Former Ondo State governor Olusegun Mimiko joins race for presidency as Labour Party candidate

FORMER Ondo State governor Dr Olusegun Mimiko has become the latest entrant into Nigeria's 2019 presidential race after he declared yesterday that he will stand in the February polls as the candidate of the Labour Party.

 

Yesterday, Dr Mimiko, who governed Ondo State between 2009 and 2017, made the announcement at the party’s national headquarters in Abuja. He said that the effect of the current economic reality, unprecedented level of division, distrust at individual and communal levels, were of great concern to him.

 

According to Dr Mimiko, the ability to envision great ideas and demonstrable track record, rather than place and circumstances of birth should be the most compelling basis for investing candidates with power. He added that as governor for eight years, he restructured the state, empowered youths and transformed the education as well as health sector among others.

 

Dr Mimiko said: “This is not the time to cheapen the dialogue by engaging in an argument on whose turn it is to run the country, rather, it is time to insist that only the best is good for Nigeria. It is time to all march out and recall our past, take charge of the present and launch out into greatness as one inclusive and cohesive family.

 

“There comes a moment in the life of a nation when every patriot must stand up to be counted. At such a moment, no person worthy of a place in history can afford to remain ensconced in his or her comfort zone.

 

“For our country, Nigeria, the moment is now but the truth, however, is that bad as these times are, they will not pass away if we choose to remain on this same old path. I am running for president because I believe that working together, we can restructure and redesign our country in such a way that it would mean for all of us."

 

He promised to commit to mobilising the youth of Nigeria for education, providing opportunities for them to be productively engaged and elevating them into leadership, through a careful process of acculturation. Dr Mimiko added: “We shall frontally attack corruption in all its ramifications by strengthening existing institutions, deploying technological tools and deepening relevant policies on cashless society while proactively leveraging global frameworks for anti-corruption.

 

Alhaji Abdulkadir Abdulsalam, the factional chairman of Labour Party, congratulated Dr Mimiko for his declaration. He said that the party decided to support and give Dr Mimiko a nomination form, based on his track record as one-time governor.

 

Dr Mimiko rejoined the Labour Party in June 2018 after initially dumping the party for the People's Democratic Party (PDP) in 2014. He was re-elected as Ondo State governor in 2013 on the platform of the Labour Party after joining it in 2006 but defected to join the PDP in 2014.

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