Analysis… Lagos as a political college

In from Olumide Olaoluwa . . .
Once upon a time, they operated only in Lagos. They served as commissioners; some as special assistants; others as legislators. The Centre of Excellence was wowed by their incredible performances in public service.
But today, their tentacles have spread beyond Lagos. They hold sway in different parts of the country, controlling vast landscapes to the admiration of all. They were schooled in the difficult Lagos school of politics but are in vintage positions to demonstrate their preparedness at the federal level.
A lot of these politicians rise to national prominence despite some of them not being originally from Lagos because of the state’s willingness to embrace non-indigenes, and to some extent provide equal political opportunity for all.
It is on record that the Lagos State House of Assembly as presently constituted is composed of several members who are not original indigenes of the state.
There have also been arguments that since 1999, no indigene of the state has occupied the seat of governor, as there have always been debates, especially at election periods as to the actual state of origin of the candidates who ended up as governor in the state since the commencement of the present democratic dispensation.
But for sheer providence, Abiodun Faleke, a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly (Ikeja federal constituency) would have become the deputy governor-elect of Kogi State, but for the shocking death of the All Progressive Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Prince Abubakar Audu.
Faleke, a two-term chairman of Ojodu local government in Lagos, is presently fighting to claim what he believes is his mandate in that state.
Among those leading the Lagos pack is Vice President Yemi Osinbajo. The Professor of Law was Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Lagos State from 1999-2007. He served under the national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, who was then governor.
Osinbajo revolutionised the judiciary in Lagos State under his watch, pioneering many reforms that improved justice delivery in the State. Under him, the welfare of Judges hit an all-high; he also started the Office of Public Defenders that made the judiciary accessible to the poor at no cost.
He is also credited with the construction of many courts as well as establishment of the Centre for Arbitration that resolved several knotty civil cases out of court for contending parties. When he left in 2007, judicial officers in the State confirmed they had never had it that good.
These sterling performances showed up for him in 2014 when the ruling APC needed a running mate for its then presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari. Osinbajo’s incredible public service records stood him out, convincing even the staunchest critic that he was the best man for the number two position in Nigeria.
Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Raji Fashola, left as governor in Lagos last year with an unprecedented record as a top performer. Under him, Lagos became a mega city with mind-blowing infrastructural upgrade. Fashola scored high grades in road construction, hospital management, environmental transformation and educational reforms.
He tackled insecurity in the state to a rousing applause even from opposition politicians and increased public revenues by incredible miles. The Fashola’s Lagos became a reference point across the federation, making many governors to understudy his meticulous approach to governance in critical sectors.
During the last campaigns, Fashola was the poster boy of the APC. After the party won the general elections, the lot naturally fell on him to fix the nation’s comatose power sector, non-existent roads and gross housing deficits.
Osun State governor, Rauf Aregbesola also graduated from the Lagos school of political engineering. He was the engine room of the progressive government in Alimosho, the state’s largest voting constituency. As Commissioner for Works, Aregbesola was responsible for the massive road construction in the Tinubu’s days.

Read also: Review… Kogi election: Contending forces dig deep

His successful construction of roads helped by his engineering background threw him up as the governorship candidate of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN). He won the governorship through a court pronouncement and secured a second term despite stiff opposition in 2014.
Aregbesola continued where he stopped in Lagos, turning Osun State to a construction site in just six months after assumption of office. But he soon ran into troubled waters with dwindling federal allocations. Osun State could no longer pay workers’ salaries and sustain gigantic projects. But Aregbesola remains a well-perceived politician with a die-hard determination given available resources.
While other states were reeling in debt and wondering where to get resources, Lagos, the capital nerve of the nation, was smiling to the banks. The State generates so much through creative taxation that the federal government has decided to replicate the same. The man saddled with the responsibility is Babatunde Fowler, former head of Lagos Internal Revenue Service (LIRS).
He has been upgraded to handle the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) at a time oil proceeds are plummeting. Fowler is expected to reproduce the magic wand that sees Lagos earn 70% of the nation’s tax revenue.
Osinbajo is from Ogun State while Aregbesola is from Ilesha in Osun State. Faleke rose to become a chairman and federal representative in Lagos because of the absence of discrimination against non-indigenes. The Lagos House of Assembly comprises many non-Lagosians, with electorates even casting their lots for candidates from the South-East.
One man who has been credited with being the brain behind a good number of these individuals is APC national leader, Asiwaju Tinubu, who seems to have a knack for picking good hands to man certain positions, that throw them up as achievers.
However, he has also been viewed by many as displaying a domineering posture in the political field, by seeking to expand his reach beyond the state, to other states, as well as the national sphere. This is what many say has been responsible for the stories of clashes which he has been often rumoured to have with those regarded as his political godsons.
But this free political space devoid of discrimination against non-natives is why Lagos remains the pathfinder, according to Dr James Ige of the Department of Political Science, University of Ibadan, Oyo State.
He said: “Lagos allows people to aspire and fulfill their political ambitions. The non-indigenes feel at home and safe to contest. They are always out to impress when given the opportunity to serve and that is why the state is the better for it.
“If other states will allow non-indigenes contribute too politically, they will see massive progress and development like Lagos is witnessing.”

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