A US based Edo State Labour Party leader, Dr. Kingsley Oghogho Okundaye, says all politics is local, which is why he found it very important to identify with his people to build the party.
Dr. Okundaye made the point in an interview with journalists after addressing the LP Oredo Ward 6 members at their secretariat in Benin City, Edo State. He challenged the party members to wake up to their duties, by ensuring that the young generation takes its rightful place in governance and do not allow older people dominate the political leadership of the country.
He said, “If you must succeed in politics, you must have a base and your base must be local. I identified with what has worked in the past, and what would work now. This is my base and I came to identify with my base. Most of the things that have been done in the last few months is to empower the local base.”
“The base is where we build the party up and talk about the functionality of the party secretariat. The emphasis has to always really be that we continue to build up the party from the local base. That is exactly what we are doing, and it is going to ensure the success of Labour Party in Edo State and Nigeria as a whole.
“My own way of empowering the Labour Party at the local level or base, is to continue to identify what they have done well in the past. Obviously, there are some successes recorded by Oredo Ward 6 in the just concluded 2023 elections. Those are the things, I am trying to emphasize, and to encourage them to continue to look back to the successes achieved in the recent elections”.
He said commitment and belief in themselves would propel LP members to future success.
“That is what will motivate them to look to the future. These are the commitments I want to really focus on because it takes a lot of commitment for them to believe in themselves and for the party to achieve the success that we all were calling for in the last elections. That is what will push and lead us into future success of elections.”
He expressed confidence in the ward leadership.
“When I look at the leadership we have in Oredo Ward 6 of Labour Party, I see the future of Nigeria, I see the future of the state and when people talk about changing the narrative, here is what I consider as changing the narrative; doing things differently from the way it was done in the past”.
He said the Obidient Movement stands for the change in narrative.
“Politics should not be led by the older people. I have taken special interest in politics of late as I abandoned politics for many years for some personal reasons, but when I saw the movement – the Obidient Movement; when I saw the vibrant movement, and when I saw the interest that was generated by the Obidient Movement, I felt that there is need to be a part of that movement.
“I was first an Obidient person before I became a member of the Labour Party. I am one of the people who started the Obidient Movement globally. That movement went on to support the presidential race, the senate race in some states including our state – Edo, and I personally supported some of the senatorial as well as House of Representatives and House of Assembly candidates.
“Some of the candidates were successful and some were not successful but, even with the level of successes we have achieved, we have something to build upon.
“When I look around and see someone like the Ward 6 chairman who is young and vibrant, it gives me hope that indeed what I cherished more, which is to identify with the dream and the aspiration of the people, can be achieved in the not too long distance.
Okundaye said he came to bond with the people to build their common interest.
“I came here today to know you better, to know you more. I came here today so that we can form an association, form a relationship, because in the real sense, you have shown kindness in terms of what I read in your Whatsapp platform. You people have identified with the things I have developed interest in, and so today, I decided to come in here to say, thank you for all the warm greetings that I have received.
“Thank you for all the reception that I have received. Thank you for all the identification of that which we can build upon together.”
The US-based politician said it is time to build on the recorded success.
“We cannot relent, we cannot waste any more time, and we must begin to build on that which we have achieved. And to sustain that, it will take what I call identifying with an ideology, a philosophy that will tell everyone that we can do better.
“Things don’t have to be the way they are. When you look around, you see strength; when you look around, you see enthusiasm to do better. We must now harness those enthusiasm, we must now harness those individuals’ skills and talents and bring to bear that collective goal of making Nigeria and Edo State specifically, a better place”, he stated.
In his opening remark, the LP chairman of Oredo Ward 6 Mr. Festus Ehizogie acknowledged and commended the great contribution Dr. Kingsley Oghogho Okundaye has made to Ward 6 of in particular and Edo State in general and prayed to God to continue to give him and the enablement to continue to assist the party.
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