vanbonattel:


Your last sentence made a mockery of every other thing you wrote

If Obiano knows that Soludo will betray him and still fought for him, then it's not godfatherism anymore. This is party loyalty.

vanbonattel:


Obiano can never be a godfather in anambra.
He only made sure Soludo got the ticket because of his conviction that the candidate will represent well. If he tries to interfere in the government, what happened to Sullivan will happen to him.

Oleys:
Anambra started on a faulty note in 1999 with the election of Dr Chinwoke Mbadinuju. Mbadinuju won on the PDP platform and was sponsored by a political godfather (Sir Emeka Ofor), a billionaire and an oil tycoon.

The godfather ‘invested’ in his political godson Mbadinuju with the hope of recouping his ‘investments’ not to ensure service delivery through infrastructural developments and accelerated standard of living for the citizenry but for the raping and stealing blind of the state funds.

Consequent upon this, many critical infrastructures like roads were left untouched while the state capital, Awka degenerated and wore the look of a glorified village. Civil servants and teachers were owed months and years of salaries till election in 2003. Fortuitously, Mbadinuju was denied a return ticket by his party, PDP but fielded another candidate, Dr Chris Ngige who won.

Election over and the people of Anambra thought they had put the sad woes of godfatherism behind hoping to get a better deal, little did they know they were moving from frying pan to fire. Disagreement over the sharing of state funds broke out between Ngige and the new political godfather (the Uba brothers, Chris and Andy). Chris Uba a semi rich illiterate and his brother Andy, then senior special adviser to President Olusegun Obasanjo held the state hostage and kidnapped the constitutionally elected governor, Chris Ngige to force him to abide by the initial terms and agreements.

The illegal act backfired as a result of national condemnation till Ngige was restored back to office. During his brief stint in office after breaking away from his godfathers, Ngige embarked on massive construction of roads throughout the entire stretch of the state before he was truncated by the return of Peter Obi to power via a court judgement.

Peter Obi, a man destined to break the yoke of godfatherism.

Till today, no Nigerian politician has faced the type of political battles Peter Obi had to fight when he won the governorship election on APGA. He had to face herculean challenges to restore the mandate freely given to him by the electorate. He was installed the governor on 17 March, 2006 through a court ruling that removed Ngige from office till 2 November 2006 before he was illegally impeached. He went back to court to challenge his impeachment and was returned to office on 9 February 2007 till May 2007.

Obi was yet to complete his term when INEC conducted the gubernatorial election on 29 April, 2007 and declared Andy Uba the winner. Uba was sworn in on May 29th 2007 but spent seventeen days before court gave another landmark ruling that Obi must be allowed to complete his initial four-year term. He was re-appointed on 14 June 2007. He won his re-election and was sworn in on 6 February 2010 for a second term as governor. The election of Obi put paid to the end of godfatherism in Anambra state.

Obi, a prudent and austere administrator for eight years, laid a solid foundation for the take-off of the new Anambra state. It was a moment of new rebirth virtually touching almost all the critical sectors of the economy including construction of rural and feeder roads, education and health sectors, security and urban renewal projects. Among his numerous achievements, he initiated the construction of Anambra International Airport at Umeri to serve as the regional hub for movement of goods and services. He handed over to his successor, Willie Obiano on March 17, 2014.

Enter Willie Obiano

Willie Obiano, a former banker who had a brief stint with Chevron oil company is an accountant but retired as an executive director of Fidelity bank, the financial institution where his predecessor and political associate, Peter Obi has controlling shares. Obiano, an Aguleri man whose area had been dogged with protracted crisis with neighbouring town of Umuleri, made security his priority, and used his experience as a local boy to tame the raging security crisis in all the troubled areas of the state. The notorious upper Iweka in Onitsha that many visitors avoided like plague became a centre of attraction welcoming visitors from all parts of the federation. The state became attractive and investment friendly.

In 2019, the World Bank rated Anambra among the top-5 most improved states in ease of doing business in Nigeria encouraging foreign investments. According to the National Bureau of Statistics report in 2020, Anambra attracted foreign investments worth $10.2 million. The NBS report of 2010 shows that the level of poverty in Anambra state that stood at 53% ten years ago dropped to 14.8% indicating a marginal drop of 35.8%.

Obiano’s re-election severed the good relationship with his predecessor, Obi who left the party from APGA to PDP. Obi supported Oseloka Obaze, the PDP candidate against him but Obiano won convincingly. Obi failed in his bid to reintroduce godfatherism that he fought successfully.

Obiano’s towering legacy project is the completion of Anambra International Airport, Umueri and the 10, 000 capacity International Conference Centre in Awka.

Election of Charles Soludo

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declares Professor Chukwuma Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) the winner of the November 6 governorship election in Anambra. Soludo polled a total of 112,229 votes to defeat his closest rival, Mr Valentine Ozigbo of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) who scored 53, 807 to emerge second.

Soludo won in 19 out of the 21 Local Government Areas of the State.

Professor Charles Soludo contested against Obi in 2009 but failed and had to defect to APGA to win this year’s election. The election of Soludo, a first-class economist and a former governor of CBN affirms the superiority of the party over others in Anambra.

The successful conduct of the 2021 governorship election in the midst of confusion, politically motivated killings, IPOB protests, civil unrests and upheavals in the state has once again demonstrated that Anambra is leading in political maturity and democratic ethos. Political analysts should study how APGA, the political party formed many years ago had outlived its late founder, Sir Emeka Ojukwu, to become a formidable and winning party without an established godfather controlling the levers of government.

Anambra has successfully broken the yoke of institutionalised godfatherism that has successfully been established in Lagos which has stifled the needed development because of 22 years of Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s domination in Nigeria’s commercial city.

Institutionalised godfatherism in Lagos.

I will define political godfatherism in Nigeria as a system put in place by an individual that has so much influence, power, popularity and financial wherewithal to continually sponsor stooges to political offices to benefit surreptitiously to the detriment of the larger society.

Godfatherism entrenched corruption

The evil of godfatherism are

1. Deep seated corruption.

2. Stiffing and depriving the rights of the electorate to freely choose their leaders.

3. Political domination and slavery.

4. Short-changing of critical developments and abandoned projects

Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu fits into this description perfectly in Lagos, he remains the surviving godfather in Nigeria. His words are laws, his brand of godfatherism is known as “Baba sope Baba gbo”.

We had in the past Oloye Olusola Saraki in Kwara state before his son and former senate president Bukola Saraki upstaged his father. Bukola was removed through the O toge revolution. Chief Lamidi Adedibu of the famed “amala politics” held sway in Oyo state before he died.

Before leaving office as governor in 2007, Tinubu entrenched himself both in the critical sectors of the economy to oil his vast political networks. He built a strong political cartel with the planting of his loyalists and acolytes from the grass root to the state levels in all the 57 local capital development centres (LCDA) of the state.

His company, Alpha Beta Consulting (ABC) took over the functions of the state internal revenue board that is constitutionally empowered to collect tax, rates and levies for the government. It is acting as a revenue mobilization and collection advisor to the Lagos State Government which came into existence under him when he was the governor (1999-2007) and charges 10 to 15 percent of the collectible revenues that runs into billions of naira.

He converted choicest and plum government owned landed properties to personal and private use to be shared among his cronies and inner circle associates. For example, the property hosting his TVC television station was built on the publicly owned Lagos state polytechnic. He propped up and engaged political thugs to protect his interests and fight his political battles when the need arises.

Godfatherism breeds street urchins and “Agbero” syndrome

Musiliu Ayinde Akinsanya, alias Mc Oluomo, currently the chairman of the Lagos State National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) chapter and the national treasurer is the head of Tinubu’s wing of political thugs. Akinsanya, an illiterate, used his influence to recruit touts and an unruly army of street urchins popularly called “agbero”. These agbero are found in major parks collecting illegal tolls “owo mi da” (where is my money?) that goes into private pockets. They are well protected, operating freely disrupting vehicular, human and commercial activities. Lagos is the only state in Nigeria that condones and protects this anomaly that has been accepted as a norm.

Mc Oluomo created a reign of terror during elections in Lagos. For example, his boys attacked some Igbo indigenes in Okota area in Okota Isolo local government during the 2019 presidential election. For “good services” rendered in Lagos, he was transported and ‘shipped’ to Osun state to create another mayhem in the 2018 run off governorship election that produced Tinubu’s nephew, Gboyega Oyetola as governor of Osun state. Lagos is currently filled with unemployed and layabout youths building fiefdoms all over the city, collecting illegal levies unhindered on major roads.

This king of agbero is so rich and well connected that he buys properties for his harem of wives and concubines without batting an eye and conveniently sponsors his children’s education abroad.

Election of Ambode a product of godfatherism, anathema to democracy

Tinubu singlehandedly anointed all his successors since 2007, from Babatunde Fashola to Akinwunmi Ambode and the current governor, Babajide Sanwoolu. He has perfected the art of building a political cartel like the Italian Mafiosi of the 60s, ensures law of omerta and subservience to pick a political neophyte that will not be able to tilt or rock his established political structure.

The successors are made to abide by a four-year term deal that will not be renewed but was arm-twisted by political stakeholders to give Fashola a second term because of his sterling performance.

Despite Lagos having the highest IGR of N418.99 billion in the fourth quarter of in 2020 compared to Anambra paltry sum of N28.01 billion, Lagos state, a city slum is faced with development deficits like lack of good roads, portable water, electricity, deplorable heath conditions, environmental pollution, dilapidating educational facilities to mention a few. Lagos is currently faced with a law of diminishing returns with cosmetic achievements in maintaining existing structures and few capital projects undertaken by the state government.

Political rivalry through the succession crisis hampers developments in Lagos state. For example, the imposition of Akinwunmi Ambode by Tinubu over Fashola’s choice of successor, Supo Shonibare stalled many developmental and legacy projects.

For example, when he was sworn in, for the next four years, Ambode deliberately abandoned his successor’s ongoing critical road networks projects like Agric/Ashawo/Asolo road that was meant to link Arepo in Ogun state, the Igbogbo Baiyeku road where houses demolished was abandoned making roads impassable leaving the residents in miserable and harrowing experiences.

Another sore point of the Ambode administration was the cancellation of the PSP programme in the management and disposing of wastes and refuse but replaced with the appointment of Visionscape, a relatively unknown company that has no track record.

The incompetent company turned Lagos into dump sites before it was cancelled but this dubious arrangement led to the loss of N85 billion. This huge sum of money would have revamped the comatose and non-existent heath and deplorable educational facilities in Lagos. Till date, no one has been found guilty over this botched project while Ambode and his cohorts are walking free. If electorates were allowed to make choices, Ambode would probably not have occupied the Alausa house but the benevolence of “Baba sope Baba gbo” made it happen.

The ambitious urban light rail project by Fashola’s administration that is undertaken by China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation CCECC or the Okokomaiko-Iddo-Marina Line that was meant to be completed in 2011 is still ongoing. Ambode deliberately stalled it, causing the state to incur additional funds due to cost variations of the project.

Another drainpipe is the abandonment of Lagos Home Ownership Mortgage Scheme (HOMS). As if all these criminal malfeasances are not enough, we are daily inundated with different monumental corruption cases of magnitude proportions involving the godfather and his foot soldiers.

Godfatherism entrenched corruption

The official cover up of N100 billion fraud, money laundering and tax evasion of Tinubu’s Alpha Beta Consulting made by former Managing Director Mr Dapo Apara is still fresh. Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC have refused to act on the petition submitted by Mr Apara.

The movement of a bullion van containing an undisclosed huge amount of money belonging to Tinubu that contravenes the Nigerian anti money laundering laws which places a cap of N5 million on cash handling by individuals has not been investigated. Recently, Tinubu was recuperating in a UK home which was seized from a Nigerian fugitive, Kola Aluko. Details emerged that he used his nephew governor of Osun state, Gboyega Oyetola as a front to buy the property that is still subject to litigation in court of law below the market price.

Some of his political sons have been fingered in certificate scandals and grand scale corruption. For example, Mudashiru Obasa, the speaker of Lagos state house of assembly, has been fingered in a certificate forgery scandal and allegation of self-enrichment owning more than 40 properties in Lagos alone.



Godfatherism discourages economy development and industrialisation

The grand scale corruption in all facets of life in Lagos has left the city to be reeking under the yoke of godfatherism. Road transportation is the only viable means of transportation hence the absence of good roads, motorable feeder roads and lack of drainages contributes to incessant traffic gridlocks. In addition, owing to increasing operating costs, multiple levies and taxes, many big industries have left Lagos to the neighbouring Ogun state. Industrial corridors of Ikeja, Ilupeju, Amuwo Odofin, Matori, Kirikiri are fast fading away with big companies closing shop. There is an emerging trend and gradual transformation of these industrial axes to religious centres and residential estates.

According to data provided by Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) published by Business Day, Ogun dwarfs Lagos in new real sector investments by 23% between 2014 and 2019. The report further said the constant harassment of corporate organisations to collect multiples taxes (television and radio), land and ticket levies, LASAA have driven small and medium scale to the neighbouring Ogun state. Among other factors are Apapa port congestion and incessant traffic gridlocks.

Furthermore, according to a report conducted by presidential enabling business environment council (PEBEC) chaired by vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Gombe, Sokoto topped the list of 36 states in ease of doing business while Anambra and Lagos are 7th and 20th respectively.

The survey was conducted in conjunction with NEC secretariat, the Nigeria’s governor’s forum, the NBS, NIPC, NEPC and NESG between November 2020 and January, 2021. Gombe has 7.68, Sokoto came second with 6.88. Anambra 6.35 while Lagos is 5.28.

In the education report released by the West African Examination Council in 2019, Anambra came second after Abia state while Lagos is in fourth position among the best performing states.

Conclusion

Godfatherism is evil, it stifles and antithetical to development in the modern era. It is archaic and another form of modern-day slavery. While absolute power corrupts absolutely, Lagos must wean herself from it to free public funds for critical developments that are leaking to private pockets. The people of Lagos should emulate Anambra state that has successfully killed godfatherism otherwise godfatherism will kill Lagos state.

https://olumuyiwa.com.ng/2021/11/14/like-anambra-lagos-must-kill-godfatherism-or-else-pics/

Penguin2:


I make you a promise...

You shall be alive to witness the swearing in of an Igbo man, either from Southeast or Southsouth, on May 29, 2023.

Penguin2:
Rotimi Amaechi is APC candidate for 2023 elections.

Take that to the bank.

And Atiku is PDP candidate.

Atiku/Obi2023 is still a goal!

Penguin2:


But Gbajabiamila is one of its greatest proponents.

What do you say about that?

And meanwhile, that’s where zoning comes in.

If APC zones its ticket to south, then only southern candidates will contest na.

Only PDP has something to worry about.

Especially the Governors that wanted to install who they wanted.

Jostoman:
see them evil supporters club of nairaland

Impregnable101:
So i decided to take to the kitchen today to treat my wife to a delicious meal, but was stunned by the way things have skyrocked in the market . Assorted-1,000 & beef 1,200

Make i kuku leave kitchen mata for madam till bubu carry him wahala comot office

Spy360:

Name one.

Asgard73:


Yoruba man... Na this kinda fake Dey purge belle.

Afamed:
Fake news. This can not happen in the region of the most successful billionaires

BKayy:
Fake news. If Enugu State Government sue you people now, you will start crying that it was a joke or mistake.

Some parts of Enugu, capital of Enugu State have become safe haven for hungry thieves as they now steal boiling soups on fire.

Apart from boiling soups, our investigations revealed that the robbers also steal pots of rice, beans, among others from their owners.

Our investigations further revealed that the robbers stole a pot of soup that was still on fire from the owner at Obiagu in Ogui New Layout recently when the owner went inside the house to pick something.

“My brother, my name is Mrs Ijeomah. We are residing at Ama Awusa in Obiagu. I was cooking a pot of soup that my children and I will eat in the evening. The soup was almost done but I felt the salt was not enough so I decided to get more salt from the house.

“Immediately I went inside the house, I heard a noise and I did not believe that somebody would even think of stealing my pot of soup. The place we are residing is not fenced so it is porous. When I went out, I was surprised to notice that my pot of soup on fire was no more.

“I felt bad about it because my children were waiting for the soup to be done so that they could eat but unfortunately we lost the whole pot of soup to a greedy robber. If the person had told me, I would have given some portions of the soup to him to eat.
Because of that, my children went to bed hungry,” she lamented.

Another victim, who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity, said the same group of thieves stole her pot of soup while it was boiling.

“The level of poverty is alarming. How can somebody come to my house and carry my pot of soup while on fire. This is not a good development at all. I heard that they have been doing this kind of thing for sometime now. I don’t go out again whenever I’m cooking until I get the pot down,” she stated.

It was gathered that apart from stealing of soups, some people are now breaking into foodstuff shops to steal food items in some areas in the state.

PrinceOfLagos:
Tinubu wants to be president by every means possible

Buni will not resign....
I dare Tinubu to do his worst

Anago55:
We Niger Deltans, shame on you guys

Igbos are your problem. Igbos, the land locked barren land with mud is the problem of we Niger Deltans

Meehhhhnnnnn this is funny , Nigeria is a funny country

I am still trying to figure out the rationale behind this bill,Gombe,kogi, Anambra,Borno? Niger Delta members. Lol

Validated:
The next president

redcliff:


frmr cbn govnr stooge to state govnr?

Alexandroanthon:


Fake news like CNN

hope4nigeria:
Bandit Dem. E pain am

PrinceOfLagos:

Tinubu will be disappointed at your comment

seguno2:


All the ports (sea and air) don’t count
Who is mad now?

DOTian:
The federal government should stop giving Lagos State any sort of monthly allocations unless as relief funds for say any sort of reasonable natural disasters..
The federal government has already helped Lagos to build up solid infastructure base more than any other state bar Abuja. This has given Lagos enough headstart in terms of monthly/yearly tax incomes bigger than that of most west African countries. I don't know why they will be dragging paltry allocations with the likes of Plautue, Osun or Ebony afterwards...

Many west African States are handling mega projects bigger than whatever Fashola or Sanwo Olu have done in Lagos State. Yet Lagos earns bigger revenue but will always comparing herself with tiny Nigerian states. If the people of Lagos State are not willing to take actions to extricate themselves from the evil grip of the Tinubu odious dynasty, they should be forced to stew in their own juice! We can't be sharing our tiny oil money with some drug lord and his platoon of rampaging evil oligarchs..
Pls..

nzeobi:


APC made progress in SS/SE cos buhari was an incumbent and mobilized cash.
The problems in Oyo,osun and APC are still there and mind you osibanjo registered and votes in Lagos and don't forget that SW is sophisticated and shares votes,they don't give block votes

melaniaup:


And you think if northerners play their game they buhari won't allow himself to be sack for atiku to enter, buhari is only trying his best to keep things okay

But the north will want it

melaniaup:


https://www.google.com/amp/s/pmnewsnigeria.com/2021/10/16/appeal-court-sets-date-for-suit-seeking-atikus-inauguration-as-president/%3famp=1

Read this before it becomes obvious that they well trying to play

nzeobi:



Lol how did APC perform or break in PDP stronghold in the south.
Mind PDP won their traditional States even in the south west where the APC VP came from PDP won ondo lost Oyo with a thousand vote, osun with 10 thousand and ekiti with less than 30k. Lagos was even close as the VP lost his polling booth and APC had to rely on violence in PDP strongholds and then ogun where there was no election