Why other states must emulate Lagos

Sir: The media space, particularly, the social media, has recently being inundated with the image of Babajide Sanwoolu, the incoming governor of Lagos State attending the Harvard Kennedy School of Business for a specialized course on, “Leading Economic Growth” in the prestigious Harvard University, USA.

Little wonder that Lagos State continues to excel in both political and economic leadership among the federating state entities in Nigeria, and their governors continue to tower successively over and above their counterparts. This is because, all things considered, Lagos has long understood effective political governance as something that is never wished into being nor decreed into existence by any abracadabra of ethnic, tribal, religious sentiments.

The intriguing thing is that just about the same time as Sanwoolu is headed to Harvard for this specialised course in economic governance, a section of his other counterparts are on their way to Dubai, not for any similar tutorial on time-tested scientific principles of governance but for sheer epicurean gratification dubious dubbed “strategic meeting” all at the expense of the public patrimony.

Soon, and very soon, and almost now is, the end of tenure will creep in like a thief in the night, and like many before, the governors will be caught unaware and will begin to scramble in desperation to have something to show in order to justify their quests for the next election, for those doing their first term. Politicking, rather than governance, will become the highest gainer on the leadership stock, just as finger pointing and character assassination will follow, event as experts in propaganda will come in high demands as communication strategists to do the yeoman’s job of twisting narratives and facts to suit the political motives of their principals.


Of course, the people will be worse for it all. Their sense of modesty will be assaulted by the ensuing hullabaloo and intense politicking attendant to such political enterprise. People’s reasoning power will suffer untold twists on account of propaganda and counter propaganda. The factual realities of infrastructural deficits, insecurity, social and political imbroglio, economic hardship and all such clear indices of mis-governance shall be explained away in convoluted diction, leaving the people more fazed as to where lies the truth between the two narratives in the propaganda and counter propaganda.

Thereafter, the gladiators settle, each to his spoils of settlement while the needs will continue to gape at the people as another round of politicking starts to equally continue the vicious circle of our restless run to a neverland.

In all of these, there is a glimmer of hope in the little light that Lagos political leadership shines in their understanding of the overriding importance of scientific angle to political leadership beyond sheer politicking, despite the ugly dot of allegation of personality cultism, as it places high premium in equipping its leadership for the task of governance in the 21st century modern world. Will others emulate Lagos State political leadership or remained in their adamantine denial of the leadership truth that Lagos has continued to champion?


Chris Edache Agbiti, Esq Abuja.