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Two time
governorship aspirant in Ogun State Kayode Soyinka at the weekend
declared his interest in contesting the 2011 governorship election.

Mr. Soyinka, who
made this known to members of the Action Congress (AC), at Ward 10,
Ago-Owu in Abeokuta, called on party members to give him support. He
also expressed optimism that if given the party ticket, he would be the
better candidate to reclaim the party lost victory.

‘I am confident
that if I emerge as our party flagbearer, the coast is clear for our
party to win the governorship election,” he said. “If I can contest in
2003 and 2007 and still remain consistent with the party, it shows my
genuine commitment and a plus to my credibility.”

Primaries first

The journalist-turned-politician tasked party leaders to conduct proper screening for all intending aspirants.

‘Our first hurdle is the primaries. It is not difficult to win if we put our house in order before the polls,’ he said.

Mr. Soyinka also
said the Action Congress (AC) should work as one to fight its common
enemy, which is the Peoples Democratic Party.

“I have been to all
the 236 wards in the state, there is no local government area they
don’t know me. The records are there, if elected am going to also use
all my international connections to better the lots of our people,” he
said, adding that he is starting the governorship race from his ward
10. He also promised that his official declaration would be done in
grand style.

No political prostitute

A leader of the
party and former commissioner of education Yomi Ademefun called on
party supporters to give Mr. Soyinka their support to win the ticket
which, he said, is the first phase of the general election.

He argued that Mr.
Soyinka’s constant identification with Action Congress (AC) is an
indication that he is not a “prostitute politician”, but is convinced
about the party philosophy and ideals.

“If we had given recognition to his personality and decided early
enough to throw our support behind him, we could have taken over the
government and he would have being governor by now,” Mr. Ademefun said.