…says promoters of coalition are confused
A member of the seventh National Assembly, Hon. Lanre Odubote, represented Epe Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives. In this interview with OLAOLU OLADIPO, he spoke on a number of issues relating to the state of the nation. Excerpts:
As a chieftain of the APC, how do you see this alignment and realignment of political forces ahead of the 2027 general election?
Okay, my view is so simple. If you see some people opposing the present administration, such persons must be confused. As for those coming together to form a coalition, I see them as confused people because they don’t even know what to do (to put in place a viable opposition. They don’t even know how to start.
Why do you say so?
I am talking about some people who have contested elections and have lost. Is it not best for them to put their hands on deck in order to come and challenge the current government as a virile opposition? Coalition cannot work for a government that is performing anyway. We know where we are coming from till how we got to where we are. The military bastardised this country. They stayed too long in our political arena. The people talking about coalition are selfish and are power mongers. So, I don’t see how far they can go.
Don’t you think it was the endorsement of the president months ago by the APC that prompted these coalition moves?
In a political time, there is no democracy at all. Anybody can endorse, anybody can move from anywhere in life but in terms of the critical thing, that’s what I’m talking about, why are you moving to coalesce? Are you coalescing parties like we did in 2015? Yes, 2015. What we did was ACN surrendered their identity. The CPC surrendered their identity. APP surrendered their identity. They formed a coalition, a new party.
Are you now saying that they’ve taken the wrong step?
What I mean is that their action died on arrival. A lot of people are confused about politics. They don’t know what to do to legally and legitimately wrest power from someone who is a grand master. They should go and retire. They’re even fighting someone that’s a veteran.
You said that the president is doing well. Don’t you think that runs contrary to what people are saying that this government has not really done much?
Everybody is entitled to their opinion. I started this interview by saying we don’t know where we are coming from. I will give a perfect example to illustrate my point very well. During the last Christmas, there was no petrol queue at the petrol stations. Fuel products were available. The government was able to do this because of the clear cut bold economic policies that it put in place by removing all the corruption and corrupt practices around the issue of fuel subsidy removal. The dividends are now beginning to pay off for all to see. This is just one of the series of gains that we have recorded in the bold economic reforms that the government is putting in place which are now yielding fruits for all to see. Sincerely, only a person like Bola Ahmed Tinubu can do this and I have to tell all Nigerians that we need to sustain this momentum. We must sustain economic development by providing infrastructure, roads, communication, electricity, health, and education. So, actually, as far as I’m concerned, we have embarked on a fruitful journey that we’re making to get 80 percent votes, come 2027.
And apart from the fact that you are saying that the people forming this coalition are acting in bad faith. Don’t you think it is within their democratic right to come together?
No, it is just that the Nigerian constitution does not even allow for an individual to contest for an election on his own, such an individual must belong to a political party. They have rights to form an association, but we are talking about constitutional democracy, where you must go and learn, go and register. If you have a party that is already in a coma, then you drop the thing that you are aligned with another party. Not for frustrated people, depressed people, jumping from one party to the other. I know a particular person who has contested in four parties.
A lot is actually happening in the APC. Some people argue that the ouster of Abdullahi Umar Ganduje as national chairman might just possibly be that there is an internal crisis within the APC. What is really happening?
Let me tell you, in any situation where you have a large population, various interests come into play, so therefore, interests of the various tendencies must be articulated and aggregated. There must be negotiation bargaining everywhere. The essence of democracy or party processes or party programmes is only to win the election, to garner votes. It’s only when you win the election that you can be talking about having a programme. What is happening to APC now is that the party is restructuring. What is happening in the APC is an attempt by the party to restructure itself. We are facing the second term of a performing president who has been putting a lot of things on the table and we are seeing that the benefits are coming out now gradually. I’m not confirming anything that is happening there, but I’m telling you, the party has the right to organise itself and for them to be able to win the next election and be able to garner votes that will make it win.
Don’t you think what is happening will threaten cohesion and unity within the party?
That can’t happen in the APC, the party is cohesive and properly functioning as an indivisible whole. Like I said before, what is taking place, is the party is restructuring itself to win future elections. The President who is the leader of the APC is carrying everybody along and you know the power of the president of Nigeria, all the structure, all the resources, human resources, capital resources that will be deployed to ensure that the party remains very strong. The only thing that everyone is working towards is for the party to come together.
What kind of restructuring do you think is going on?
I’m not a member of the national executive of the APC even though I am one of the leaders in my state. People at the national level can give you the insight as to what they are doing; I don’t know what they are doing. But I’m just analysing that it’s important for every human being that’s in position to prepare for future elections so they can garner more votes to win the party. See, that’s what they are doing. For those in the opposition, I must say that they have every right to position their party and reorganise for future challenges, especially to win elections.
Recently, there were party primaries where local government candidates of the APC were picked to contest the forthcoming local government officials and the process generated some kind of uproar. As a stakeholder in Lagos State, what’s your view of the process that threw up these candidates?
Have you seen anybody challenging the process at the court of law? It was an acceptable process to all the contestants and their supporters. Since there has not been any form of dissatisfaction about the process and no one has challenged that process that shows that all is well within the party in Lagos. You know that in the past month, the same people whom you said are disgruntled are now busy campaigning because July 12 is around the corner. The most important thing ultimately is for the government to be very close to the people and that is what the local government structure stands to do. That particular level is an important level. It’s a participatory level. It’s a level that’s important to leverage everybody in society for them to contribute to their quota by engaging their leaders, by telling them their needs. So, Lagos State is so fortunate. We have 57 structures and there was a party primary and nobody went to court to challenge the process. That shows that we are moving. We are a model for other parties to emulate.
There were some protests here and there in some local governments…
Normally, in any democracy, there must be protests. It is a part of democratic culture. You must protest. You must allow people to air their views and there will be reconciliation, which I know they have been doing. I know that the party has set up a mechanism where people will sit down together and iron out things. Only one position is available, but people have the right to contest that position. It’s a competitive game and the best will definitely emerge.
And you believe in the long run your party will win?
Since we started the local government elections in 1999, I have not seen a local government that has been ruled by a minority party or an opposing party. We are always in the majority.
Recently, the Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu was reconciled with President Bola Tinubu. Do you think that we now have a durable peace in Lagos State with respect to the party and the government?
Lagos State has been running smoothly without any hiccups. So, if there’s any friction between our leader and his boy in the state, it’s a family matter. Nobody is perfect. That’s why, you see, the president has a very large heart. He is someone who doesn’t keep malice or harbour ill-feelings against anyone. If you offend him, he will let you know that you have offended him. See all those boys that started with him in 1999, some left, they went to another party. When they came back, he accepted them. One of our leaders left as a leader, so he came back.
What about the Lagos State House of Assembly. There was schism within the assembly a few months ago. Do you think all is now well with the assembly?
Everybody now in the Assembly is working with the Speaker who has been carrying everyone along. I don’t see anybody bickering for one thing or the other. They are passing bills from time to time and they are making the laws for good governance of the state. They are passing motions. They all have full confidence in the speaker. There’s no problem in Lagos State House.
