Election: Governor Makinde Advocates Placing Nigeria on Righteous Path

The Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde has called on residents of the state to use the opportunity of the 2023 general elections to “take back Nigeria and place it on the path of righteousness.”

The governor asserted that the February 25 presidential election would be an election like no other, which he believed would usher in a truly independent Nigeria, warning Nigerians not to vote with sentiment.

A statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Taiwo Adisa, reports Makinde saying this at the Comfort Life Mission International, aka Olorun Ojiji, Ikoyi, Osun State, during its monthly 7-7 programme, compared the forthcoming election to the one that held in 1955 before Nigeria gained independence, stating that after the 2023 general elections, Nigeria would become truly independent.

Activism

The governor urged Christians to take a firm decision in the coming polls in order to take Nigeria back, and shine the light on the supposedly dark corners of politics, stating that with only two weeks to the presidential election, it was time for activism rather than political correctness.

He stated: “If there is darkness in a place and you light one candle, and then another, and then another, gradually the darkness will disappear. So, as Christians, we must participate. This is not the time to say we want to be politically correct as this is the time for activism. It is the time for us to take back our country and put it on the path of righteousness.”

Makinde said the insinuation that politics is a dirty game and that Christians should abstain from it has been unhelpful, noting that more Christians should participate in politics and governance.

The governor equally stated that his administration had, in the last four years, been giving back to the society and developing the state across the four pillars of the administration.

Developmental efforts

He maintained that the ongoing Ibadan Circular Road project, which is only about five minutes to the Comfort Life Mission Headquarters, is one of the many evidences of his administration’s developmental efforts, explaining that when completed, the Circular Road would commute travellers from the Ife-Ibadan Road axis to Lagos in one hour and 10 minutes without having to go through the Ibadan City Center.

Makinde noted: “What that Circular Road project means is – from here to Ojota, you can spend one hour ten minutes. From the Circular Road, if you want to burst out to where First Technical University is located, it will be 20 minutes because it is 32km. From that point to Lagos, it cannot be more than 45 minutes. So, that is the kind of development we have brought to Oyo State, which we believe there will be continuity in the second term.”

Governor Makinde, who stated that the successes achieved by the government would not have been possible without the prayers of the people of the state, said that he knew that the prayers of God’s people were fervent and effectual from the early period of his administration when he contracted and survived COVID-19.

He also expressed confidence that with the prayers and support of Oyo State people, he is assured of victory in the March 11 governorship election, according to him, he was able to win in 2019 with the support of God the Father and the people of Oyo State.

“I am the first Governor in the history of Oyo State who has no godfather but only God the Father. Against all odds in 2019, God the Father did it and He will do it again. “

He concluded by thanking all and also solicited  continious prayers for Nigeria so as to have a peaceful general election.

Lateefah Ibrahim