By; ODEYEMI SAMUEL, Akure.
Alhaji Jamiu Ekungba, one of the Governorship aspirants on the platform of All Progressive Congress (APC), for the November 26 governorship election in Ondo State, has challenged the incumbent Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko to account for N293 billion the excess fund accrued to the state in the last seven years.
He maintained that in Ondo state today, things are not moving the way it supposed to move not as a result of paucity of funds but due to mis-management of available resources by Mimiko led PDP government in the state.
Chief Ekungba stated this at the APC Secretariat in Akure, Ondo State capital while declaring his intention to contest in the upcoming Ondo guber election where all his teeming supporters drawn across all the 18 Local Government Area of the state converged.
“If Mimiko claimed that he pays ‘four billion naira’ salary monthly in his first seven years in office of 84 months, that gives us 336 billion naira and when this is taken from a total whopping sum of 629 billion naira Federal Allocation we have 293 billion left and this is without taken into considerations other sources of cash”.
He also urged the electorates in the state to muster efforts and summon all the courage in chasing away Olusegun Mimiko’s led PDP government for he has inflicted serious pains on their lives.
Chief Ekungba however urged the leaders of the party in the state to put all the sincerity and seriousness required to conduct a primary that would produce a candidate that could enter the ring as a contender and leave it a champion.
His words, ”the administration of Dr. Olusegun Mimiko has gravely sinned against the good people of Ondo state, his administration through his mania for power and unscrupulous exploitation of the people has diligently created his own doom”.
“Despite these sad facts, there is something to cheer about, every right thinking citizen of our dear sunshine state, also knows that among us there are men who has what it takes to crack the leadership code, and who see Ondo state as the next big thing”. He added
Ekungba stressed further that, “In our delusion, we thought Mimiko was a champion of the outcast, a lot believed he was a determined voice for reform, while scores saw him as a leader with uncommon focus. Today if we weigh our expectation of him against reality the opposite is the case, Mimiko is a source of pain”.
The aspirant however charged the electorates in Ondo state to give him the opportunity to be the next governor through their vote, saying he has what it takes to crack the leadership code and Ondo state would take a step towards what is higher and better.
“If we don’t want a bad thing to happen in the midst of great things, our first great stride on the road to victory should be to organise a primary that will throw up a candidate who is strong enough” he further reiterated.
“I mean if Ondo are looking for a governor with extra ordinary ability, a thorough exposure and a gargantuan appetite for work, a man whose years and time in the state house will mark the arrival of Ondo state as a regional force, you need to look for no one but Jamiu Afolabi Ekungba” he said.