News Headline

By Laolu Akande New York, NY, USA

spiring Nigerian politicians and some of their American colleagues gathered in New York over the weekend to declare support and raise funds for a US based Nigerian Chief Jumoke Ogunkeyede, an Osun State AD gubernatorial aspirant.

Leading the pack was Chief Harry Akande, the ANPP Board of Trustees chairman, who made a surprise appearance at the event while a New York State Senator Carl Andrew came in early in the event to declare support for the gubernatorial aspirant.

Dr. Walter Carrington, the US former Ambassador to Nigeria also sent in a message of solidarity, so too the executive director of the well known New York based Center for Constitutional Rights, CCR.

In his message Carrington said "while I continue to avoid getting involved in partisan politics in Nigeria by endorsing candidates or parties, I am nevertheless more optimistic about the country's future when principled fighters for democracy and human rights such as you-Ogunkeyede-engage in the political process."

Carrington added in a message sent to the Osun State guber aspirant that the "fight which you led to honor one of Nigeria's greatest heroines, Kudirat Abiola, by having the corner on which the Nigerian UN Mission stands named for her is one in which I am proud to have participated."

In his own remarks as chairman of the event Chief Harry Akande urged Nigerians abroad to continue to get involved in the political process at home, commending Ogunkeyede for his political acumen recalling that he has been the only Nigerian who has ran for such a high office like the New York State senate.

Akande added that Nigerians abroad should support those among them who are getting involved. "Those of us from abroad who are running need your help, we cannot do it alone. We have to change Nigeria, the only middle class we have is in the Diaspora"

The ANPP leader who said he had known Ogunkeyede for a long time said the ANPP-AD alliance is very likely to occur again come 2003. "We shall still work for the ANPP-AD alliance, we worked hard for it the last time and we can do it again.

The New York State Senator Carl Andrew who also came to the event told this reporter during a brief chat that he and Ogunkeyede attended the same University College at Medger Evers. "We go way back. I am happy he is taking the knowledge and activism he has used to serve people here back home. I am here to support him in his bid to represent the people of his country."

Also the event drew a cross section of Nigerians from among at least 3 geopolitical sections of the country, including the North and South East sections. There were also Ghanaians at the event.

Ogunkeyede is the chairman of the United Committee to Save Nigeria which lobbied the New York City council to rename the front corner of the street where the Nigeria house is located after Kudirat Abiola. The committee also got the council to issue one of the earliest resolutions from the international community and foreign governments to condemn the Abacha regime.

Speaking at the fundraising, Ogunkeyede said the date of the event-June 15 coincides with the alleged burning of his house 6 years ago by agents of the Abacha junta.

He said since he decided to enter the gubernatorial race people have been asking him why he chose to run in a "volatile state like Osun?' According to him, his response had always been that "it is the sick that needs to be cured."

His mission, he said at the fundraising, "Is not to divide but to unite, not to cause problems, but to resolve them, not to destroy but to build." He tagged his campaign theme, "collective prosperity", which he explained in Yorubas as "KAJOLA"

Ogunkeyede who would be leaving his job as a top functionary of the New York City Business Services department said "I want the people of Osun to be able to afford three square meals; I want the people of Osun to be able to send their children to school without wandering where the school fees would come from."

Continuing he said, "I want the children of Oduduwa to be able to sleep not with one eye open but a restful sleep. I want our farmers to harvest in abundance without slave labor. I want our citizens to drink good water, have sanitary lavatories, breath clean air, walk freely on our streets. I want to bring good governance to our suffering masses."

Commenting on the assassination of the former Attorney General of the country, Chief Bola Ige, Ogunkeyede lamented that "we are still trying to find who did it; while the perpetrators are crying to be arrested, our government, hard of hearing, is still investigating."

Ogunkeyede who had gone to declare his intention to run for the office at the Ilesa town hall earlier in the year called for a debate among aspirants for the Osun State governorship.

"I challenge all gubernatorial aspirants in Osun to come out and discuss our mission, our vision for the state. As I have said, Osun is endowed with human resources enough to feed a sizable nation. Osun is blessed with educated young and mature people, male and female. What has gone wrong?"

Other aspiring politicians at the event include Dr. Adesina Fadairo who is eyeing the gubernatorial race in Ogun State under the AD, Otunba Tai Balofin, eyeing the Ondo State Governorship under PDP among others. There was also in attendance Mr. Lawal A. Olatunji, a Nigerian from New Jersey who is a municipal chairman of the Republican Party in New Jersey.

As at press time, details of the proceeds realised at the fundraiser were yet to be declared.