by Ola Idowu
The cracks may look papered and the All Progressive Congress (APC) in
Lagos after its primaries across the state would believe the party is
still united and should coast to victory in the elections in 2015, but
they may wake up and find the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)
in Alausa and to be candid I wouldn’t be surprised one bit.
Let me admit that some of the candidates in APC whose political
ambitions were stonewalled are known to me in one form or the other, but
my analysis and opinion here are totally rigorous and devoid of
sentiments or malice. Wole Soyinka just described President Goodluck
Jonathan as the biblical Nebuchadnezzar, and while I certainly agree
with him, I would like to say
we have a Nebuchadnezzar and Emperor Nero rolled into one in Lagos state
and that man unfortunately is APC chieftain Bola Tinubu.
Nebuchadnezzar in the sense that he has allowed the spirit of grand
delusion take over him completely which like the biblical Aramean
(present day Syria) King saw him become delusional and began to boast of
all his achievements and conquests to the extent of turning himself
into a god to be worshipped by the people. God Almighty made him fully
insane, losing all of his sanity, dethroned him for seven years before
restoring him back to the throne and he then learnt to praise the true
God. Emperor Nero on his part is more associated with the term “fiddling
while Rome was burning”, but his major problem was his tyranny and
arrogance towards the people he ruled which led to disobedience and wars
against him. The same arrogance you can find on the part of Tinubu and
those within his inner circle still enjoying his political clout.
Like Nebuchadnezzar, I wouldn’t be shocked if PDP takes over Lagos state
at least for the next eight years starting from 2015 so as to humble
Tinubu, and make him realise whatever he has become in Lagos and to the
Yoruba people is not by any act of perfection of his but just by the
mercies of God. Tomorrow APC would all things being equal “select” its
gubernatorial candidate and pointers are that the anointed candidate by
godfather Tinubu, Akinwunmi Ambode would be selected. I say selected
because judging from the outcome of the primaries for the state House of
Assembly, preferred candidates from the Tinubu camp scored over 95% of
the votes in their constituencies in some cases 100% in what was
supposed to be open and fair primaries, thus its clear Ambode would be
selected on Thursday December 4th with a large proportion of the votes
at the primaries.
The situation report from all the different constituencies where the
House of Assembly primaries were held, was that party delegates were
instructed to vote in full for any candidate anointed by Tinubu. They
were simply told at the election venues that the godfather had asked
them all to vote for just one person. It’s the same procedure to be
adopted for Ambode’s victory and some candidates vying, may have zero
votes put behind their names if they don’t step down before Thursday.
You wonder why should Lagos state with all the talk of progressivism be
run that way? What is the essence of attending the US Democratic party’s
convention and not bringing back any ideas from there? Did Tinubu just
attend to have a photo-op and boost his own political status or was he
there to learn one or two new things to help move his own party forward?
You had the better part of a year for succession planning even if you
wanted to have some level of control in the party as a leader in it,
together with ‘Tunde Fashola why didn’t you take the most part of the
year to plan the race for his successor? Why all the last minute rush
and deception that smacks of the archaic politics still being played in
Lagos state?
The APC (all through its metamorphosis in Lagos state) has become a
victim of its own success in the last 16 years and you shouldn’t be
shocked so many people want to share in that success, after-all they all
worked for it too. For one man to believe he alone is the architect of
the whole success would be stretching it to the level of grand delusion
and just like Nebuchadnezzar he would soon be dethroned by God just so
he can learn who is the Almighty. In 2007 when Action Congress was not
even yet as successful as this, we had lots of candidates who wanted to
succeed Tinubu, and luckily I’m sure through divine guidance a man
foretold in Fashola was given the ticket and he hasn’t disappointed.
His performance over the last eight years (with plenty of work yet to be
done in mass populated areas) has further made the party now called APC
a victim of its own success and so many more candidates want to succeed
him. In an age where even in the United Kingdom, century old parties
like the Conservatives are seeing members crying out for open primaries
rather than the age long style of selection of candidates that only
ensures the elites and private school tutored boys get into government,
Lagos state under Tinubu is preserving the Conservative style where only
his own cronies. family members, relatives and children whose fathers
are known get into position in the state yet we call ourselves
progressives, democrats or forward thinking.
What does it cost Tinubu and APC in Lagos state to organise a proper
primary and state convention like its done in countries where he has
visited and been seen photographed in their own democratic conventions?
Its even worse when you perceive that the same Tinubu looks to be a
misogynist and finds it hard to give women opportunities except they are
his close family members and relatives. In 1999, he found it hard to
work with Kofo Akerele-Bucknor and they parted ways in 2002. Maybe you
did blame it on the lady and excuse Tinubu, but he went on to have the
same problem with another deputy this time a male. Compare it with
Fashola who had Sarah Sosan as his deputy from 2007 and they had a
brilliant working relationship. The powers that be which of course is
Tinubu decided without explanation that Sosan had to be dropped in 2011
and brought another female in Orelope-Adefulire and yet Fashola had a no
issues working with her till date. It leaves one wondering if truly
Tinubu isn’t the problem considering he couldn’t work with a female
deputy and if he isn’t a misogynist – someone who finds it hard to trust
women and their abilities except in his case they are his family
members or relations. -
Take a look at the House of Assembly primaries and you find lots of
women either not returning as candidates for the party or they were not
given a chance at all. In Oshodi-Isolo 2 constituency the female
candidate there a current state legislator was routed by a fresher Ladi
Ajomale, son of the APC state chairman Henry Ajomale. In Amuwo-Odofin 2
constituency, the female candidate a state legislator was also defeated
by a Tinubu favoured candidate. In Ikeja 1 constituency Kenny Saint
Brown (KSB, popular musician and younger sister to Kenny Ogungbe) was
not even given much of a chance as she lost by a wide margin to another
fresher just like her Jimi Mohammed, son of Lai Mohammed the APC
National Publicity secretary.
Though KSB is quite new to the political scene one would have thought
been a woman (a sector of our society and politics that can be classed
as vulnerable people) she should have been given more support and help
to achieve her dreams. You may say its politics and the majority wins
but compare it with another popular face Nollywood actor, Desmond Elliot
totally new to politics but defeating an incumbent Kabiru Lawal to win
in Surulere Constituency 1 and then you now the APC is possibly a party
led by misogynists. Take a look also at Ikeja Constituency 2, the only
female candidate in that constituency out of several male contenders was
first disqualified by the APC state screening committee citing the fact
that she has no political experience. A candidate who has been with the
party since 1999 under Alliance for Democracy (AD) attended several
meetings of Bola Ahmed Tinubu Campaign Organisation (BATCO) those days
when its head office was at Aromirein Ikeja.
A candidate who has held political positions within the Local Government
(Ikeja LG/Ojodu LCDA) and you say such person has no political
experience. In any case even when the folly was rectified and they went
to primaries, the godfather brought a certain Damola Kasumu with zero
political experience, who is a nephew to Tinubu to be declared the
winner. The female candidate was given no chance, the rest of the
candidates too no chance in hell just because the godfather wants to
compensate his nephew.
The Kasumu according to reports widely written about him in the Nigerian
press is said to be the surviving child of the late Abibatu Mogaji (a
woman Tinubu related to as his mother) but his known to be a drunkard
with slurred speech who mismanaged the businesses he inherited from his
late mother and had ran into hard times. While all that is none of my
business really, but the emerging trend is that in Lagos state there is
now a glass-ceiling on people’s political ambitions and only Tinubu can
decide what you become in the state. I heard Fashola some months back
talking about if having to choose between freedom and development he did
choose freedom any day.
The likes of Musiliu Obanikoro who defected from the AD to PDP despite
the help he got from Tinubu, as well as Jimi Agbaje who has never teamed
up with the so called progressives may be right after all. What’s the
point calling yourself a progressive and you have to be under one man’s
group thinking? You not allowed to make your own decisions, pursue your
own dreams whether you fail or win, neither are you able to stand out
and criticise the the man if he is failing.
Ola’ Idowu is a management consultant and researcher. He writes in from the UK via frenchcoast2@gmail.com