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Ambode, the consolidator in time of famine by Idowu Ajanaku
Idowu Ajanaku
His defining moment came when he was sworn in as the 4th democratically elected governor of Nigeria’s Centre of Excellence and Africa’s ever ebullient commercial hub, Lagos State.
That was precisely on May 29, 2015 after the two-horse, riveting race between him, the governorship flag bearer of the All Progressives Congress, and Jimi Agbaje of the Peoples Democratic Party. A lot of water, as the wise ones say, has gone under the bridge ever since. But this piece is not all about his modest achievements within a short span of two years across the spectrum of security, massive infrastructural outlay, agriculture, education, transportation, health care delivery, human capacity development and of course, entertainment and tourism.
Rather, it is a personal perception about the distinguished gentleman who fate brought me in contact with at Glover Home back in 2014. What was my first impression about him? It was that of a well-groomed, complete gentleman whose alluring persona radiates a cool, composed and calculating ambience. It was that of a man with a touch of finesse reflected in his carefully chosen clothes, wristwatch and shoes! Has that first impression dimmed?
Of course not, if not bolstered by getting closer to him at work and more significantly discovering that Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s taste and touch for perfection has been extrapolated to all the solid structures his administration has brought to bear, so far. If in doubt, check out the roads, bridges, school buildings, that dot the landscape of the fast-developing megalopolis. But before then there was another enigmatic bearing about him that raised some dust.
That was when he decided to throw his Epe-grown ‘cap’ into the governorship ring back in 2014.Not a few observers then had some reservation about his capacity to deliver in the intricate art of political governance. Here was a man, who though as an accomplished auditor, has traversed 13 out of the 21 local government councils and written his name in gold as an Accountant-General. But he was no politician. He may have even become the youngest and an achieving Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance. Yet, that was a different kettle of fish. What did he know about managing erratic and ever ambitious politicians with their idiosyncrasies?
Besides, his looks and demeanour were that of a top technocrat, not carved out for the gadabout gamble of poll-i-tricks. He was too meek, too simple, too gentlemanly. He could not even shout to browbeat opponents. Simply put, he did not have the guts to delve into the murky waters of Nigerian politics and swim with the sharks! One could not blame those who held on tenaciously to this line of argument. But how wrong could they be, as one was to discover on closer observations and events over the past two years have since unveiled.
With more intimate interaction, I discovered and felt both impressed and intrigued by his deep knowledge of the city called Lagos. Throw questions on the nitty-gritty of governance and one is awed by his full and firm grasp of what it takes to run the ever ebullient city that has become home to all. He does not believe in rhetoric or beating about the bush with wishful words. He is a down-to-earth, man of action. And even before such actions are taken he must be convinced that he has had the right background information with thorough thinking through.
All these came to the fore and eventually manifested during the first governorship debate held at the Church at Ikeja. It was between him, Agbaje and other governorship hopefuls. At the end of it, the Bishop in charge confessed that if the good people of Lagos were looking for someone with a clear vision; someone who knew his onions on how to pilot the affairs of Lagos and take it to the next level, Ambode was the man to choose.
On the flip side however, he observed that if they were out for a sweet talker, one who could convince Lagosians to toe his political path, Agbaje fit that bill. To him therefore, Ambode stood head and shoulders above his competitors. But it was left for the electorate to make a wise choice. So, looking back today one is grateful to Lagos people for taking their destiny in their own hands. Thank God for that!
Indeed, Ambode never ceased to tell those close to him that his political ambition was directed by the ‘hand of God.’ It was a divine project. It was not too surprising therefore, to listen to him sing two of his favourite gospel songs. One is the popular line that says that: “I have a father who will never fail me. Jesus is my father and he will never fail me, rock of ages, never, never fail.”
The other, popular as well is: “Olore mi.” He would sometimes break the silence, after a hard day’s campaign with: “Olore mi, olore mi o, kini ma fi san fu en o.” He was grateful to a benefactor that he was short of words on what he could do to repay Him for his divine grace and favour.
Perhaps, it is that grateful spirit that has imbued him with the uncommon virtue of patience. Evident during the planning and take-off for the campaigns were the attributes of a patient soul, a good listener as well as a good team leader. He never for once betrayed the trait of a bossy person; of one who rams his views down the throat of others. Ideas for programmes and projects were thrown open for thoughtful debate. At the end, the decision of the majority always held sway. One admires him much for such sterling qualities of a visionary leader.
Without sentiments therefore, one is not surprised by Governor Ambode’s astounding achievements over the past two years. Name them: the veritable vision of Lagos as a destination of choice for far-sighted entrepreneurs from all over the world. And why not? There is the assurance of all-round, tight security network, courtesy of his donation of top-of-the range security gadgets to the police and all-inclusive community surveillance, across the state. The fast growing mega-city was in 2016 ranked as the 5th most robust economy on the African continent. With a population of 21 million people it accounts for 80 per cent of the maritime trade conservatively put at some N3 trillion.
In addition, the Internally Generated Revenue, which rose from N20bn in 2013 to N23bn in 2014 has under Ambode achieved a feat of N380bn in 2016-the highest ever. These are properly utilised in the massive infrastructural development of roads, bridges and clearing of waterways to facilitate journeys by sea. There is the increasing focus on the triple projects of Eko Atlantic City, the $300 Elegushi Kingdom Imperial City as well as the history-making Smart City, coming up in conjunction with Smart City LLC, Dubai being the first of its kind in Africa.
On food security, there is the adoption of all-season farming and establishment of green-houses across the state, including the recent one established at Iyaafin Vegetable Estate in Badagry. The LAKE Rice project is to be boosted with the 16 mmt per hour rice mill in the state as an upgrade on the Imota Rice Mill set up with a 20, 000 metric ton rice processing and milling plant.
On fish farming and aquaculture, the government has optimised the use of the natural endowments to develop industrial fisheries, artisanal fisheries and aquaculture facilities across Lagos. So much more can be added in other sectors of the economy.
Interestingly, the man who was not given a chance to succeed back in 2015 has surpassed the expectations of millions of Lagos people. Just like the biblical Joseph who was not thought of as a credible leader in the time of famine, he has truly confounded his critics even in the nation’s trying period .That is why many in Lagos today sing that two is greater than eight.
It is again a tribute to the political sagacity of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu that when a credible successor was being sought for, to replace Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN), he pitched his tent with a financial expert, knowing that an economic recession was looming. Now, we applaud that choice.
Like the phoenix, Ambode has risen from the ashes of political backwaters to become a reference point in Nigeria’s economic development. This indeed, should be an inspiration to all.
Ajanaku, is a senior special assistant (media and strategy) to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode.
TINUBU IS THE WISEST MAN EARTH -PROPHET IKURU.
by Collins Nkwocha
Nigerian prophet, prophet Godwin Ikuru of Jehovah Eye Salvation Ministry, Lagos magnetized everyone’s attention when he referred to the president, Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the wisest man on earth regarding the appointment of Daniel Bwala as special Adviser on policy communications.
Speaking to reporters today in Lagos,
Prophet Ikuru applauded the president for choosing him and enunciated that he’s capable of delivering effectively and marketing the Renewed Hope Agenda of the president and urged Nigerians to stop the criticism because of what he said in the past “I’m personally happy with his appointment and I urge Nigerians to forget about the past, forget about what he must have said about the president some years ago which people are now disseminating on the social and taunting him a betrayal that lacks integrity, Nigerians should forget his past because he’s the best choice”.
Prophet Ikuru insisted that Bwala saw the sincerity and genuity of the president’s Renewed Hope Agenda and he decided to partake in it “even if he criticized the president, it was in the past, he saw the sincerity in the Renewed Hope Agenda and decided to join in nation building ,the president is ready to unite everyone in order to build Nigeria,that’s why someone like Wike is in his government,Bwala has what it’s required to be successful under Mr.president, as a wise man, the president saw it and decided to harness it ”
Finally, he praised Tinubu and referred to him as a great leader who is ready to involve everyone in his government, he maintained that his wisdom is magnanimous ,Baba is truly the wisest man on earth.
U.S. Courtroom Shock: Funke Ashekun, Husband Collapse as MFM Wins
Had FFK Faced Mehdi Hassan, Nigeria Would Have Spoken With Fire
By Mohammed Bello Doka
In politics, timing is everything. In diplomacy, character is everything. And in moments of national importance, leadership must be entrusted to individuals who possess not only experience but courage, intellect and an unshakable commitment to the nation they represent.
It is for this reason that the appointment of Chief Femi Fani-Kayode as Nigeria’s Ambassador to a foreign nation stands out as one of the most consequential diplomatic decisions in recent years.
Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, better known in the South as “FFK” and in the North as “Sadauki”, is one of the most brilliant, experienced, accomplished, vocal, respected, educated, profound, intellectual, patriotic, disciplined, well-read, historically literate, versatile, forceful, persuasive, sophisticated, cosmopolitan, charming, eloquent, courageous and resilient men in Nigerian politics and he has paid his dues and proved his worth over the last 35 years in politics and political discourse.
In each role he has played he has excelled and succeeded even when he was in opposition.
His friends value him as a great and loyal defender and his traducers and political adversaries fear and respect him because when he goes to war he is utterly relentless, takes no prisoners and literally spits fire.
How I wish it was him that was interviewed by Mehdi Hassan of Al Jazeera and not the young and inexperienced Daniel Bwala because he would have not only humbled Hassan but also done Nigeria proud.
He played Bwala’s present role in the Presidential Villa 23 years ago as President Olusegun Obasanjo’s spokesman and not only brought the then President’s domestic enemies to their knees but also had a series of very hot exchanges with foreign Government officials like America’s Under-Secreatary of State for Africa Jendaye Fraser and the White House over the Charles Taylor issue and Liberia.
Tinubu decision to appoint him as an Ambassador for our nation was a wise one because he will fight for and protect the interests of Nigeria and the Nigerian community whetever he goes and will never sell his soul or bow to foreign imperialist interests.
His appointment is not about just rewarding loyalty for the key role he played in Tinubu’s presidentiel campaign organisation as Director of New Media and Special Operations in 2023 and the staunch support he has given the President over the last three years but also about putting a square peg in a square hole.
If you want to put Nigeria first Sadauki is the one to do it.
If he runs the Nigerian Mission in the country that he is sent to in the same way he ran the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Ministry of Aviation when he was Minister to each of them one after the other twenty years ago he will do very well and both our nation and whichever nation he is posted to itself will benefit from his efforts.
History teaches that diplomacy is most effective when nations deploy individuals who possess both intellect and courage.
As the American statesman Henry Kissinger once noted, “Diplomacy is the art of restraining power.”
To do so successfully requires deep historical awareness and strategic clarity—qualities that have long defined Fani-Kayode’s political career.
Sending a politically seasoned voice like FFK to any nation that is a key partner to Nigeria signals that Bola Ahmed Tinubu intends to strengthen Nigeria’s diplomatic posture with confidence.
Throughout more than three decades in the political arena, Fani-Kayode has remained one of the most resilient and outspoken figures in Nigerian public life despite numerous challenges which would have broken and destroyed lesser men.
Regardless of all that was thrown at him he continues to pull through and come out victorious which is why many refer to him as the “Akanda Eledumare” and the “Ayanfe Oluwa” which mean “the strange one of God” and “the beloved of the Lord”.
There appears to be a divine dimension to his life that makes him unstoppable and irrepressible even though his enemies are legion.
One wonders what sets him apart and makes him so different.
There is no doubt that his education played a part in it and this set him apart from most.
He never went to school in Nigeria but was educated from the age of eight in England starting off at Holmewood House School in Kent, one of the UK’s best and most famous Preparatory schools, after which he attended the famous Harrow School just outside London which is, together with Eton College, an institution that is the exclusive preserve of high society in the UK, one of the two best private schools in that country where only the ruling elite, the rich, the well-to-do, the famous and only a tiny proportion of those in British high society can afford or even qualify to attend.
No less than eight British Prime Ministers, including the great Sir Winston Churchill, and countless British cabinet ministers attended Harrow and so did many leaders, diplomats and top politicians from many foreign countries.
After finishing at Harrow he attended some of the top universities in the world, including London University (SOAS) and Cambridge University (Pembroke College) where he did so well.
As a matter of fact his great grandfather, Rev. Emmanuel Adelabi Kayode, attended Furrough Bay College which at that time was part of Durham University and graduated with an MA (Hons.) in Theology in 1893. His grandfather Justice Adedapo Kayode attended Cambridge University (Selwyn College) where he studied law and graduated in 1922. His father Chief Remilekun Fani-Kayode attended Cambridge University (Downing College) where he studied law and graduated in 1943. Sadauki himself graduated in law at Cambridge University (Pembroke College) in 1984 whilst his daughter Folake Fani-Kayode graduated from Durham University in 2009.
No African family has an uninterrupted streak of 116 years of Oxbridge-level university graduates except for the Fani-Kayode’s which is something that both his family and every patriotic Nigerian should be proud of.
It therefore makes perfect sense that a man from such a distinguished pedigree and intimidating lineage and that has such an extraordinary intellectual heritage should represent Nigeria on the international stage.
There is also his role in the debate on Gaza which made him a hero in the eyes of millions of people in the Global South both amongst Christians and Muslims.
He spoke out consistently about what he described as the genocide being committed against the Palestinians and he was prepared to put his life and career on the line for this cause even though most Nigerian leaders and politicians refused to say what he was saying publicly out of fear of the Zionist lobby and the Jewish state.
His sense of patriotism is unquestionable and nothing reflects this better than his series of essays written against Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the British Opposition Conservative Party and his write up against one Ben Llewelyn-Jones, who at that time was the Deputy British High Commissioner to Nigeria, when the former consistently sought to insult and denigrate Nigeria and the Nigerian people and the latter attempted to interfere in our internal affairs by making statements in support of Peter Obi and his Obidients in the 2023 presidential elections.
Sadauki successfully put them both in their place and when American Senator Ted Cruz, President Donald Trump, Congressman Tim Riley and other American politicians began to peddle the false narrative and fake gospel of Christian genocide and persecution in Nigeria Sadauki, a devout Christian himself, rose to the challenge and more than any other Nigerian wrote about the issue in a series of essays pointing out the fact that as many Muslims were being killed as Christians by the terrorists in our country and that Christians were not being persecuted by our Government and are in fact faring better when it comes to positions in the security apparatus and governance under Tinubu than they did in the previous administration.
He also spoke out boldly against President Trump and his administration when they accused the Government of South Africa of indulging in genocide against the white minority population in their country and pointed out the fact that South Africa, like Brazil, was a shining example of a successful multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural nation that was treating its white minority population with the greatest respect. Few Africans said a word to defend South Africa at the time even though they knew that Trump was wrong but Sadauki did so without thinking twice.
He is clearly a strong Pan-Africanist and a believer in the importance of the African Union, African solidarity, the BRICS coalition and the Global South alliance comprising of China, Russia, South Africa, India, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and other emerging world powers.
This is commendable and it reflects his courage and disdain for those that display ignorance, disdain and contempt for our nation and people and that seek to denigrate and misrepresent us.
Sadauki is not the type that bows and quivers before Westerners like so many other Nigerian leaders and politicians but rather takes pride in his Nigerian culture, race, heritage and identity and is prepared to defend us and speak for us no matter whose ox is gored and who is involved.
In an increasingly competitive global environment, Nigeria requires diplomats capable not only of negotiation but also of defending national interests with conviction.
If the energy, eloquence and intellectual fire that have defined Fani-Kayode’s political life accompany him to the country to which he has been posted, his tenure may well become one of the most consequential chapters in Nigeria’s modern diplomatic engagements.
I wish him well and I thank God that he is back in the saddle of public office after so many years.
What more could any of us ask of this great and noble son of Nigeria?
This is undoubtedly the quality of personnel and leaders that we need on the international stage.
I hope and pray that in his endeavours and during the course of his work he meets with Mehdi Hassan in a debate and prove to him and the rest of the world that Nigeria still has men that can not only match them but that can also remove their trousers in any verbal encounter. Bwala put us to shame but FFK can redeem us before the eyes of the world.
(Mohammed Bello Doka, the author of this essay, is the publisher of Abuja Network News and can be reached via [email protected])
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