The Governor of Oyo State, Abiola Ajimobi, has challenged his opponents to an open debate in the gubernatorial contest, saying they should come out and tell the people of the state what they had done in the past or plan to do in future that qualifies them for the people’s mandate.

The governor threw the challenge while speaking at a programme organised by the state government to herald the New Year, at the Remembrance Arcade, Government House, Ibadan, at the weekend.

“For those who had not been there before, I really do not have a problem with them. But for other contestants who had been governors before, I challenge them to an open debate. Let them come and tell the people of the state what they did while they were there that qualifies them for a comeback.

“For those who did not know, two of them are currently facing trial by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), for various charges bordering on economic mismanagement while they were at the helm of affair. Besides, a sum of N500 million has just been recovered from one of them and that is part of the money we are now using for the construction of our model schools.

Ajimobi noted that while his administration had provided alternative shops for the traders removed from the street free of charge, one of his predecessors, who is in the gubernatorial race, demolished shops in some parts of Ibadan, the state capital, without making any alternative arrangement, thus, leaving the affected traders to their own fate.

He added that his administration has been so close to both Muslims and Christians more than his predecessors, adding that the magnanimity and generosity which his government had shown to various segments of the society was unprecedented in the history of the state.

For instance, he said a total of N550 million had so far been distributed to traders, artisans, as well as market men and women in the state, the latest of which was the N300 million shared among 6,000 of them at N50,000 each on December 24, 2014 at the Lekan Salami Sports Complex, Adamasingba, Ibadan.

Governor Ajimobi also urged the people of the state not to forget the violence, thuggery and brigandage that pervaded the state between 2003 and 2011, adding that they should choose between the peace which his administration had epitomised and the violence which the candidature of his opponents represented.

“The peace which we have been enjoying in the last three and a half years must not be allowed to be truncated by those who do not understand any language other than violence,” he added.

•Photo shows Governor Ajimobi.

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