Dr. Ayobami Lam-Adesina, is the eldest son of former Oyo State governor, Lam Adesina. He tells OLUFEMI ATOYEBI about his father and his political career
How did the late Lam Adesina act on the day of election?
I remember that my father was usually calm because he had agents at all polling units. Some of them would be among the electorate. After voting, they would come home and accompany him and his wife to vote. They returned home and discussed political issues. They monitored the elections through reports from the agents and his aides who were at the polling units.
During counting of the votes, he had the feel of the voting pattern from each of the wards in the same way. From his position at home, he ensured that his people were not harassed at the polling units in each of the wards. The safety and comfort of the agents were more important to him because he understood the possible danger lurking around during elections.
What was your father’s view on leadership?
To my dad, leadership does not belong to a particular class. Nigeria is blessed with people of diverse intellectual ability. Many of them came from a humble background like my father, who was a mere secondary school principal and later, he became a governor in the state.
How did your father handle his political victory in 1999 and loss in 2003?
He felt privileged to serve the people and he did his best. What he was looking forward to was to lead the people but he was rigged out and he accepted it as an act of God. As far as my father was concerned, he had the opportunity to serve the people of Oyo State as their governor and just like he always said, nothing lasts forever. When you hold a position, it is for a period of time. You may be there today and tomorrow, you are gone.
Before the election result was announced, did he say things that doubted his victory at the poll?
Yes, he had the feeling that the ruling party at the centre, the Peoples Democratic Party, was planning to rig the election. But he was not bothered. He told me that he had the opportunity to rule for four years. He did his best and believed that his legacy would live on.
Did visitors coming to his house reduce after the loss and was he receiving lesser phone calls?
That is equally interesting. It is very important to learn from heroes. The late Bola Ige lost in 1983 after four years as governor but he led a life of total fulfillment. He held to his principle and the crowd or number of calls did not dwindle. He remained a leader and came up with floating the Alliance for Democracy. Equally, my father did not experience dwindling number of calls and visitors after his electoral loss. Even long after his death, we still talk about him and that is why people continue to celebrate him. He stood on the side of the people, fought for them and implemented people-oriented projects. Irrespective of challenges of life, people who lose election can still triumph if they stand with their principle. Heroes don’t fear failure, they move on.
What is your reaction to the campaign strategies employed by leading contestants of the presidential election before this general election?
It has been described as hate campaign. Every political campaign comes with its attendant challenges. I see this period as the time for political struggle. However, politics without bitterness must always be embraced. We should discuss ideas and not personality. I have had the opportunity to contest in a governorship primary and, I did not abuse my opponent, Governor Abiola Ajimobi, during the campaign. It is sad that people are moving away from the politics of our past heroes, who focused on the politics of policies. The late leader, Obafemi Awolowo, never abused President Shehu Shagari, he only pointed out what he would have done as president.
Is Nigeria’s politics mature?
It should be at this stage but the characteristics we are talking about do not demonstrate political maturity. However, I don’t think all politicians abuse themselves. There are exemptions.
Do you have a Permanent Voter Card and when did you get it?
I collected mine a couple of weeks ago.
If the election had not been postponed, would you have voted?
No, because I got it after it was rescheduled.
What then is your response to the idea of postponement?
I was out of the country for a while after failing at first attempt. The good thing is that many people now have the card. I understand that in Oyo State, the number has risen to around 72 per cent. Our people came out and voted well. The Independent National Electoral Commission must ensure that elections are free and fair.
Nigeria is now far away from conducting simple elections. That reflects the quality of the society we now have, which is linked to the quality of leadership we have. We are supposed to be a democratic example for many other countries, not just in Africa. By now, we should have moved to a point whereby we will be a shining example to others. I worked for many years in the United Kingdom and took part in the voting process; no one gave us a card or brought card readers to check rigging. I will not blame INEC for introducing card readers, it’s the reflection of our society and the kind of leadership we have.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of the added six weeks to the elections dates?
One of the advantages is that more people were able to collect their PVCs. Politicians also had the added opportunity of selling themselves to the people and we have seen a renewed fight against insurgency. However, we have also seen a situation where politicians used the period to buy peoples’ conscience with the kind of money that we should have used to develop Nigeria.
Do you think the poll shift changed the electoral chances between APC and PDP?
We will have to wait for the result of the election and the subsequent elections in April.
How would you describe your father’s political ideology?
He was a progressive to the core, up to his death. He is a kind of person who believed that government must implement policies that will support the masses. In his lifetime, he was an advocate of free education at all levels, free primary health care service, gainful employment, rural development and many more. If he were to be alive, he would not have supported pensioners not being paid. He would have canvassed for their rights because it is statutory role of government.
Did he share any political secret about Oyo State with you before his death?
He did not just focus on Oyo State. He attended University of Nigeria Nsukka and loved this country. The progressive APC states that are doing well today put their policies on population-focused services. Some PDP states are doing the same thing. That was the policy that my father imbibed.
Don’t you think politicians are not doing enough to educate their supporters?
No politician should see political competition as do-or-die affair. The job of a politician is to sell his or her programme to the people. The people will look at the programmes and decide which of them suits their expectations. The fact that a politician loses today does not mean that he will lose again. The concern of candidates should be how to steer the ship of this nation to safety. We should know that power belongs to the people and ultimately, to God. He chooses leaders.
Would your father have supported President Goodluck Jonathan in his re-election bid?
Let me tell you a story to support my father’s integrity status. In 1980 or 1981 when he was a member of Federal House of Representatives, there was a revenue allocation bill that the National Party of Nigeria wanted to pass and take a particular percentage from. Legislators from the Unity Party of Nigeria felt that the allocation would not do the masses any good and they opposed it. The majority of the NPN legislators sent a prominent UPN member to my father to influence him. They brought huge sums of money to our house then but he told them to take the money away. He told them that he would not be a party to fraudulent acts. During the voting on the floor of the house, NPN did not get what it wanted. My father stood for what he believed. He did not sell his integrity. If he were to be alive today, he would have spoken out against what is bad about this administration and rejected any overture. It is a pity that people like him and Bola Ige are no longer alive. They would have spoken for the masses.
Would you say your father was a rich man?
My father was never a rich man. I rose to become a director in public health service in the United Kingdom because of how he trained me. I worked hard to achieve my goal in life. We were six in number and he gave us the best public education he could offer.
Did he encourage his children to go into politics?
As far as he was concerned, he did not stand in the way of anyone who wanted to go into politics. But he always told us that we must study hard and reach the pinnacle of private practice to be relevant in politics.
Did he ever face a political challenge and how did he overcome?
His political life was all rosy. The military government of Sani Abacha put him in jail because they did not like his stance on the military regime. He was a strong man and he survived the era.
How did he fund his campaign?
When he contested during elections, integrity was all he spent, not money. Like I said, he was not rich, whatever God gave him, he used it to fund progressive-minded people. They came around him and supported him when he put himself forward for public service.
How did violence become a common feature of Oyo State politics?
One of the challenges that Nigeria has now is because that when it comes to political competition, it becomes a do-or-die affair. In the days of Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Bola Ige and my father, some of us that experienced the activities then knew that they did not go after each other’s throat because they wanted to rule. It is normal in a democratic setting to have different parties and it is normal for people to support different parties. It is also normal to understand that after the elections, normal life will return. We must have peaceful co-existence. People must be free to vote for any candidate or party of their choice and that decision must be respected. We must see ourselves as brothers and sisters. Our main goal must be for the development of this nation. When we go through electoral process, we must maintain peace as my father would always preach.
What can be done to make politicians less desperate in holding on to power?
Before now, getting to power was viewed as a call to service and not about making money. One of the challenges of our time is that political positions are now seen as avenue to make a lot of money. Government is now viewed as big business. The basic social services that should be common features of our society are not there. Within that framework, it becomes difficult for people to be in politics without looking for avenues to make money. Until when we have an environment where youths are employed, where people have medical services and other social services, some of the progressive policies we are preaching will not be realised. Until we have an enabling environment that challenges politicians to serve the people, we will continue this way. The election yesterday was an important day in the life of this nation. We pray that the right candidate emerges.
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