Nigeria Politics 101: the Lagos conundrum

‘Baba sope’ slavery and final capitulation
-versus-
Ambode’s coded message: “Lagos for Lagosians” and “Say No To Godfather”

What happened in Lagos state APC will make a good research topic for a PhD student trying to understand the power and influence of political structures in our democratic and governance process.

Like I have always said, in Nigeria, the political structure is everything and you need corruption to sustain them. Ordinary voters are insignificant, at least for now.

Political structures will make you. You win. You service them well. You win but refuse to service them, they ruin you like Ambode!

This is actually not about Tinubu alone. What is happening in Lagos state APC is bigger than Tinubu and it is because the political structure there is the most ‘sophisticated’ in Nigeria. When you as a godfather tie your political structures to the grassroots economic structures of the state which you still control even as an ex-governor, it will take a miracle for your party to lose an election. Even if your preferred candidates are morons, the structure will deliver. This is the case of Lagos state.

PREBENDALISM

Prebendalism is something Nigerians are yet to fully understand. It is the soul and essence of our politics and development.

Understand PREBENDALISM and you will see why Nigeria will remain as a mess for a very long time.

Unfortunately, sustainable development and prebendalism are mutually exclusive.

Nigeria is going to be a mess for a very long time.

By the way, second term is not an entitlement.

Èkó ò ní bàjé

—Tony Osborg

TINUBU BESTRIDES LAGOS LIKE A COLOSSUS

“Shame on Tinubu. Tinubu orchestrated the whole thing from A to Z and now hiding under the pretense that it was a party decision.

You wonder why I’ve been professing a No Party System for Nigeria? All sorts of people with dubious characters hide behind political parties to do devious things in Nigeria. They only care about themselves and how they can game the system to further their selfish interests. They don’t care about the people who put them there. They don’t want to uplift the people. They don’t care about the progress of the country. They only care about their pockets. That’s why Nigeria has been retrogressing since 1960. It’s always one step forward and two steps backward since independence.

All Tinubu wants is a slave that will always answer Yes to him. He wants somebody he can control. He wants somebody who will ask him for permission first before he takes any decision or does anything. He wants somebody who will channel contracts to him and his cronies.

Unfortunately for him, Ambode didn’t dance to his whims. Ambode is a man who has confidence in himself. He is his own man. He didn’t channel contracts to Tinubu and his cronies. Further, he is one of the best governors Lagos State has ever had. Far better than Tinubu himself. That’s the kind of people Nigeria needs.

Ambode is still a young man. He will do great things in his life, while Tinubu will continue to wallow in his stupidity, self conceited life and egotistical arrogance and pomposity.

— Kayode

Election declared illegal in the morning and by the afternoon after something has exchanged…. its become legal.

Nigerian Politicians are special breeds. I cannot imagine Mr Ebri going back to his vomit. Do they have no shame at all?
Listen to Ebri, yesterday who said the election could not have held because the committee was still expecting the full list of representatives of one of the two aspirants as of 4pm.
This morning he shockingly validated and announced the result he declared invalid less than 24 hours ago.
But yesterday He said the committee was interested in a credible exercise that would not disintegrate the party and would, therefore, ensure that the aspirants were given a level playing field.
The chairman, who displayed empty result sheets, said that was the evidence that the primary did not hold officially.
FEW MINUTES AGO The Chairman of the APC NWC Election Committee for Lagos Guber Primaries, Clement Ebri officially declared Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu as the winner of of the Direct Primaries held in Lagos Yesterday.

IS TIBUBU TO BLAME?

It is easy to put all the blame of orchestration on Tinubu’s laps. However, what is the responsibility of those who were orchestrated in the process.

Fact one, no beneficiary of a system(flawed or not) is ever going to relinquish the position of benefit voluntarily. It is human nature.

Fact two, those who are given free will(assumed or not) to cast their votes and willingly cast their votes for a system that will rob them or make them poorer for it are as much to blame as the beneficiary, the orchestrator. Human natures dictates action to ensure the survival of their specie, they showed none.

Until Nigerians really stand out to make principled stance, the situation will endure. However, in the same breath, I find it hard to believe that Tinubu orchestrated the vote to the extent that a sitting governor(acclaimed to be excellent) was so hated that he polled so dismally in the primaries(fair or unfair).

There is definitely a disconnect between Ambode and the grassroots of his party. It is clear that those that voted against him did not appreciate what he had been doing in Lagos state.

• Femi Olajide.

THE MAN TINUBU

In 1999, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu was elected Governor of Lagos State. His then party, the Alliance for Democracy (AD) produced all the governors of the South West.

By 2003, Tinubu was the only governor left in the AD. He was under pressure to decamp but he stayed. He built the party and it became stronger. For the eight years that he ruled Lagos, he hired several guys to work with him. I think he carefully picked them.

Apart from using them to work in his government, he also groomed them for the future. Eight years down the line, see where those Tinubu guys are today –

1. Prof Yemi Osinbajo, SAN was Tinubu’s Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice. He is today, Nigeria’s Vice President.

2. Rauf Aregbesola was Tinubu’s Commissioner for Works. Today he is serving his second tenure as Governor of Osun State.

3. Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN was Tinubu’s Chief of Staff and successor in office. He is today Nigeria’s Minister of Power, Works and Housing.

4. Alhaji Lai Mohammed was Tinubu’s first Chief of Staff. He is today, Nigeria’s Minister of Information

5. Babatunde Fowler was appointed by Tinubu as Chairman of the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service. Today, he is the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service.

At the National Assembly, there are countless “Tinubu boys” who have occupied and are still occupying seats till today.

Since 1999, the Tinubu camp has produced almost 98% of the members of the National Assembly from Lagos State. Forget politics, this man is a political enigma.

Rewind to 1999, I am sure most of us have forgotten the names of the People who were elected Governors then.

Some of them have gone out of circulation. Some are gasping for breath politically. Indeed, most of them are no longer relevant today.

Who still remembers Mbadinuju of Anambra State, Jolly Nyame of Taraba, Mohammed Lawal of Kwara, Segun Osoba of Ogun, Attahiru Bafarawa of Sokoto, Achike Udenwa of Imo, Victor Attah of Akwa Ibom, Orji Uzor Kalu of Abia? That one has lost two consecutive senatorial elections.

But Tinubu has not only managed to remain extremely relevant, he has continued to control Lagos politics 100%. Not only that, he manages to carry his boys along and today they occupy critical positions in our national life.

Take it or leave it, Tinubu is today, Nigeria’s most powerful politician. It didn’t just happen by chance. He worked very hard for it. Very very hard.

The hallmark of a true leader is not just the ability to rule well but also the ability to nurture and groom his associates.

MY TAKE: ‘If you are lonely at the top, then something is wrong somewhere. The most successful business you can venture into is building people like you (Human resources). Start that MENTORING today, because there is no success without successor.

#StillLearning®