Fashola the Ideal

Fashola the Ideal

  

Babatunde Raji Fashola

The immediate past governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Raji Fashola SAN would be the subject of several books in the wake of his impactful administration. One book that stands out in its documentation of the true character of this celebrated leader is edited by Sam Omatseye with the title, The Example-The Era of Babatunde Fashola as Governor of Lagos State. In his opening note, Omatseye craved the indulgence of the readers in tolerating some pieces because not every one of the contributors is a writer. But reading through, one could hardly bookmark any part that was poorly written because of the masterly editing that the copies had been subjected to. A reader should not expect any less of Omatseye, a multiple-award winning journalist, poet, playwright and novelist.

The book has 36 chapters and 35 contributors. If you subtract those figures, you have one. Incidentally, that chapter is the last and it is the index. The writers include the state commissioners, his deputy, special advisers, heads of state parastatals and the former governor of Ekiti State, John Kayode Fayemi who wrote the first chapter. The narrative is quite engaging, albeit each writer takes on a different aspect of Fashola’s public life. Every chapter has a hint of humour, painting Fashola as a man of an intriguing personality, who made tough decisions in office and still earns public trust. In time, his popularity transcended Lagos and he became the cynosure of all eyes across the country and in the globe. An eloquent speaker, he delivered numerous keynote addresses at home and abroad while the people who worked closely with him in the eight years of service to Lagos made key notes on him. For one, they all agreed that the bespectacled middle-aged lawyer has a very deep passion for Lagos.

The foreword was written by Prof. Itse Sagay SAN, who was a former dean of the Faculty of Law, University of Benin where Fashola was a student. Apart from making his heart swell, the deeds of Fashola touched the senior advocate.
“In comportment, the Governor is humble, simple, unobtrusive, polite, cultured and compassionate. His entourage moves through Lagos unnoticed and without fuss.” These words of Prof Sagay bring to mind a pioneer idea that the former governor brought to Lagos, “ a horn-free day”. It was to reduce noise pollution and compel drivers to be more careful and patient on wheels. Additionally, it was a representation of Fashola’s stance towards decorum and a considerate treatment of others. He was repeatedly described by the writers as a technocrat turned politician without becoming political in his inclinations. Fashola’s dedication became infectious to others. He wouldn’t tolerate late coming as every defaulter, including himself, had to pay a fine. Restless, highly-principled, dogged and undeterred, he restricted the use of commercial motorcycles and followed up on the resultant effect of that difficult decision on security and health care. It was reported that crime rate dropped and the number of motorcycle-related accidents dwindled in the state following that famous Lagos traffic law. Lanre Babalola, the Chief of Staff to Fashola, took the liberty to described Fashola as “the hardest-working governor in Nigeria” and that was buttressed unwittingly by other writers such as Idris Ibikunle Olorunnimbe and of course his aide-de-camp, Ishola Fisayo.

The latter claimed that in all his eight years of working with Fashola, he couldn’t figure out how many hours of sleep the governor had because he was always in constant communication with him and other aides sometimes till 4 a.m. Given the demands of the job, Fashola was occasionally temperamental when he discovered that certain duties had been abandoned by his subordinates. While commuting from one public function to another, he would peep through the window, inspecting the state of the roads, street lights, road signs, dilapidated buildings and would promptly put everyone concerned on their toes.
In the area of sports development, Fashola’s affinity for football as a child played a pivotal role in his commitment to sports. As Enitan Oshodi pointed out, Fashola paid attention to nurturing young talents to reduce the cases of age-falsification; employed foreign coaches as consultants to the state on athletics and football, while his administration completed four new stadia. Another writer, Hakeem Bello, who was the special adviser on media to Fashola, acknowledged that the former Governor was very accessible to the public and kept them abreast of his programmes. His website, tundefashola.com was the most vibrant governor’s website in the country. He also held regular townhall meetings and stakeholders’ consultations before taking decisions. Interestingly too, every writer seems to have an alias for Fashola. To Fayemi, Fashola is a “class captain”. To Hakeem Bello, the former governor is “the chief salesman of an administration”.

One writer who could have single-handedly written the book was the former Commissioner for health, Dr. Jide Idris. His chapter, titled, “Healthcare: Healing A State, Saving A Nation” is one of the longest in the book. One major highlight of Fashola’s contribution to this sector was to put Nigeria on the global map as the first populous African country to stop the spread of Ebola Virus Disease. From personal to national concern, Walter Olatunde and Akinola Kojo-Sagoe shows how Fashola had unknowingly prepared for such medical emergency with the availability of disaster management services. His development of agriculture, quest for climate control through the green revolution and fulfilment of promises for the educational sector were discussed in the book. Fashola, through his actions, demonstrated to others that there is dignity in labour. Under his administration, the men and women who clean the street were referred to and treated as “highway managers”. Also, urban transit system was reformed with the introduction of Bus Rapid Transit, with special lanes and relative comfort for commuters.

Like the legacies of Fashola, the book has the potential of being passed on from generation to generation. The book might not have said it all but it has said so much about the exemplary nature of a leader who many envisage will be an essential part of the true change that Nigerians yearn for.