For some time, a controversy has been brewing between Alhaji Ganiyu Kola Egunjobi, the Executive Chairman of Agege Local Government Area in Lagos State, and Edwards Ayo-Odugbesan, the former Deputy Speaker of the Ogun State House of Assembly, along with his wife, Funmi Ayo-Odugbesan.
You and the Odugbesan couple are locked in a fight over a land at No 47 Old Ogba Road where the former Ogun State House of Assembly, Deputy Speaker and his wife, Pastor Funmi sited a primary school which your council demolished. What can you say about the matter?
Well, the matter is subjudice before Justice Lawal of Ikeja High Court. I won’t want to be accused of contempt of court or prejudicing the court against him or his wife. Well, we have filed our defence in which the council maintained that it owns the land in question based on irrefutable proofs. As a matter of fact, the land does not belong to me but to the council and thank goodness the people of Agege are leading the charge to protect their collective heritage. Have suffered a lot because of this issue: subjected to police interrogation and supposed investigation by the EFCC if am to go by a media report. My life is equally under threat while I face smear campaign of various sorts regularly, including ridiculous allegation that i lack education and gathering information about my wife and innocent children for God knows why. I presumably believe the wicked effort is to distract undiscerning public from the substance of the matter. The saying that when you fight corruption, corruption fights back is true of this situation. But it’s what it is, am not complaining. I swore to an oath to serve the interest of Agege and this have been doing in the last seven years. For your information, the council is also in court with Access Bank over the bank’s headquarters sited on our land at Oyin Jolami in Victoria Island.
The local government autonomy is yet to take effect as the federal government is yet to commence direct payment of allocations to councils five months after the Supreme Court’s judgment. What’s your take on this?
Am aware of the collaborative efforts between the states and federal governments to give effect to the apex court’s judgment. Equally the moves by some states particularly Anambra State, that enacted law to retain the status quo, the joint account and the vehement opposition to this by the federal government. Come to think of it, all along, administrations of Lagos councils have been independent of the state government to a certain degree. It is the reason why there are general developments across the councils’ areas in terms of infrastructure and human capital. In Agege here, on my watch, the council built four health centres with two others under construction. Schools were renovated and built from ground zero. Same as roads. In most part of the country, councils are incapable of funding such projects, so it becomes the preserve of the state governments. But here we are, Lagos councils are in the fray and are also investing in human capital development like mad.
A bill to strip State Independent Electoral Commissions of the power to conduct LG elections and vest INEC with the power has passed the second reading in House of Representatives. Do you subscribe to the move?
To me, it’s neither here nor there. Having INEC as the new umpire of council elections has its own merit but that’s just on paper. In theory, the prevailing situation whereby ruling parties in states win all councils’ elections from chairmanship to councillorship would become history. But the Nigerian factor may derail it from achieving its purpose of ensuring a freer polls in the grassroots. On the other hand, INEC too has not covered itself in glory with its performance and also has a lot on its plate with all the off-season elections.
As a leader in the grassroots where people feel the prevailing, economic hardship more. What would you say of President Tinubu’s administration?
I think the policies are generally good, particularly the economic reforms such as subsidy removal, the reforms in foreign exchange that put an end to fixing the value of naira against other currencies and multiple exchange rates that encouraged rent-seeking. Now, market forces are determining the value of the naira. This is saving Nigeria trillions that previously were used to defend the significant arbitrage between the official exchange rates and the rates in the parallel market. It has also stopped round-tripping in the forex market. I agree that there are unintended, unpleasant consequences but you can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs. Am confident that Nigeria is in good hands and there will be light at the end of the tunnel.
Your time as the council’s Chairman is winding down. Do you have succession plan?
It’s not within my power to pick my successor. Am not even qualified to contemplate such. I stand to be corrected, there is no local government chairman in any part of Nigeria that’s so powerful to independently pick his successor. Anointing or whatever is called is peculiar to governors and presidents. As they say in local parlance, ‘who dash monkey banana.’ You may wonder that the Lagos local government election is near the corner and in most part of the state campaign posters of Chairmanship and councillorship aspirants are scattered everywhere except in Agege. This is because we are all united, under the leadership of Speaker of the State House of Assembly Rt. Honourable Mudasiru Ajayi Obasa. There is neither PDP nor Labour Party in Agege, everybody accepts Obasa as his political leader and supremo.