IN TIME OF THE ALIMOSHO CAVALIERS: LESS WE FORGET THEIR ROTS

LET THE REAL COUNCIL CHAIRMEN TAKEOVER FROM THE 'MAYORS'

Content by Razaq Adedeji Jimoh

ESSENTIAL FORWARD NOTE One of these 'Mayors' ought to be an isolated case in context of the ‘cavaliers’ theme intended here. He/she does not necessarily belong in the general tag. But by account of the origin (leadership line) and aetiology of the disease (‘Mayor’) afflicting Alimosho, he/she belongs in the camp. This being the general introductory missive of a three-part serials on the ‘Alimosho cavaliers’, he/she makes no exception. However, his/her isolated case shall be treated afterwards for the public to judge my opinion about this.

As the story begins, the locals know them as council chairmen just by their constitutional designate. But their bootlickers chose to corrupt this with a foreign identity – to call them ‘Mayors’. That is alien to Nigerian body polity. Medically, a foreign agent in human body system is nothing but an ‘invasive enemy’, which the body must strive to push back. The ensuing war between the body army and the invading foes is what manifest as a disease through a process described as ‘inflammatory reactions’. The language – ‘Mayor’ – in a way, could therefore tell a reason the Lagos LGAs/LCDAs are sick -- hitherto in generality. They appeared overwhelmed by the debilitating diseases of scandals and misgovernance. I have deliberately refrained from adding ‘corruption’ because, as far as I know and to the extent of my direct experience as a victim, corruption at the local government level is largely a case of the civil servants which the public have wilfully indulged enduringly with their ignorance and misreading that politicians are the corrupt public officers. I will one day tell my story of face-to-face encounter with corruption at the grassroots level -- perhaps in the next two editions to come.

Moving forward is to say that the prognosis of these ailments afflicting the local councils had been a sort of deemed hope for a reasonable recovery in the nearest future except any divine interventions came for the healing. And, of course, ‘God is good all the time’ as a Godly cliché so hold. The last 2021 local government elections would seem to have made the healing touches, as many of the local councils made significant improvement in their administrations. We saw that in their manner of immediate and quality of responses to the economic crises threw up by the twin grievous but imperative policies of fuel subsidy removal and the harmonisation of forex windows effective from May 29, 2023. I refer to the matters of palliative measures that became the shindig of governments’ amelioration plans at all levels – Federal, states and local governments.

Akin to this, we could see encounters of real emotions of human feelings in the Central and East of Lagos Districts. Residents of the local councils in the area were read to have felt the real touch of humanity from the concerned hearts of their respective council chairmen. Residents of some local councils in the West District also had a share of the good experience arising from the manifest healing touch. We could see that in a part of Agege and Mushin corridor. Arising from that, my interest had been an inquisition into what could have informed this healing. I found practical change of the charge de affairs in those local councils either in leadership or the council chairman as the core motivation.

Accordingly, the change that brought about this should make a good pedestal to evaluate why the diseases of scandals and maladministration have persisted in Alimosho Federal Constituency. The prognosis of the ailment in the local councils has been a debilitating case of chronic failure, progressing to the acute terminal prejudice’. In scandals of immoral and decrepit performances, virtually all the current crew of executive chairmen have found their conveniences of habitation and hobby in the ‘cultic’ haven of inhumanity. In the past three years there about, immoral cases of a council chairman buying stolen vehicles as official cars for council officials and spousal couple sitting in administration over a local council administration directly as Executive Chairman and Vice Chairman have made snippet of factual news out of this haven. These were to be found even amidst poor governance that stands out complementarily to wilful indulgence in serial abuses of their powers against their own people of same political faith. We should not fail to understand this cruelty to their fellow APC members was a direct order of their enabling leader conventionally in his enthralling language -- "E run won pa!" -- literally to say 'shred or destroy them completely'.

There could not have been the worst era the people of Alimosho would feel their heartlessness than the months in which the heat of economic hardship made its scalding burns on them between June 2023 and the first quarter of 2024. It was to our common knowledge that while the same policies that brought about the hardship also translated to significant improvement in Federal Allocation receivables from top to bottom, it never translated to any feel of humanity -- even to come in mere manner of charity -- to the people. The worst case scenario about their cavalierly nature was to come when the Federal Government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared what I may describe as a 'state of emergency' in the sector of social interventions with series of palliative measures to improve the living conditions of the people. Thus on that ground, intervention funds were released to the states in expectation to complement the reach of quality palliatives to the grassroots across the country. Again, this was yet outside the aforesaid Federal Allocation receivables. But what did the people of Alimosho get from these cavaliers? A pack of garri and kulikuli in packaging that was two-time costlier than its contents -- but all cumulating to a total cost not up to N3,800. How else could a local council chairman be so heartless? Again, we must not forget that their central meeting where the decision of cost to invest in the palliatives was even made a 'retreat' reportedly held at the GRA residence of the Dynasty founder. This is not to imply any implications of the former Minister in their cavalierly misconduct. It is to establish their origin from the same 'One-Alimosho' Single Leadership Line in discourse.

Amidst condemnation of this woeful failure in cause of governance and humanity from them yet came the rumours of plans to buy a brand new latest model of a SUV utility vehicle valued at the cost of N480Million for the Induna. This, according to the snippet, deemfully required a mandatory contribution of a huge amount -- "N10Million to be precise" -- from each of them. A rumour? So it came! And a cliche goes that in every rumour, some traces of fact could as well be discernible. So, while the factual content is not fully disclosed here, it does not necessarily confine the rumour to being an outright fallacy. This is to be mindful that the economic hardship began immediately with the administration of Tinubu, who had hitherto run his campaign on the mantra of 'Renewed Hope'. As such, while it was a big disappointment to the Nigeria public that a 'renewed forlorn' would rather be their fate after all, it could not have been expected that these Mayors would not care a hoot in making their own contributions to ameliorate the dire situations their political party had caused in their respective localities.

By and large, what matters here now is that the All Progressives Congress (APC) appeared to be blessed with arrays of party members who seem to understand what it takes to appreciate the electoral value of the people. it is one reason the people of Alimosho across the federal constituency have made it a cause to be eternally grateful to Prince Idris Balogun ("Oluomo Kaafata"), who swiftly intervened to save his party from the shame these cavaliers were about to put on it. He was a former Aspirant for the House of Representatives, hoping to represent Alimosho Federal Constituency. He rolled out a series of personal initiatives in palliative interventions, touching all areas of social and economic strata that included workers and students alike. I knew this because Civics Weekly covered the second and third versions of his palliative handouts. See story: "Why I Joined Politics"

The question to ask here now is: what then could be the enabler of the cavaliers' cause to disconnect with the people? For the answer, it needs to be acknowledged first for a reminder that they are products of the One-Alimosho sired by an expired Induna of “Oranmiyan Dynasty” clan in the tribe of Lagos Progressives. In other words, they evolved from the single line leadership of the old order. In those local councils where significant healings were said to have manifested with improved administrations, 'change' had been identified as a major contribution. But here in Alimosho, we have the change for the manifest divine touch, but, for whatever reason known to the state, we are being deprived of the privileges that ought to come with the change. In due time we will get to discuss the algorithic mechaniam by which Asiwaju Bola Tinubu had maintained the unity of Alimosho up until he was set for the last lap of his life ambition. Therein we shall see why the fault of disunity in Alimosho lies with the state leadership to correct and the step to take should by necessity involve reassertion of party supremacy through entrenchment of party discipline.

As a matter of fact, if there is any locality of Lagos State that should deem to have been blessed with the divine touch of change, it should be Alimosho Federal Constituency. The change there is expected to encompass so many renewals that should guarranttee a new phase of life for the people. An example is the worst case scenario that the current so called Mayors at the helms of affairs of the local councils are products of a proxy leader, who had never been tested in the act of public service, getting the sole privilege to decide who becomes the council chairman. The change in question however offers a new opportunity that someone whose public service value is not only replete with experiences in local affairs, but one that grew progressively from the locals of Alimosho, to the state, then to the Federal and now in the international community yet in service of her fatherland. So, it is high time we tried a new crop of the six council chairmen as a product of this new leadership with long years of practical experience in public service value to decide who becomes the council chairmen in Alimosho. Interestingly, doing this is by her right as the de fecto leader and not any privileged opportunity for her.

Given all this, I will only add that the Lagos State APC leadership might need to take cue from the act of governance President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is doing at the Federal level. He is showing that politics of chicanery is not indispensable. Above all that, in this new leadership era of Her Excellency, Princess (Dr.) Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire (OFR), we do not need 'Mayors' for the running of our local councils. We need "Council Chairmen" whose designate of their office would constantly remind them of their responsibility to their locals. 'Mayor' is a firm basis for confusion in official self identity. And this, of course, is a veritable case of delusional ailment that could make the local councils unstable. As Yoruba would say, "Oruko ma n roni" people are often influenced by their names. Eliminate the foreign body from our local councils' system. Let the Council Chairman take over from the alien Mayor.