By
Hon. Rahman Owokoniran
Since the outcome of the election results of 25th February in the state, Lagos State has come under siege. Democracy has been under threat. The state is being thrown into turmoil by the political gladiators, while the elite look away.
All manner of threats have been made to voters, warning them to vote for the incumbent Governor or get punished. There is even a video of one of the henchmen of the ruling party, where he threatened that those who would vote against his party should not bother to come out to vote or they would regret doing so.
All these and many more of such threats are mild, compared to the tribal drum of war narratives and songs that make the news round daily. It is disheartening that the Lagos of the 21st Century has been relegated to this kind of atrocious behaviour. Lagos, as a city-state is incomparable to any other in Nigeria or Africa. It can only be comparable to New York, London, Paris and few others that enjoy mega-city status.
It has to be clear to us that we cannot have it both ways. We either take our place in the global village or retain our tribal status and live with our primordial heritage.
“The Ibos are on a mission to take over Lagos” is a slogan being directed at the Labour Party (LP) Governorship Candidate, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, who is a Lagosian. It matters not that the family’s root is traceable to the 1800s, as long as the Labour Party is headed by an Ibo man.
Deeper search indicated that this candidate’s mom and other relatives have Ibo connections.
Despite the candidate’s family ties being well entrenched in Lagos, tension continues to mount stronger and stronger to no abate. The repercussions of this will not materialise until the D-Day when it might be too late. Whoever is responsible for this recklessness is callous, greedy and wicked. After all, the ruling party has been governing Lagos State for close to 24 years.
This group had all the opportunity to transform Lagos in whatever form and bungled it.
Most importantly, the indigenous population could have taken advantage of governance. Instead, Lagosians, in the midst of plenty, continue to languish in poverty. Those who systematically ruined Lagosians and impoverished them are now afraid of losing control, hence recruiting the gullible and vulnerable Lagosians to help retain control at all cost. If the ruling cabal had worked for the preservation of these heritages, would Lagosians have been selling their heritage?
These perceived enemies of Lagos “Ibos” had been recruited at the highest management level by the ruling party without any fear. The Ibos had been the biggest investor in the economy of Lagos after the Lebanese, thanks to the ruling party.
If the foreign investors can partner with Lagos to strengthen our economy, why not the local investors?
In reality, however, the ongoing fear mongering is an attempt to distract us so that the current rulers can continue their business as usual. However, the good people of Lagos had expressed their opinion on the 25th February. Their message was loud and clear: “We have had enough of this ruling party, hence the need for change.“ You cannot go back now.
The ruling cabal ignored the people’s opinions for too long; and now they are willing to tell you anything to change your mind. If you believe them, you will believe anything at your own peril. Don’t be fooled again. Remember their many lies, especially the change mantra of 2015. Not again! Let us try someone else.
HON. RAHMAN OWOKONIRAN IS SOUTH-WEST ZONAL SECRETARY OF THE PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC PARTY (PDP) AND COORDINATING LEADER OF THE ATIKU PEOPLE UNITED (APU)