Abesan 1 Deserves a Councilor Who Will Deliver - Morakinyo Abayomi (Candidate)

Abayomi Morakinyo

Abayomi Morakinyo, aka ABM is contesting on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) as Councilor in Abesan 1 of Mosan-Okunola LCDA, Alimosho, in the forthcoming Local Council elections, he seems to be the candidate to beat with his growing popularity among the Youth and the Elderly.
For him, delivering on election promises is of utmost importance and he feels personality, rather than party affiliation should be the basis on which people are elected into public offices.
An Economics graduate from the University of Ilorin and a father of two, ABM, as he is fondly called says if we want to change anything in the society, getting involved in governance is the way forward. He visited our office on Sunday 2nd July, 2017 and we had the following chat. Please enjoy an excerpt of the interview.

 
For the purpose of people who don’t know you, can you introduce yourself?
My name is Abayomi Morakinyo, I lived in Abesan for over 20 years. I graduated from the Department of Economics at the University of Ilorin, and for over a decade I have been business man in the Signage industry.  I am married with two children. I am deeply passionate about leadership and governance, and I have a burning desire to effect a material change in the lives of people in the local community. That is why I am running for the office of Councilor in Abesan 1. I have observed that over time, values have been eroded in our community and not much has been done about it. That’s why I decided to get involved, to change the way things are. The Councillorship is just a starting point.
On which political platform are you pursuing your dream?
Before now, I was with the APC, but I didn’t get the opportunity to run there. PDP offered me the chance, so that’s where I am now.
Tell us about your educational background
As I said, I am a graduate of Economics. I am also a member of the Chattered Institute of Economists, and a member of the Chattered Institute of Management. But my education is not limited to the formal qualifications I’ve received, so I continue to develop myself year in and year out.

Let’s talk about politics. Have you ever been involved in politics as a serious affair?
I have been involved in politics since my days at the University of Ilorin.  In my second year, I was the financial secretary of my Hall, and in my third year I was Social Director of the Department of Economics. And in my final year, I was president of the Department of Economics. Post university, I have always been involved in politics in my local community. Recall that I was a member of the APC for several years.

What do you think about politics in Nigeria generally and how will you rate the performance of APC based on their campaign and delivery after the elections?
My assessment is that people at the grassroots are not enjoying the gains of good governance as well as they should. But this is symptomatic of a deeper problem- the people do not have access to those at the helm of affairs, even at the local level. And we can see the effects all around us- in our bad roads, erratic power supply, and insecurity. Not to mention that the entire estate is now littered with domestic waste. Yet; politics is about the people, and that is why I decided get involved- so that the people of Abesan 1 can have the change they really need.

What do you think are the needs of the people of Abesan? 
We are focused on four need areas: the youth, primary healthcare, financial needs, and sanitation. Abesan has a very large youth population, many of which are unemployed/underemployed. We’re going to empower the youth. We’ll give them the training they need to become employable (for those who want to get a job), and of course, we’ll train many youth in science and art of entrepreneurship as well (for those who want to start their own businesses). Our goal is that every youth who wants to make something for themselves can do so, and our job is to facilitate that process.
We’re also deeply committed to primary healthcare, particularly for our children and elderly, because they are the most vulnerable to illness. This is something I have a personal experience in. While my daughter was on admission at the hospital, I saw a lot of people who couldn’t even afford to buy medication for as low as N3,000 for their children. This is a problem we can help solve in our community.
Peoples’ quality of life is strongly connected to their finances, so we’re going to help in this regard as well. We intend to do this by providing non-interest soft loans to people in the community who need it- maybe to run their shop, acquire a skill, or pay school fees. We’ll give them very flexible re-payment terms. We’re talking about very small amounts of money, say between ten and twenty thousand Naira. But I don’t need to tell you how much of a difference this can make in the lives of people who need it.
Finally, we’re deeply concerned with how much sanitation has degenerated in the estate, so we’re going to be working with the PSP sanitation people to improve waste collection and disposal all over Abesan 1.
Those are our primary areas of concern. However, we shall also see how we can partner with community leaders all over the estate to press for the provision of pre-paid meters with PHCN. People should only pay for what they use.

Are you not intimidated by the personality and political party of the person you are contesting against?I am not intimidated. He (Tola Olaiya) is also coming out for the first time and he hasn’t contributed much to his community over the years. In terms of qualification and exposure, he doesn’t have what it takes. I have worked in the private sector for more than fifteen years, ten of those as an entrepreneur. What has he done? And what does he do for a living? What is his educational qualification? Abesan is a community of bright, highly educated people. They deserve to be served by someone who is too. So I don’t think he has what it takes to be the next Councillor. It’s not even a competition- he depends primarily on the strength of his political party. I depend primarily on my experience, exposure and competence.

Tell us about your door to door campaignOur door-to-door campaign is targeted basically at the family. We already have a good rapport with the youth, but we want to talk to the elderly too. We want them to know our plans for them. We want them to know we are going there to serve them. We’re encouraging them to come out to vote on Election Day. And more importantly, we’re charging them to cast their votes on the qualification of the candidates, not on party affiliation.