Going by the political uproar in Nigeria, an Honourable member of the Oyo State House of Assembly has however outlined reasons behind politicians becoming money grubbers when voted into political offices.
Hon Joshua Oyebamiji who is representing Akinyele 1 Constituency in the Oyo State House of Assembly made this assertion during an exclusive interview with CEOAfrica on its online television programme’’ Community Today ‘’on Friday 11th August 2017.
The lawmaker who is also the Chairman House Committee on Information gave his opinion in reaction to clamours of the masses who abuses politicians of being self-centred when voted into office, saying it is only one person that is reaping the fruit of the labour of the other aspirants who contested and lost the election.
He said “people spend a lot of money to get ticket, spend lots of money before election and during election, and only one person will emerge the winner. Imagine how much Seyi Makinde spent on election, and the likes of Akala, Teslim amongst others, who remembers them now? Nobody does. It is whosoever that won the election that people keep asking from.’’
However, Hon. Joshua said we have two problems that are combating this nation, they are poverty as well as illiteracy problem, every aspirant have to pay for those problems which is not supposed to be so, people look for political offices overseas, not because they don’t have conveniences or to be popular, they just want to serve primarily and to be recognised secondarily.
Expressing his opinion on politicians turning money grubbers, he said in 2003, when he left civil service, he aspired for the post of House of Rep Akinyele Lagelu constituency, as the situation will have it, at a point he had exhausted all he has, “I had to sell my first house, car, landed property giving to me by the government because it all requires money and one cannot get a bank loan for campaign or lobbying for any position in politics except you have sponsors and those sponsors are referred to as godfather and you know the problem of godfathers, taking over the other of the day because of this saying; who pays the piper dictate the tune,” Oyebamiji said.
He further explained why godfathers cannot be omitted from political arena because those who know have to bring up those who do not know, experienced politicians have to nurture inexperienced ones just joining politics.
However Hon. Joshua further in his statement said the same set of people who don’t want you to think of yourself when in office but them and their issues will abuse you that you were once an Honourable and now does not have a car not to talk of a house. “I must have those things, I always tell them if they say Honourable is building one house, when he was selling his house where were you, when he was selling cars where were you, when he was losing lives of relatives where were you, when he was being macheted, where were you, when his family member was being kidnapped where were you? So there is gain to every pain,” He said.
