I’m ready for any form of primary, says Akeredolu

Rotimi Akeredolu, governor of Ondo, says he is ready for any form of primary election adopted by the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The governor made this known on Tuesday, while addressing journalists after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the presidential villa in Abuja.

Akeredolu said he visited Buhari to inform him of his intention to contest for a second term and also to present his expression of interest forms to the president.

“As you know, Ondo State elections will be coming up in October and our party, APC has set down the rules and guidelines for the election and clearly we are at the time now to obtain expression of interest and our nomination forms,” he said.

“Having obtained the expression of Interest and nomination form, I decided to let the president know of the fact that I will be contesting election again. The last time I contested, I made it known to him that I will be running for the election.

“So I have only come here to let the president know of the fact that I will be running for this office and I pray God Almighty that I will be successful and that I needed his blessing and he wished me very well, that’s why I have come.”

Akeredolu said he is seeking a second term in order to “change the lives of the people”.

He said his administration has done well in the areas of infrastructure, education, among others.

“We have done on issue of infrastructure, we have done on our schools, we have done on Universities, we have done everywhere. We have done something on health, put portable water for our people, a lot of developments have been done and I say to our people again that look, most of the jobs that have been completed are there but there are some that are ongoing,” he said.

“So I have so many roads that we have completed but there are some roads that are still there that we are yet to complete before anyone will come and abandon it. That is why I believe that the time now is the issue of continuity to complete the good works that we are doing for the people of Ondo state.”

Responding to a question on how comfortable he is with the direct mode of primary election which the party’s leadership prefers, Akeredolu said he is confident of victory no matter the mode of primary election adopted.

“I am not aware of that policy but if it is the policy of the party, fair enough, we are good to go in any form of primaries. And that is why you see our people, they say it openly that direct or indirect, Aketi is a goal. Whichever one you want to adopt, direct or indirect, Aketi is a goal, we will win whichever one,” he said.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed the Ondo election for October 10, 2020.