All Progressives Congress, APC, national leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has disclosed the sacrifices he made for peace to return to the party in Ondo State.
He said that he made himself available when some partyleaders in the state sought to reach him before the primaries to raise questions regarding Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu.
He said he did not make himself unavailable to hurt or insult anyone but because he knew the depth of character and the high quality of the leaders.
He spoke in Akure on Saturday where he commissioned the newly built edifice of the Ondo Internal Revenue Service Board.
Tinubu stated that true to his estimation of the leaders’ principles and political astuteness, they reached out to each other and worked together towards the continuance of progressive governance in the state under the banner of the APC.
His words, “I thank God that such a number of excellent and wide leaders are in our party. As such, Governor Akeredolu is the first among equals which means all of you must continue to dialogue and the door of consultation must remain open that our governor in his second term can rely on our collective wisdom to bring even more improvement to the state.
“Today, we have a united All Progressives Congress in Ondo. United toward achieving victory in the governorship election. United in the developmental work that must be done after the election.”
Tinubu said Akeredolu has done more than talk development as well as dedicated himself and his administration to bringing development to the state.
He said the governor has recorded several laudable projects including the Ore Industrial Hub, and progressive agricultural empowerment among others.
The former Lagos Governor said Akeredolu would not have achieved such successes without the proper collection of taxes.
Going down the history lane, he noted that the withholding of allocation to Lagos State by the former President Olusegun Obasanjo administration challenged his administration’s creativity to be self sustaining and made Lagos now the fifth largest economy in Africa.
According to him, “Governor Akeredolu is to be commended for leading the state along this intelligent path of the agricultural revolution. As such, you should repose even greater confidence in him. There is no doubt that Ondo State will be better for it at the end of the day. He has also embarked on important social welfare programmes.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the wisdom of his viewpoint for we must do more to improve our public health system. Your governor has pledged to establish an efficient system where all the people in this state will be given clear access to basic health care. If we are truly intent on forming a progressive society, the government must lead the way in providing fundamental health care to those who cannot afford it themselves.
“But these laudable projects and ideas can only be realised in an atmosphere of unity of vision and action. Indeed, the governor cannot push forward nor can the state advance if there are divisions and dissension among us. Unity and adherence to collective purpose are hallmarks of progressive politics. Our ability to place the public welfare above our personal ambitions is what differentiates us from the political regressives who would rather that the general welfare suffer so they can fulfill their personal whims and wishes.
“As progressives, we must carefully tend to our bridge of unity. We must never allow it to break. We entered politics and governance to serve the people and this purpose should always bind us in ceaseless fraternity and togetherness. All true progressives must work towards this fertile unity and sustain that unity. With it, we can achieve the great things we see for this state and this nation. We can build a progressive society for ourselves and our children. Without that unity, we will forever be in a blinding fog, so much so that we will be fighting friend and foe alike because we will be too confused to know the difference between the two. This is no path to greatness. It is the path to stagnation.
“Lets us commit ourselves to progressive unity to bring forth a progressive society. There is no other way for this nation to go. We must bring all our people back under the same progressive tent. Our creed is one of public service. This service is blind to region, religion, ethnic group, or place of origin. We seek prosperity, safety, hope, and the tranquil enjoyment of life for everyone, for all Nigerians. No one is to be denied. No one is laid low or shunted aside. No one is to be broken. Those who have been broken or forgotten are to be welcomed and care for. Those in need are to be comforted and helped. This is what the APC is and what the APC shall always be.
“For us as progressives, tribalism, and sectionalism are not part of our working vocabulary. Those are the words of yesterday. We all must work together and forge ahead as one if we are to attain the country’s overall development goals.”
On his own, Akeredolu said the new revenue house was built by civil servants in the state through direct labour.
He said he appointed the Global Revenue Consultant to fortify the use of ICT in IGR which changed the narratives without the introduction of new taxes or extra burden on the citizens.
He said he increased the IGR from between N600 million and N700 million monthly to N1.5 billion monthly in 2018.
His words, “In 2019, we improved to N1.76billion on monthly basis and in the first quarter of 2020 before COVID-19 pandemic, we were able to further increase a monthly average of N2.2billion.
“In another unprecedented development, we recruited and trained over 400 young graduates as Tax Officers to bolster ODIRS workforce. These new staff are the ones seated over there.”
The Nation
