The tortoises are out of their cunning shells to politically enthrall Lagosians with deceptive spells. Fortune of governance has always fallen on our dear Lagos, choosing the wrong leader to serve Lagosians would spell doom for the excellence our city of commerce has manifested. The British met a thriving Lagos when they invaded the city in 1851. Historically, Lagos was declared a British colony on 5 March 1862. Lagos, a cosmopolitan trading center, grew in population, welcoming professionals from all walks of life. The Lagos spirit is a wisdom that Lagosians take everywhere they go. The ‘Eko lo’n pe bi’ parlance subtly reminds you never to lose your guard as a stranger in Lagos.
Lagos is strategically positioned in Southwestern Nigeria, the smallest city by landmass, but the most populous city and the most developed state in Nigeria. Even though Nigeria has 6 geopolitical zones with 36 states including the FCT, Lagos continues to attract citizens from across the country,seeking greener pastures, because the land offers unique opportunities.
In Nigeria, a business that has not gotten to Lagos has not really realized its potential. Lagos State in the last four years has experienced remarkable developments that made the United States of America site its biggest embassy in the world in Lagos. The tranquility Lagos is experiencing under the Babajide Sanwo-olu administration has made her a top Investment destination in Nigeria, with an FDI of $221 million.
From the inception of Babajide Sanwo-Olu’’s administration, Lagos has not had it bad in any way. 2022 is the year, China Harbour handed over Lekki Deep Sea Port to the Lagos Sate Government. The conceptualization of the Lekki Deep Sea port happened in 2007, the ground-breaking ceremony never happened until June 2020, with the intervention of the current administration led by Governor Sanwo-olu.
Mr. Sanwo-Olu is currently etching his name in history by investing enormously in the housing projects around the Lekki corridor, to make the upper-middle market, middle market and also the medium to low earners working in and around the Lekki Deep Sea Port, have access to affordable housing.
Political leadership requires experience, competence, commitment, and character. Governing Lagos is an elephantine task that cannot be undertaken by a neophyte. It is good to have quality education from leading global institutions, but brilliance has never been seen to substitute experience. Even, the quality of the schools we attend does not confer brilliance on anyone automatically. So the faux drama in the Lagos political space is really hilarious because we have countless educated illiterates in our political space. Candidates must show pedigree, prove themselves, to endear voters to their vision.
The Labour Party gubernatorial candidate Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour needs to right his dismal political history, which began with unsuccessful Local government chairmanship and Senatorial election attempts. There are no known track records of Chinedu Rhodes Vivour of the Labour party apart from being an intern.
Lagos is not an experimental state for internship by a novice that is just opening his eyes to see the political sun. The lousy PDP guber candidate in Lagos, Abdul Azeez Babajide Jandor, and his childish cry of neglect by the leaders of his party will not be ignored. The PDP leaders in Lagos having discovered Jandor is chasing the shadows of masquerade with his political voyage saw no substance in his overnight governorship aspiration. It is safe to say the opposition parties in Lagos State are embarking on a journey that would lead them to a primordial abyss with the campaign of calumny they are running against the ruling party.
All things being the same, GRV and Jandor should be subjected to 8 years of political tutelage in Babajide Sanwo-olu’s school of Leadership and Governance. The risk and crisis management skills of Mr. Governor were put to test at a point, however, he stayed cool under fire, and succeeded in saving our lives as the Chief Incident Commander during the pandemic. I am banking on the wisdom of Lagosians to make the right choice by voting Sanwo-Olu on Saturday so the incomparable developmental projects in Lagos State can continue.
BY MOSHOOD ABEEB A. ABIOLA
