From Emmanuel Adeyemi, Lokoja

A philanthropist and oil magnate, Dr Olarotimi Bolufemi, has declared his intention to run for Governor in the 2024 Kogi gubernatorial election.

Bolu, addressing reporters  at his residence at Lokoja on Thursday, said he is set to run for Governor under the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to rescue the state from perennial poverty and underdevelopment and make the state one of the best in the country

A native of Okoro-Gbedde in Ijumu local government area of the state, Bolu said he has been a PDP card carrying member since 2005 and contested for the ijumu council chairmanship election in 2007 and won at the shadow primary before he was prevailed upon to step down for Deacon Joseph Owotogbe who he said was his distant cousin

The business mogul who is the first to declare his ambition for the coveted seat said if elected , he has a four- point agenda of massive industrialization, large scale food production, civil service reformation and qualitative and compulsory education as his thematic areas of concentration to take the state to an enviable heights.

Bolu who described himself as a grass root politician who has traversed all the 21 local government areas of the state and know the peculiar problems and solutions of each area said, he has already drawn a comprehensive blue print for the state which he hopes to unveil very soon.

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The guber aspirant who said he has been resident in the state for the past 17 years and has some of his business concerns in the state where he employed hundreds of kogites stressed the need for the citizens to avoid voting for diaspora politicians who will only come to fritter away the wealth of the state but to elect a grass root politician like him who really knows where the shoe pinches

The aspirant lamented the level of poverty among the people in the state especially among primary school teachers and local government workers who he said are receiving miserable percent payment as salaries and said if elected he will not only pay their salaries in full but will review their wages upward

He also promise to give power back to the people by making the local government as the real third tier of government with the monthly allocations going directly to the respective local government accounts even as he also promise to embark on massive rural development to boost rural economy and make them to be self sufficient.

Bolu, who boasted that Atiku Abubaker, inspite of the internal problems of the PDP, will win the 2023 presidential election, said out of the whole presidential candidates , Atiku stands out as the most prepared candidate who has the best programme to transform the country and urged all Nigerians to vote massively for him in next year presidential election.

While reiterating that Kogi is still a PDP state, he assured that the party will win at least 80 percent of all elective seats in the state including that of the presidency if there is free and fair election and urged all PDP faithfuls to commence door- to door campaign as soon as the campaign is lifted by INEC at the end of the month.