such a thing, that is was not just about having the population but that we all came from a common source and that as brothers, we should relate with one another that way. Like I said, Osunbor’s tenure was truncated by the court of law and that was how Oshiomhole came in.

Having said that, we have accepted zoning and counter-zoning like we have experienced. Going by this zoning arrangement, it has fallen upon Edo Central where I come from. We truly believe that looking back and seeing what it has been, it is only fair that Edo Central is allowed to fly the flag of the party in the coming gubernatorial contest and I also share that belief. Having looked at the possibilities, I concluded that it is a venture I want to partake in.

You’ve talked about zoning and fairness. How are you working toward this dream? Edo Central has always been a PDP stronghold. Thus far, most of the aspirants are from that District. Have you sat together to discuss the possibility of pruning the numbers to maybe one or two aspirants?

Well, let me say that we have not been quiet on this. There have been a lot of consultations in this direction. We believe that, at the appropriate time, we’ll come to that point where we’ll be able to showcase one particular candidate for the office.

Beyond experience, there is the factor of godfatherism. This is what is currently playing out in Rivers State. We witnessed in the past when people without commensurate experience became governors. There was Ambode in Lagos and Fubara in Rivers. There is the godfather factor in Edo politics. Do you belong to the camp of any of these godfathers?

The party is one party and we all belong to the party. Within the party, we see ourselves as one. We may have come from different senatorial districts in the state but the interactions we have had are such that there are no acrimony. There may be differences and in a political contest, there are always differences but we are managing the process in such a way that we need to understand one another and do away with acrimony. At the end of the day, whatever the outcome, we will all agree on it.

What exactly do you offer the people of Edo different from what others did in the past?

There are quite several things to offer, some of them similar, others different. It is work in progress right now. When you go to the town hall and start reeling them out and the time comes for us to showcase those things, you will be shocked that some people have also gone that way because of access to those classified issues. And because of this, you hardly see politicians talking about those issues in a gathering like this. Suffice it to say that everyone comes with his or her own ideas about governance and, at the end of the day, it is how they resonate with the people that will determine those who will carry the day.

There are other indications like we often see everywhere in our country that this might not just be enough to give you the ticket. As politicians, we are working with as many people as possible from different senatorial districts to get their buy-in to our project and we are doing that right now.

You have always put your party first and that informed why you agreed to step down for others in the past. Will you be willing to do this again if you are called upon to step down one more time?

Well, it depends on the situation.

If there is merit in it but I don’t see such a situation right now. In the past when we had that, we were always told to wait for our turn and we believe our turn is now. I was in the frontline in 2007 and Osunbor was third on the list but I stepped down for Osunbor who eventually made it and was governor for about 18 months until Oshiomhole was sworn-in.

You cut the picture of a gentleman, but politics is quite a tough task. How do you intend to run your politics preparatory to getting the ticket of APC?

Everyone always has the opportunity to play the game differently. I will put the people first so as to get their buy-in. I will prioritise the areas we are lagging behind in the state. These are cardinal areas I will focus on in a way that has never been done. More importantly I will be focusing on human and infrastructural development because if you see the country as it is today, you agree with me that we still have a lot of work to do. After all, the purpose of government is the pursuance of happiness for the greater majority of the people.

The only way you can bring that about is if you are heavy on human and infrastructural development. These are the two areas where the people will benefit. More often than not, people relate with these things and I am focusing on them because I know it is the right thing to do. There are other things in government that we still have to do but these ones are cardinal as far as we are concerned because, once the people benefit and can earn a good living, there will be peace. What people want really is not too much. They want to be able to put food on the table of their families. They want to be able to take their children to school.

They want to be able to enjoy the good things of life; they want to have gainful employment. These are areas I’m focusing on and, during the campaigns, I’m going to carry everyone along.

There has been so much political fighting going on in Edo. What is your take?

Out of seven years of the current government, five have been spent fighting. I am not going to do that.

You were a foundation member of the PDP. All your political life, you were a member of the PDP. Why are you gunning for the ticket of the APC? What advantage does this confer on your ambition?

I have indeed been a member of the PDP. Up till this year, I was a member of the party, but something happened that I just couldn’t relate with. Right from the beginning of the year, I set out to run for the senatorial seat Edo Central. In the primary election, I won. I got 90 per cent of the votes and the remaining 10 per cent was shared by the remaining five aspirants. But while I thought it was over, Governor Obaseki came in to support somebody who did not even partake in the primary to take the seat. Initially, we thought it was a joke. We went to the High Court and from there to the Court of Appeal and from there to the Supreme Court. Curiously, the Supreme Court gave them judgment. That was the breaking point. In any case, those in APC today were once in PDP with us in Edo. Many of them are people we have done things together politically. When we are together, we don’t discriminate. Because of that, it is the same characters you are dealing with. So, you don’t feel as if you are a newcomer. We can go to each other’s constituencies and talk to the people. Our people are very smart and they know where their bread is buttered. I have made serious consultations in the three senatorial districts and I am satisfied with those consultations. It is the satisfaction I got from that exercise that is pushing me on.

You are new in the APC even if the parties are the same. Have you met with Oshiomhole because some of his boys like former Minister, Clement Agba, Danero (Danco), Kassim Afegbua and Philip Shuaibu are showing interest in the race. How much of consultations have you done?

I am well known throughout Edo. By training, I act more than I talk. My actions speak for me. I am not a traditional politician who just talks and talks and no action. I am full of action. I am an architect, and project manager and God has allowed me to display these skills in agencies of the Federal Government or outside the country representing Nigeria and all that or in the military. To the glory of His name, all the opportunities I had, I made good use of them and this will not be different.

I am very passionate and whatever I do, the people are always at the height of it all. We will do whatever we have to do to the best of our knowledge and ability and leave the rest to God. Still on my visibility at the grassroots, I am at home with everybody. When Inu Umoru was alive, I was always with him in Edo North. I was always with Yisa Braimoh, Abubakar Momoh and all of them. (Sunday Vanguard)