Engineer Sunday Babalola, a Petroleum Engineer was a gubernatorial aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in the 2011 election. He, however, stepped down for the incumbent shortly before the primaries. Babalola who has again offered himself for another contest in this interview explains his mission and manifesto. Excerpts:

Why are you aspiring to govern Kwara State?

irstly, my aspiration is based on the fact that as long as good people refuse to act, evil will continue to prevail. As long as we all run away from politics and leave all to prayers, we have no reason to complain about what is happening.

How do you see your prospects given the abundance of aspirants?

I believe I have a very good chance. I did very well in 2010 as you must have learnt. This time my people are even better organised, well focused, more motivated, determined and willing knowing that there shall be no imposition. We have over 40,000 people registered in the New Page Forum (a Babalola Support Group) that are working day and night in all the wards and Local Government Areas.

This is not an exaggeration and the number is growing by the day. Their motivation is the need for good governance. Also, the politics of money (or what is called amala politics) is gradually fading away. Moreover, we have traversed the whole state selling our idea of an ideal government that would benefit the people. I like to remind you also that among all of us jostling for this position, I am the only one that has very intimate relationship with all the Senatorial Districts.

I grew up and spent my adolescent years (the years when a man forms all his characteristics, develops his vision for life and living and lays the foundation for who he is going to be) in Kwara North while I am from Kwara South by extraction.

I did my middle school in Kwara Central. So, you can see that I understand the problems of our people in all the Districts; I can relate with them because I lived in them and was affected by them in my growing up.

What are your strategies to govern and develop Kwara if you become the PDP candidate and eventually win the governorship election in the state?

Firstly, as soon as we have the opportunity to serve the State we shall ensure that all schools are properly set up and the environment ready for the students to learn from before resumption for first term.

Secondly, we shall create employment through the establishment of cooperative societies through which soft but self-regulating and self-collateralised loans will be granted to different professionals and artisans in order to boost their business. Every tax paying adult, children and the aged will be on health insurance to ensure everyone has access to good health care. We have plan to establish a system that would ensure hospitals are well equipped and can be accessed even in rural areas. Within the four years we shall spend, we shall ensure proper road network to enable transportation of goods and services to where they can be sold.

But people say that your party cannot wrestle power from the All Progressives Congress in Kwara State?

We are more than prepared for the election. I read a lot of insinuations that there are infightings within the PDP. That is not true. What we are seeing today is democracy in action.

You cannot throw up the best in any system unless there is competition. Therefore, what we see in the PDP is that people are competing for their desired positions. Off course, this is a strange phenomenon in Kwara State, so I can understand their thinking.

It is alleged that the PDP is counting on federal might. Is that true?

The last two elections in Ekiti and Osun States clearly established the fact that the Federal Government is not in the business of influencing the outcome of elections. Before then, there were the elections in Edo and Ondo. In all, the PDP won only the Ekiti State election.

Where is the influence or federal might that you are referring to? We in the Kwara PDP know clearly that the Federal Government is not going to use any federal might to win any election. The will of the people shall prevail. But we also have the advantage that this government is not performing.

Where is shared prosperity or legacy continuity? Into whose pocket? Let’s face it, the one before it did not perform either. How has the aviation school helped Kwara? This is a State that effectively has only one airline plying it because there is no economy to support increase in the number of air travellers. Even the one airline is not even half full all the time I had the privilege of taking it.

How come aviation school? Is that a priority? Where is the food from Shonga farms? So people are just waiting for 2015 to boot them out.

Look, Kwara State is as good as won by the PDP because there is nothing this government is doing for the people. The people saying this must be APC people and they are only preparing the ground to explain their loss by saying it is "federal might" that will make us win.