The governorship candidate of the Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN), Alfred Adegoke, has said he would receive the salary of a civil servant if elected Osun State governor.
The governorship election for the state has been scheduled for September 22 with Mr Adegoke among the 48 candidates for the election.
“I will not collect the salaries meant for the office of a governor but that of a state lawyer of my level. The remaining should be used for the development of the state,” Mr. Adegoke said during a campaign rally.
The candidate said this during a campaign to Ikirun, Inisa, Agbeye, Ekosin and other towns in Odo-Otin Local Government Area of the state on Tuesday.
Mr. Adegoke, while addressing the electorates in Ikirun, promised to provide free education, free health care and basic amenities for the masses if elected.
“The past governments cannot provide these because the money meant for them have been siphoned by the past governors. All of them promised quality education but we are promising you free education because it is possible.” he stated.
Speaking on the road contracts awarded in the state, he alleged that the past governments inflated the cost of road construction.
“When we investigated the cost of these roads, experts and contractors made us to understand that one kilometre is constructed at the rate of N230 million.”
“The people who we will award this projects to are not Lagos-based contractors. They (Lagos-based contractors) have been defrauding us.”
“The state government has been collecting N500 million all in the name of security votes without using it for anything. This money runs to billions of naira every year, which is enough to pay the salaries of workers and pensions to the retired staff.”
The secretary of the party, Kola Ibrahim, stated in his address that SPN canvases an egalitarian society at all levels.
“Education, good health care and security should be for everyone and not the children of the rich alone,” he said.
However, some of the residents who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES protested that SPN, unlike some parties who visited earlier, did not give out money to the electorates.
Madam Alice of Agbeye community and a young man at Inisa, who refused to be named, said the people are not interested in promises but money as a means of campaigning.
“No money, no vote,” the young man exclaimed.
Reacting to that, Mr Adegoke told the people to challenge the status quo of vote-buying and not involve themselves in the act.
“We cannot offer you money that will take care of your immediate needs; but we’ll offer you good governance instead,” he said.
