Lagos State has always been a unique state in the history of Nigeria. Apart from being the very first port of call where slaves were shipped to the western world from Africa, it is today Africa’s most populous and rapidly expanding city. The first mega-city on the continent of Africa. In terms of political leadership, it has never been found wanting. Very few states in Nigeria could compete with Lagos in terms of producing “action governors”. Mobolaji Johnson did not share in this dubious appellation, but he held Lagos like a colossus. His words were almost law in those dizzy days of Yakubu Gowon. Raji Rasaki was, of course, the most “actionful” of the action governors. With his total disregard for the basic tenets of the English language, not borne out of contempt but basic illiteracy, this wonderful man from Ibadan, entertained and performed in Lagos. Lateef Jakande, who could be considered in those days (before the era of his sudden turn-coat) as one of Nigeria’s untapped revolutionaries, was almost a colossus in this unique state. He brought, arguably, unfettered radicalism to education and health in the state. Many Lagosians today, nay Nigerians, are grateful to the policies in education initiated by this radical politician. Then came the era of our Lagos “serubawon”, the man from Osun state who found political fortune and dominion in Lagos state. There is no need for further introduction. I am referring to the one and only Bola Tinubu of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) and lately Action Congress (AC) fame. To date, Lagos remains firmly in the grip of this flamboyant but rather evasive politician. And to Bola Tinubu remains the honour and glory for the current occupant of the government house at Ikeja.

Babatunde Fashola, the Senior Advocate of Naira (sorry, Nigeria) remains a very interesting study in the history of political leadership in Nigeria. Here is a man who came in quietly into power but unlike the usual phenomenon in our dear country, remains faithful to his benefactor. He continues to maintain admirably personal qualities as demonstrated by his refusal to be bogged down with our craze for titles. To this day, he remains Mr Babatunde Fashola, not Chief, Otunba, Okanlomo or what have you. In terms of policy initiations and executions, he maintains perseverance mostly bothering on rigidity and stubbornness. His determination and zeal to transform Lagos to a mega city is almost maniacal, while rigidly focussed on demolishing houses and social infrastructures to create space for industry and other things, remain short on compassion and understanding of the sufferings of the people and the historical significance of Lagos to a lot of Nigerians. He continues with his personal vision of what Lagos should be and refuses to dilute this vision by reasonable inputs from concerned Nigerians. Babatunde Fashola is a phenomenon that is yet to completely unfold in Lagos. Another of the action governors, albeit a rather non-boisterous one.

However, at a recent appreciation dinner for a group of Nigerians under the aegis of Eko Club, who were on a medical mission to Nigeria, something went out of colour as far as the Fashola we knew was concerned. Fashola, on this occasion, charged Nigerians in the Diaspora to return home. On this surface of it, there is nothing presumably wrong with this call. This is a call that has almost turned to a sing-song in our country. Every Nigerian politician mouths this sentence to achieve relevance, especially when on foreign visits. Recently, our dear go-slow president, Yar’adua, came to Britain and spoke in the same vein. When they talk this way, one gets the impression that it is only Nigerians in Diasporas who could solve the ever-multiplying problems of the country. In this presumably champagne-laden ceremony, the Nigeria Tribune newspaper reported Fashola as saying that:

“It would be a great disservice to the fatherland if Nigerian professionals would stay abroad while the country seeks elsewhere for the services which they could easily provide.”

Noting that some Nigerians abroad sometimes hide behind the argument that there might not be anything for them to do in the country if they returned, Fashola said “it is no excuse to ask us what you would do when you come back home because there was no promise when you left the country.

“I recommend to all Nigerians in the Diaspora, the time to come back home is now. The Asians are going back home. No one else can fix this country for us. We had a choice also, we could have left, but we stayed back”.

The essences of political leadership are demonstrable actions backed up by motivating speeches. In this regard, Fashola was in tune with the general clarion call for Nigerians to return home. However, in his usual frank manner, he went further and touched on that particular topic that others have beautifully skirted or completely left untouched. That is the issue, amongst others, of what to do on returning home. What to do to maintain economic prosperity and keep body and soul together. This, as it is generally known, is one thing Nigeria has no answer for. It is true that many Nigerians, professionals and all have left home. It is equally true, that many Nigerians, professionals and all still remain at home. Every year, the numerous Nigerians universities churn out graduates in various disciplines. It is not as if Nigeria is in dire need of professionals, the question is, what have we done with those who remain at home? Nigerians scramble for the few available jobs and most times, such have been shared on political, family and other connections. This is not to disregard the fact that many Nigerians in the Diaspora would simply be unemployable by virtue of the fact that the country has not yet advanced to the level of providing jobs at their level. Nigerians function at high scientific and technological set-ups of most western countries and the United States.

It is the simple, one-statement answer that Fashola has for these groups of Nigerians that is very disturbing - “it is no excuse to ask us what you would do when you come back home because there was no promise when you left the country”. Pretty amazing coming from a political leader. Someone who by virtue of his position could be a catalyst for job creation and technological advancement of his state and country. This sort of statement makes one wonder why one was born a Nigerian. To Fashola, the call to return home is simply just that – come home, do not bother about gainful employment, just return and join the melee! Was this rather dry call a way of further inflating the burgeoning Nigerian population? Nigerians left the country precisely because of lack of promise for their future. They left because the country could not guarantee social security and economic prosperity. The problems that warranted Nigerians leaving in droves still persist, if not multiplied. And by the statement of this governor, the political will to tackle these problems is still missing. Fashola threw a dry and insulting gauntlet to Nigerians in Diaspora and this fact should be made clear in no small terms to him.

The tirade did not stop there and I quote again: “I recommend to all Nigerians in the Diaspora, the time to come back home is now. The Asians are going back home. No one else can fix this country for us. We had a choice also, we could have left, but we stayed back”. To the statement that Asians are returning home, I must say that I do not have the studies, research or facts to counter this. What is of concern here is the egregious statement that he (Fashola) had the choice of leaving the shores of Nigeria but decided to stay. Perhaps, if most Nigerians who left had the possibility of being a Senior Advocate or even a state governor combined, many would definitely have stayed! It is so easy to sit on a glass throne and preach sanctimonious nonsense to the people. By this unguarded statement coming out of a state governor, one wonders what the stakes are for this country. Fashola unwittingly touched a raw nerve by this bland and insensitive call. I can boldly say this, given a conducive and right climate in Nigeria, there would be very few Nigerians left abroad.

Nigeria is a country in throes of political mismanagement and confusion, economic mismanagement and instability writhing in the grips of armed robbers who have made life unbearable for the citizens. Only this morning, I commiserated with my in-laws who luckily survived brutal and agonising armed robbery attack at Abeokuta. They are still battling with the aftermath of this insidious attack, what is known in medical parlance as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The town is in the grips of a particular hooded group of night marauders whose various descriptions are well known to the police. The Nigeria Police Farce (sorry, Force) as expected, feels incapable of tackling this menace. Citizens are left to prayers as otherwise security measures that could have been utilised are rendered useless by the incessant interruption of power supply in the country. The problems with armed robbers are general in the country and our police force that has been prolific at demoting out-of-favour officers could hardly do anything. No government, whether state or federal, has seriously sat down to tackle this social menace.

Nigerian roads are death traps. So many lives have been lost on the death contraptions called roads. At the end of the day, the national assembly was informed that billions of naira was spent on constructing and maintaining these monstrosities. Life remains very cheap and almost meaningless in our dear country. If one does not die on Nigerian roads, the likelihood is that armed robbers may attack and kill one in the sanctuary of one’s house. This is the Nigeria Fashola is asking us to return to. If for a while, one is lucky to escape from these waiting tragedies, getting a meaningful job to keep one going is an impossible task. The nation rolls from one story of massive corruption to another. Fellow Nigerians, I can go and on. The country rumbles on like a rudderless ship without a captain. It is thus odious for Fashola to enjoin us to return to Nigeria without thinking of what do on returning. If he had meant to paraphrase the popular American saying: “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country”, then his statement was misplaced and came at a time when we felt the country should have gone further than it is. What can we do for Nigeria? What have we been allowed to do for Nigeria?

I have said my bit. It is now over to fellow Nigerians outside the shores of the fatherland. Nigeria is a country we all love (presumably). It is a country I personally missed so much. Nevertheless, I keep on wondering whether it is right for me to be true to my conscience and labour where I stand to reap the reward, than to demonstrate false “petro-patriotism or crude-patriotism” in the midst of abiding poverty and joblessness. I wonder if my choice of seeking economic, social and intellectual emancipation and social security elsewhere from my fatherland is wrong. I wonder if I should just pack my bags and hop into the next plane to honour Governor Fashola’s clarion call.

Dr Olusegun Fakoya.

Robot  # 1 | 16.08.2008 22:03

Lagos State has always been a unique state in the history of Nigeria. Apart from being the ve...Read the full article.

Ewuro  # 2 | 17.08.2008 11:06

=Robot;4295084470> Nigerians left the country precisely because of lack of promise for their future. They left because the country could not guarantee social security and economic prosperity. The problems that warranted Nigerians leaving in droves still persist, if not multiplied. And by the statement of this governor, the political will to tackle these problems is still missing. Fashola threw a dry and insulting gauntlet to Nigerians in Diaspora and this fact should be made clear in no small terms to him. If we take out the billions of dollars sent to Nigeria by Nigerians living abroad, the whole social fabric would be in a greater distress. I am sure our dear Governor Fashola ( I have a great deal of respect for this man) knows about his family and friends who send money from abroad to their aged parents, brothers, sisters, uncles and the children and spouses they left behind. The money sent from abroad are used for their upkeep, food, house rent, school fees and even for social functions like funerals forthe dead. Nigerians in diaspora, legal and illegal immigrants, professionals, cleaners, care workers, nurses, doctors, teachers, security men and cab drivers do deserve commendations for their selfless contributions to the upkeep of their respective families back home. Most Nigerians do work under very harsh conditions, taking everything that is thrown at them including racism and threats of deportation. Some have even used their money to set up relatives on some business ventures back home. Decisions to migrate abroad are usually individual or family based. The decisions to return home would also be individual. There is no point using a gubernatorial platform to condemn those Nigerians who have chosen to migrate and remain abroad. If the socio-economic conditions at home were right, why is there a rush for US, UK and other western countries visa? Why are Nigerians migrating in droves to Ghana and neighbouring states? Why are many Nigerians, risking their lives travel through the sahara desert, and seas on their way to Europe? The governor should concentrate on his duties and responsibilities, providing good governance to improve on the socio-economic well being of Lagosians and Nigerians. I for one I detest coming home to face police brutality at check-points, fear of armed robberies, very poor educational and health facilities, corrupt polticians and government officials and many more social ills. Even if the adults who left Nigeria could take it, their offsprings born abroad would never understand it. They would not put up with it either! If and when the conditions become right for Nigerians in diaspora, they on individual convictions, might return home.

Austin  # 3 | 17.08.2008 20:31

What kind of Dr wrote this article???????????:confused1:icon_ques:rolleyes:

RAYNOSA  # 4 | 18.08.2008 08:07

=Austin;4295084755>What kind of Dr wrote this article???????????:confused1:icon_ques:rolleyes: Guess................Perhaps a NativeDoctor.

Ewuro  # 5 | 18.08.2008 09:19

=RAYNOSA;4295084863>Guess................Perhaps a NativeDoctor. Could you address the issues, if you please?

toksyleigh  # 6 | 18.08.2008 12:23

Good article!!!! But Olusegun Fakoya you seem to be forgetting the numerous police check points and the un-tamed and un-civilized police officers you have to bribe every single time you pass by the check point so that you don't end up six feet under (via accidental discharge) or being paraded as armed robber in the morning just for refusing to give some kolanuts. I for one want to know how many of you professional get extra kolanuts everyday from your bosses. How come some of these so called Nigerian Governors, President, Ministers.... et all give these so called patriotic speeches without allowing questions from the regular folks in the audience after their speech; I for one wants to know when and where I can get the opportunity to ask some of these thieves when they come and give speeches about what they have been doing with Education, Health, Security of life and properties, Job creation, Strategic Planning, Urban Development and many more.... not even for the past 48 years just for the past 10 years. But then I guess their audiences must be the people seeking favors from them. Yeye Governors, very soon when they leave office we will start hearing about how much each local Government has to donate to their wive(s) NGO every month. I gues their wive(s) must have two heads compared to ordinary Nigerians..yeye people. God help us all, Goriola Abamieda Jr.

naijaninja  # 7 | 18.08.2008 13:31

Oga doctor, what Governor Fashola is simply saying is that nigeria does not owe you any special favour for being a diasporean. you willingly went ingto exile and you should bloody willingly return if you deem it worth your while but dont ask for any special favours cos you a`int gonna get any.....gabbish???

VOR  # 8 | 18.08.2008 14:38

Naijanija Thank you! the article just confirms this suspicion about some Nigerians in the Diaspora, who think that the red carpet should be laid down for them because they seek to relocate to Nigeria. What cheek!! Fashola has extended the invitation, its up to the individual to decide to go or stay - no special treatment. Let them go and slug it out with the hundreds of Nigerians based at home who decided to stay, they if any are more deserving of red carpet treatment, not Nigerians that have probably lived the good life abroad. I keep saying it is not by force to relocate. If the conditions back home are not conducive please sit you backside down where you are.

Bode Eluyera  # 9 | 18.08.2008 14:45

US-based Nigerian expert rots in Agodi Prison. By Sam Nwaoko Sunday, August 17, 2008 So much is locked behind the high walls of the prison yards around the country. Many of the inmates are justifiably there; many others are serving terms following awkward, jejune cases while so many others have no business being imprisoned or in prison detention. A recent visit to the Agodi Prisons in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, in the entourage of the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Michael Folorunsho Lana, afforded the Sunday Tribune an opportunity to see beyond the high incarceration walls. The visit highlighted the urgent need for an unembroidered catharsis in Nigeria’s justice delivery system. Mr. Lana led a team of other officials of the Oyo State Ministry of Justice on a fact finding cum technical assessment visit to the prison on the instruction of the governor, Chief Christopher Adebayo Alao-Akala. He said the prison authorities had written to the governor for assistance over the inadequacy of facilities in the prison. On the other hand, he said the body of attorneys general in the country, at a recent meeting, decided that members should visit the various prisons in their states to determine what are wrong and how to tackle them. Beyond the aged and inadequate but fit physical structures seen in the prison yard, Governor Akala’s representative found that many Nigerians are needlessly undergoing emotional torture behind bars in the cold confines of Agodi Prisons. The case of United States-based Public Health expert, Dr. Timothy Agunbiade, caught special attention. Dr Agunbiade’s tale left the commissioner, Mr. Lana and his entourage in awe and in obvious lament over the tacky justice delivery system in the country. The medical expert, who has been practicing in the United States since 1983, told Sunday Tribune that he had been in prison detention since July 3, 2008 following inexplicable orders of Justice R.N. Ofili-Ajumogobia of the Federal High Court, Ibadan. According to the Ilesa, Osun State-born Agunbiade, he became a detainee after he was arrested in his home in Lagos by policemen from Ibadan, following a report by his friend that he allegedly imported fake drugs into the country. The drugs in question, Agunbuade said, were genuine and were imported legitimately by him from the United States. “The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) even tested and certified the drugs to be genuine.” He believes his travails began “when a friend of mine also based in the US felt he should have been the one importing the drugs. He threatened to ‘show me’ and I didn’t know how until policemen came from Ibadan and arrested me on allegations that I was distributing fake drugs in Oyo Sate. “I told the policemen that the drugs had been certified by NAFDAC and were already in the market in Lagos, but they said Oyo is different from Lagos.” However, he was arraigned on a lone count charge of distributing “for the purpose of sale of fake and (or) expired drugs in the name of “MV365 and MVS PRE-NATAL” and thereby alleged to have committed an offence contrary to Section 1 and punishable under section 3(1) (A) of Counterfeit and Fake Drug and Unwholesome Processed Food Miscellaneous (Provision) Act Cap 34, Laws of the Federation of Nigerian 2004, on the 14th of November, 2007.” The case came before Justice Molokwu who admitted Dr Agunbiade to bail. At the next hearing date which was January 18, 2008, he said he made himself available in court “and the court accordingly ordered the prosecution to assemble their witnesses against the 26th of February, 2008 which was the date fixed for the hearing of the case.” On the hearing date, he said he also made himself available in court but the case could not proceed to trial and was adjourned to March 5, 2008. On March 5, Dr Agunbiade was in court again, but neither the counsel for the prosecution nor any representative of the complainant was in court and this caused the case to be adjourned to March 16, by which time Justice Molokwu had been transferred. The new judge, Mrs. R.N. Ofili-Ajumogobia, adjourned the case to May 9 before the arrival of any of the parties and counsels in the matter. On May 9, the court did not sit and the registrar fixed June 19 for the case on the agreement of the parties in the case. His counsel, Bolaji Faboro, told ST that he could not make it to court on June 19 but he sent Micheal Agbolade “since I believed that it was just to take a date.” June 19 was the first time Dr Agunbiade would appear before Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia. Then, the prosecution stated its intention to withdraw the case following its amicable resolution among the parties. Agunbiade said this drew the ire of the judge who, he said “condemned the prosecution counsel for making such an application before her.” At the hearing of that June 19, Agunbiade claimed that the judge insisted that if the counsels failed to agree to a date that did not exceed June 24, she was going to revoke his bail. “Both counsels in the matter then reluctantly agreed to come back for the case on June 24,” he said. He said he became worried over what he described as the open hostility of Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia towards him. On June 24, all the parties were shocked to find that the judge was not present in court despite the threats of bail revocation five days earlier. The absence of the judge made the counsels to choose September 22, 2008 which was the agreeable date to the registrar, Faboro,who had informed them of the annual judges’ vacation. Agunbiade said he was greatly surprised when his counsel called him late on July 2 that there was a hearing notice issued on July 1, served him (the counsel) on July 2, that the trial of his case had been fixed for July 3, the next day. The hearing notice, he observed, was served by the court clerk, and not the usual bailiff. He made it to court early against all odds on July 3 from Lagos. In the middle of the hearing on July 3, Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia stopped the cross-examination going on and without any prompting by any of the counsels, said she was tired and would like the case adjourned and she fixed July 30 for the next date. But beyond this, she revoked Dr. Agunbiade’s bail and ordered that he be remanded in Agodi Prison without adducing any reason for revoking the bail. The puzzled lawyers could not question her and the man was thrown in jail. “Up till the time the judge decided to revoke my bail, I have not done anything to warrant the decision to cut my bail. I have therefore been tried and remanded in the prison custody by the judge when my plea has not even been taken before her,” Dr Agunbiade cried. He said this was so because the judge threatened to report the prosecution counsel to the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and the police authorities for daring to apply before her to take pleas since being a new judge in the case. Efforts to get Dr Agunbaide bail so far on health grounds had been thwarted for puerile logistics reasons. Faboro told Sunday Tribune that already, even the prosecution had found that the case was that of alleged trademark infringement, which he said was a civil case, and not a criminal case for which his counsel is being detained. “I have gone to seek the case file since the judge told us that she wanted to seek advice whether she should continue with the case or not but we were told that the file had not got to them in Lagos, ” Faboro said. The file too cannot be retrieved in Ibadan, neither could the counsel get certified true copies of nor the record of proceedings nor the ruling in the case. The question now is whether the judge had taken the case file with her to her vacation. So, while Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia is somewhere enjoying her well-deserved rest of her annual vacation, Agunbiade, a member of the New York Academy of Science that responded to the Federal Government’s call to come home and invest, is wasting away in prison detention. Mr. Lana did not see Agunbiade’s suffering and that of many others in Agodi prisons as trivial and, accordingly, felt the obvious manipulation of justice to their detriment should be halted. He promised to look more into the matter and also do something about it. He said as much about the other prisoners who are serving terms based on trifling offences. “Some of the prisoners were tricked into conviction and we have to look into it. Some of them are not supposed to be there, they should have been reprimanded or fined. Our justice system is not okay and something must be done fast,” Lana said.

eleniyan  # 10 | 18.08.2008 15:32

Your retort baffles average minds! How could you reasonably conclude that the author and many others like him are seeking “red carpet” treatment as an incentive to return back home? The author is basically, in a nutshell, alluding that the GOVT should do its parts by providing SECURITY, HEALTH SYSTEMS and OTHER BASIC AMENITIES like electricity, roads, etc, if it wanna boast and encourage its citizens in Diaspora to return home. After all it is humanly impossible and illogical for a person to escape from hell and then willingly and happily return to the same hell. Urging Govt to do their job by providing a conducive environment is far from requiring a “red carpet” treatment.

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