Frank Ilaboya is the Chairman, Owan West Local Government of Edo State. In this chat with our correspondent, ONAZENA ABBEY, he spoke on his achievements and incursion into politics, as a renowned sport analyst. He equally bared his mind on the lingering feud between All Progressives Congress, APC, National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, among other sundry issues.
You were very prominent in the sport circle and today, the chairman, Owan West Local Government Area. To what extent have you been able to impact positively on your people?
Well, it has not been easy. Like you said, sport has been my life all along and when this calling came for politics, I had to adapt. But one thing about sport is that it is about people; you interact with people and on that note, that is also how politics is – a lot of interaction with people. So, the tradition was not that too difficult though at the beginning it was not easy. But I think within a short time, we were able to flow and here we are today. Like I said, it was a little bit tough, but we have been able to do our best. When I came in as the local government chairman, my focus was very easy. First of all, we needed to key into the government’s thematic plans; security, healthcare, education, infrastructure, job creation, among others. One area we focused on was youth empowerment. We have a lot of youths, who are employable but were not able to get jobs. We all know how the country is. Getting job is not as easy as it used to be and that was why when our amiable governor was coming in, he promised 200,000 jobs for the youths.
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So, we also keyed into that and began to empower our youths. We have a very robust empowerment programme in Owen West. And instead of giving money out, which people were doing in those days, we brought the youths together in a town hall meeting and asked them exactly what they wanted and those who wanted to do something with their hands we began to empower them. For instance, if you want to go into tailoring, barbing or anything that will give you handwork, we bought equipment for them just to ensure that they are on their own. We have done that to about 70-80 people in Owan West and most of them are doing well. We have paid for six months rent for them and working tools as well. Theirs was just to move into the shops, which we have paid for. I can assure you that most of them are doing very well. It is a new scheme and many people may not understand where we at going. But I think by the time we are rounding off our tenure, I am sure we would have imparted very positively on youths.
We all tried to key into the education policy of the state government and in Owan West, what we have done so far is to give pupils school uniforms, particularly primary one, as well as books, desks and chairs. And that is what we want to continue because we do not want any student in Owan not to go to school because he has no books or uniform or whatever. So, we have started that project and we are going to scale through. In terms of capacity building, a committee has already been put in place to train one graduate per ward in any field they like so that by the time they finish, they can impart on the local government.
We are coming out with a robust sport policy and it is going to be catching them young. We want to look at under-13. We are going to merge that with education. It is going to be sports and education. We are introducing under-13 competitions, not only in football. We call it FAT- football, athletics and table tennis. We are reintroducing quiz, debate in schools. Segun Odegbami is very successful today because he went to school and also played football. And that is what we want to introduce in Owan now at the very young level to the tender, so that when they grow up it will be part of them.
On women empowerment, to God be the glory. We are not also lagging behind in terms of security. We have keyed into the government policies and at this juncture, I will commend Governor Godwin Obaseki, who has done well. You will recall that last month, he was awarded best governor in education, good roads, schools, modern health center in each local government. I am very proud to be a chairman in the Obaseki-led administration.
As chairman, are you not disturbed by the onslaught of sack and suspension of your fellow chairmen by Governor Obaseki?
I do not want to comment on that.
Only recently, some ward chairmen in your local government claimed that you deceived them to endorse Obaseki for a second term. Did you actually deceive them?
I find it very funny when I heard about it. First of all, the Obaseki/Shaibu project is not negotiable and as the number one citizen of Owan West, I need to drive the project because I believe in the project. So, I need to talk to the party structure, which includes the ward chairmen, women leaders, and youth leaders. It is my duty to drive the project in Owan West; firstly, because I believe in it; secondly, because they deserve it. And if I am to do that, I must talk to the party structure. So, how could I have deceived anybody? Most of these people have comeback to say what they said was not true because immediately after that meeting, I was told that some elements, who call themselves EPM were threatening them that we are the one that put you in the executive and we are going to remove you. I was intimidated by the last rally in Owan West and that is to tell you that the local government has spoken and spoken loudly that we are for Obaseki. The governor and its team have done so well in Edo State and Owan. So, why should they not go for second term? One good term deserves another.
There is violence in nearly all the local governments between EPM and OSM. What are you doing to ensure there is security in your own local government?
OSM is part of the group, pushing for the second term ambition of the government. What has gone violent in some areas is EPM. For instance, in Owan West, we have told them there is nothing like EPM and if you want to do EPM, then relocate or go to another state because Owan West is a peaceful area and we do not want anything that will cause confusion. We have taken our stand and it is very clear. Our focus is very clear and we are for Obaseki/Shaibu.
You saw what happened recently in Iyamho, Oshiomhole’s home town. What is the way out of this crisis in the state?
We are in the same party, APC, and I believe there is room for reconciliation. So, what happened at Iyamho, to me, was uncalled for and I am sure that even the national chairman of our party has also made a statement that it is uncalled for.
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People went for convocation and you invited them to your house and they were attacked; we should not get to that extent. The Edo people have appreciated and are still appreciating what the Obaseki-led administration is doing. It is 4+4 everywhere you go. Nothing good comes easy and you have to fight for your right. The governor has said that he demands and deserves it and I agree with him because he has done well. If there are disagreements, which is normal in politics, that does not mean that majority does not support him. Many states are coming to learn what is happening in Edo State. The governor has touched all areas; from education, roads, healthcare, sports to infrastructure.
Before I became chairman, my local government owed salaries. But since Obaseki came in, everything became history. As at today, Owan West does not owe. Obaseki’s project is not negotiable and it is achievable. As far as I am concerned, there is no alternative. The transparency and creativity of this project is second to none and I am sure the people of Owan have also spoken. This man deserves second tenure because he has done well.
