PRESIDENT Olusegun Obasanjo, miffed with the spate of campaign for suitable candidates for various political posts come 2007 general elections had strongly kicked against such development to the extent of issuing out warnings to his deputy, Vice Presuident Atiku Abubakar, to call his supporters to order saying such could be a source of distraction and remains inimical to the present administrations across the states of the federation.
But tongues have been wagging since Mr. President told the south-west caucus of the PDP in Oshogbo last week that his party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, would ‘capture’ Lagos State come 2007 with the calibre of Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola being in the first seat.
This statement underscores the values of true democracy and how it is regarded by Mr. President, considering the fact that a duly elected governor is still in office in Lagos State.
The first indicator flashed by the PDP was the withdrawal of monthly statutory allocations to Lagos State Councils. The federal government had said it was doing this because Lagos State created an additional 37 illegal councils to the former existing 20 councils against what the federal government described as the spirit of the constitution. The Lagos State Government has since taken the issue to court - the case is now pending before the Supreme Court in Abuja.
The AD had in a statement accused Obasanjo and PDP of not being happy that the Lagos State government remains under the control of Alliance for Democracy, AD, which made the ‘conquest” of the south west incomplete.
The party argued that the powers that be in Abuja were irritated by Governor Tunubu’s dogged defence of the principles of federalism, which run counter to their intention of foisting a de facto unitary system on the Nigerian nation.
“He is a minority governor. One out of 36. He can’t do anything. Believe me, there will be a revolution in Lagos State very soon. I am a master in this game. They know it. They are already afraid. This is why they are crying and crying. They will cry themselves out.!”
The above statement was credited to the Federal Minister of Works, Senator Oluseye Ogunlewe, in a recent interview he granted one of the national dailies. It is a known fact that Senator Ogunlewe prior to his appointment as Works Minister by the Federal Government, was a card carrying member of the AD before he fell out with the party owing to unresolved disagreement between him and party bigwigs over his ambition to become the Lagos State governor instead of having Governor Tinubu come back for a second term.
Thus, with the above quoted statement from the honourable minister, it can be rightly said that the battle for number one seat in the most populous state in the federation, Lagos State, has finally begun.
The battle which is gathering momentum by the day, has begun sureptiously.
One of the platforms on which the battle is being waged against the AD administration in Lagos State is the recent Federal Ministry of Works’ induced face-off between one of its agencies and the Lagos State government. It started with members of the PDP launching the battle through the Minister of Works with the full involvement of the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA).
The genesis of the battle was when Ogunlewe, using FERMA, gave quit notice to the Lagos State Transport Management Authority (LASTMA) and Kick Against Indiscipline (KAI) Brigades to cease any operation from federal roads and leave with immediate effect or be forcefully removed.
The Lagos State Government which initially treated the directive as “a huge joke” had a rude shock when FERMA started implementing the directive without recourse to due process fo the law.
Consequently, several LASTMA agents were left with various degrees of injuries, when the “FERMA boys,” as they are often referred to stormed major highways and forcefully sacked all the state agents operating on the roads classified to be under federal government jurisdiction.
On the first day, it was a thug of war as both parties engaged one another in a bloody battle which took the prompt intervention of the police and other law enforcement agents to restore normalcy and douse the tension.
Some suspects believed to be FERMA officials were arrested and taken to Zone II Police Command, Onikan, they were later on the same day released after a call from anonymous persons in Abuja claiming to be obeying directives from higher quarters.
As if that was a needed tonic to unleash more attacks, FERMA officials went full swing in carrying out their brief by bringing down all state structures on perceived Federal roads, and land the following day.
On June 24, some people alleged to be FERMA officials were armed with cutlasses, cudgels and locally made guns, attacked and sacked the officials of Isheri-Ikosi Local Government disrupting normal business activities; again it took the intervention of the police to save the situation.
Similarly, on Tuesday, July 27, the Lagos Island West Secretariat was invaded by some people again alleged to be FERMA officials. They were allegedly led by a PDP chieftain.
Ridiculously, the same people were said to have visited motor parks, garages, markets collecting various illegal tolls from unsuspecting victims.
They warned market men and women, road transport union officials to stop paying dues or tolls to the state government. The height of this was to be the sealing off of public toilets built under CMS bridge by the state government.
In his usual manner, Governor Bola Tinubu summoned LASTMA, KAI officials as well as senior council officials including the 57 council chairmen to a round-table discussion where various decisions and strategies were taken behind closed doors.
However, on 1st August, the Conference of Local Government Chairmen under the chairmanship of Alhaji Muniru Muse at a press conference while raising alarm over what they termed as an attempt and antics by agents of the PDP led FG, through Senator Ogunlewe, to cripple the new councils in the state, described the development as capable of destroying the very foundations of democracy not only in Lagos but in the country as a whole.
The group however, gave a warning signal to the PDP in the state saying, its patience was fast wearing out and that it would no longer sit back and watch lawless elements of PDP backed by some of its chieftains to undermine the legitimate councils of the state. While calling on Obasanjo to call his agents to order, Muse noted that PDP and FERMA’s incessant attacks and actions against the people of the state were undermining the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the councils.
His words: “The activities of the PDP and FERMA were direct slap in the face of the judiciary and an assault against the rule of law, the people of the state will not allow this to continue.
“We are serving a clear notice today that the days of attempting to run a parallel government through Ogunlewe is over. There can be no separate governor or local government chairmen in the disguise for federal highways.
“We have all it takes to effectively contain any unruly civilian dictator in a democratic dispensation.
“Anybody who thinks that the fear of a state of emergency in Lagos State will deter our people from defending their rights is living in a world of illusion.”
However, in an apparent reaction to President Obasanjo’s statement of capturing Lagos State last Saturday, the AD in Lagos State at a press conference addressed by its chairman Prince Abiodun Ogunleye, issued a stern warning to Mr. President to forget about capturing Lagos State by all means come 2007 saying “Alliance for Democracy is battle ready to defend the mandate of the people at all times and counter any move by persons or groups to illegally usurp power in Lagos state.”
Ogunleye described the president’s statement as a confirmation of his (president’s) support for the atrocities being perpetrated by members of PDP in the state through his Minister of Works, to destabilise democracy and inflict hardship on the people of the state.
Exhibiting a posture of a warlord, Ogunleye vowed that the state would remain firmly in the grip of AD come 2007, regardless of the antics adopted by the PDP to realise it’s inordinate ambition of capturing the state.
His words: “In a democracy, the citizens’ right to protect is guaranteed. It is this hard-won right of free expression (which forms) the very essence of our democracy, that the PDP controlled federal government is striving to abolish.
“We are saying loud and clear today that we will not be muzzled by the quasi-military style of president Obasanjo, the era of autocracy is over, and by the grace of God, a closed chapter in the history of Nigeria.”
Ogunleye advised PDP and FG that the only wise path is to come down from the Olympian heights and listen to the voice of the governed.
He stressed that President Obasanjo should wake up from the dangerous and ultimately self destructive illusion that he or the party could impose a one-party state on a country as complex and diverse as Nigeria.
While accusing PDP of being a bad loser following AD’s resounding victory at the last election, Prince Ogunleye stated: “It has been trying hard to get through criminal violence and disrespect for the law, the power it could not win through the ballot box in this state. Recently in Oshogbo, Osun State, President Olusegun Obsanjo told the south-west caucus of the PDP that the party will “capture” Lagos State come 2007.
“This statement again reveals the PDP’s disdain for the people who they regard as potential prisoners of war. Their military background has clearly made it impossible for the PDP leadership to distinguish between democracy and warfare. Let us firmly assure the PDP at this point that the AD is battle ready to defend the mandate of the people at all times. Our teeming supporters will not sit back and allow a gang of lawless vandals to illegally usurp power in Lagos State. Let those who are plotting to impose autocratic rule in Lagos State remember that throughout history, the tree of liberty has been watered with the blood of tyrants, let the wise take heed and beware, lest they sow an evil wind and reap the whirlwind of self-destruction.
He noted that Mr. President’s unfortunate statement in Osun State was particularly instructive because President Olusegun Obasanjo has never uttered one word of condemnation against the various acts of violence and outright disrespect for the law and the constitution perpetrated by the PDP in Lagos State.
“Yet, by virtue of his position, President Obasanjo is supposed to be the president of all Nigerians and not just the president of the PDP. He has sworn to uphold the principle of the nations constitution.
“Mr. President, we in the AD in Lagos State have been pushed to the wall, our members have been battered and brutalised enough, our councils have been harassed and oppressed enough, our legitimate government workers have been beaten and wounded enough. We cannot and will not continue to condone this situation, please, call your men to order now. You may be advised to ignore us. You may be tempted to dismiss us as Lilliputians, but remember David and Goliath. Remember those immortal words: “Those whom the Gods will destroy they first make deaf, act today, act wisely,” Ogunleye advised.
Surprisingly, the leadership fo the PDP at the national level have continued to keep mute over the development and the seeming political wrangling in Lagos State, except for its national vice-chairman at the South-West, Chief Olabode George who has not failed to give assurance to the people of Lagos State of PDP readiness to wrestle power out of AD come 2007.
