A former Federal lawmaker, Hon. Lanre Odubote, represented the Epe Federal Constituency between 2011 and 2015. Currently a chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Odubote in this interview with OLAOLU OLADIPO, talked about several issues ranging from his assessment of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu govt, the numerous allegations against it as well as the chances of the coalition platform, the ADC, in 2027. Excerpt:

As a member of the APC, when you want to do a kind of general assessment, how would you rate the current government? What have been the government’s major accomplishments?

There is stability in the economy. Go to the filling stations right now, there are no more queues at filling stations. The Naira has now been properly valued.

So, we have stability in the economy and the prices of goods and services are now coming down. We do not buy fuel less than N700 per litre. For the first time in many years, we enjoyed our Christmas without going to the filling stations like we used to do before.

The only thing I have to tell our people is to exercise some restraint and patience to be able to tap the benefits of these reforms being carried out by the current government because if you are talking about reforms, there can never be any benefits without pain.

You have to invest before you can reap. So as far as I’m concerned, this is the first time since Independence that we have stability in our polity and the economy. The National Assembly has been cooperating with the executive to move the country.

Your observation seems to be in contrast with what the opposition is saying that the president is taking too many decisions at the same time and that what the government ought to be doing is to be taking these decisions on an incremental basis, so as not to cause hardship for the people. What do you have to say to that?

To address the issue of hardship in the country, there can never be gains without some pains. You are talking about a system. The channel has a time frame.

Anything we are supposed to do today, don’t leave it till tomorrow. For example, removing the fuel subsidy at the time it was removed.

So as far as we are seeing the whole thing, because you have this time frame, everything has to be put in place as quickly as possible for us to be able to achieve this ambition and demand that was fully given to him.

So as far as things are concerned, he has to move faster because he has to go back to the electorate to seek another term of office.

You believe he is on the path of moving faster so as to earn the confidence of the electorate in view of the prevailing hardship we see all over the country now?

We are moving towards an integrated political system whereby all the states are now coming together. They can’t just be coming together if they have not seen something good in this administration.

Don’t you think that might, in the words of the opposition, breed a one-party state?

I agree. I have said it to many people before. In a diverse culture, religion and everything, we need some form of political unification and integration for nation-building.

Not necessarily that we have to be a one-party state, but there must be a dominant political structure to be able to harness all these diverse attributes for us to achieve a political integration that we can use as a platform for nation-building. So, Nigeria is moving towards a prosperous, integrated and advanced growth in our economy.

How do you see the challenge posed by the opposition coalition of the ADC to the APC?

ADC is the same thing as PDP, as far as I’m concerned. Every- body knows them. Are you talking about (former Vice President) Atiku |(Abubakar) in ADC? You are talking about my boss, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal in ADC. Are they not from PDP? So I don’t see them making any difference in 2027.

Are you saying that they are not in a proper position to challenge your party?

Well, they don’t have the sagacity to challenge the Jagaban (President Bola Tinubu). Where is the PDP in any Nigerian state? They are no longer visible in the country. No more opposition in Nigerian state. Come next election, you will see the way we are going to challenge them and we are going to replicate it all over the country. As far as the political system is concerned, APC is the party to compete with.

You are achieftain of the APC; some people accuse your party of fueling crises in the opposition parties. How do you see this allegation? Do you think it’s true?

You don’t want us to go and help our opponent to stabilise their house. It is their headache if they cannot put their house together. We are not ready to go and help them sort themselves out. So they should go and find a way out of their problems. Maybe they will need to come and learn the tricks from Jagaban himself, the chief commander of Nigerian politics.

The current government has been accused again of unduly, should I say, favouring the Yoruba ethnic nationality, while neglecting some other segments of the country, particularly the North and the East. From this allegation, do you think the APC will do well in areas other than non-Yoruba-speaking areas?

You cannot allege without proof. Former President (Muhammadu) Buhari was there for eight years. You saw the appointments he made.

Even during (former President Goodluck) Jonathan, I was in the National Assembly when Jonathan was the president, who was the SGF? Who was the speaker of the House of Reps, Who was the minister for finance?

Go and look at the way the appointments that were made by him, they were mainly from the people from the Eastern part of the country. So, we were badly marginalised during those two eras.

We didn’t complain. So, as far as we are saying this, let them prove it. The constitution is so clear about how to do your appointments as the president.

You believe the president has addressed it to the best of his knowledge and within the ambit of the law?

Yes! There is a Federal Character Commission that will address that issue. If you have any issue that you want to complain of, raise it properly or go to court. If there is any marginalisation based on the constitutional provisions, I have not seen anything.

Now let’s look at the project distribution of the current government. Do you think the government has been fair to all parts of the country?

I see that as another thing that they are crying over and there is nothing. You are talking about federal projects,how many projects are in the Southern part? Is it because they are doing Lagos-Calabar or something? Look at the number of states that the thing will pass through. Lagos-Sokoto Highway.

Go and see Kaduna-Zaria-Kano. Yes, I’ve said it. There is also Abuja-Kaduna road that is ongoing. Go and see Abaji down to Okene and I’m aware that they have awarded Okene to Ekpoma Road too.

All the projects are well and fairly distributed across the country. Have you passed through Lagos- Ibadan Expressway in recent times? Yes, it’s in the South West.

And up to now, have they completed the IbadanIlorin Expressway? You can also see the deplorable state of some Federal roads in the South West. I mean roads like the Ikorodu down to Sagamu Expressway.

Are we complaining? Even the Ikorodu to Epe, the only thing going on are palliative works. Those are the roads that need federal attention but we are not complaining, rather we have seen concrete roads moving from Lokoja to Abuja. I’ve passed through that place in recent time.

Fine road! And the same things are planned over the federation. So, the federal budgets have been fairly allocated and properly executed with very solid materials, concrete materials with iron rods.

Governors and lawmakers from the opposition parties are defecting daily to the APC. Do you think this is a good omen for your party ahead of the 2007 general election?

I’ve told you before that if they don’t see anything good in this government, they won’t come to the party to be part of it.

It seems that the government is doing something good to attract opponents into its fold and between me and you, someone who has been living with just N10 as a governor from the federation account but now because of the reforms, they’re receiving N150.

Even more than that, more money will still go to the states again. And they will have the opportunity to have enough resources to deploy, to face security challenge and some other problems confronting their respective states.

So, if you are a good government that is focused, that has vision, they would really want to align with the centre. So, as far as we are concerned in the APC, they are welcome.

They are welcome and I can assure you, Nigerians are with us. All those people crying, they are just disgruntled and expired politicians.

Finally, sir, if you are to meet the president, whom you know very well, what advice would you give to him in terms of things to do in the second term?

I will tell him to ensure that his second term of office should be dedicated to completing all those ongoing projects to strengthen the economic development of the country and particularly, the Naira.

He must also make sure that he collab- orates with other stakeholders to better the security situation of the country from what it is now.

When this is done, it will enhance food security and make people happier, thus alleviating poverty.

Then youth development, capital development, human capital development should be a major focus, so that we will be able to withstand whatever technological advancement that is coming from here and there.