A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Oyo State and former deputy governor of the state, Alhaji Hazeem Gbolarumi, in this interview with ADEWALE OSHODI, speaks on why he does not support defection from one party to the other, and the recently concluded local government election in the state.
Of late, several high-profile politicians have defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to other parties, what do you have to say about this?
I really don’t believe in defection; why would someone leave a party that made him and defect to another? You will find out that most of those who defect to other parties had benefited from their original parties, in the first place; they had been given positions by their parties and maybe when they are no longer getting what they want, they defect. This only shows self-centredness; they are not the only ones in that party, so why should they defect when they don’t get what they want? It means they are just fighting for their own benefit, and not for the people they are meant to serve. I can tell you that about 40 percent of their followers don’t defect with them to the new parties. If you have not benefited from a party is another thing entirely, but if you have been member of the House of Representatives, member of the Senate, or governor, or you have benefited in one way other and you defect to another party because you are not having your way on a particular issue, then that’s only selfishness.
Can you say this is the reason you have never defected to any other party since began your political career?
Why will I defect to any other party when I have benefitted from many party, the PDP? I was a deputy governor of the state and I have benefitted from the party in several other ways. As I said earlier, I don’t understand why people defect to other parties after benefitting from a party; most had held top political positions and when they see that a new setting does not favour them, they move to another party. This is the period to even stay and mentor the younger generation on how politics is played. We shouldn’t be self-centered when we are not the only person in the party.
How would you describe the recent local government election in Oyo State?
The results reflected the will of the people. I don’t think anybody would even vote for the All Progressives Congress (APC), a party that is anti-people. During the election, I went to my polling booth and saw a representative of the APC and I asked him what he had benefitted from the party, he was just laughing; he was looking haggard and l am sure he had never benefitted from the party, so I wonder why he was supporting the party. I asked about his educational background and he said he is a graduate, I asked him where he was working, and he said he is jobless, so I told him to join PDP for better opportunities. So, that election reflected the will of the people of the state. The truth is that it is not possible for people to vote for the APC, going by the performance of the PDP. Also, look at what the APC has turned the country to.
You’ve been in politics for a long time, what is your belief about politics?
I believe one should use one’s time to serve God and humanity. Everything I am doing in politics is for the benefit of my fellow men. As I said earlier, I believe in God and if I believe in God, then I should use my resources and everything I have to benefit others. One day, we will all go back to God, so what is the essence of acquiring everything for my own benefit alone? In my house, for example, I have children who are adopted and I am happy seeing the joy in their faces, knowing that with the necessary support., they have a future and the society will be better for it. So, everything I am doing in politics is for the benefit of humanity; to make the society better. If it is to acquire money, how many houses do I need to build to be contented? How much do I need in my account to be contented? If you believe in God and you know that you have been placed in a position by God, then you will realise that your purpose is to use that opportunity to support others who don’t have that opportunity. When our political leaders realise this, the country will be better.
There are many people living inside your house, who you are also cater for and sponsor their education, did you learn this from your mentor, the late Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu?
Baba Adedibu was a very generous man who used his resources to support the underprivileged in the society. I was close to him and if I should begin to mention his attributes, we won’t leave here today. He was a man who truly cared for others, not because of politics, but he had this nature that he wanted people to thrive. This is the reason he supported many people for different political positions and used his influence to make them somebody. I definitely learnt a lot from him and I can say I have some of his attributes because if our behaviours were at opposite sides, we wouldn’t have had that smooth father-son relationship for years.