by Anike Jacobs

The Vice-Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, in a recent interview with Punch talked about his nomination and more.

We bring you tweve things you should know from the interview:

1.  Why he accepted the VPC nomination despite being a pastor and a lawyer:  I accepted the offer because I believe one of the most important contributions that any person can make to a society is public service. For me, it didn’t require much reflection because I have always believed the most effective way of making maximum impact on the welfare and well-being of our society is through public service.

2. Of course, he prayed before accepting the slot: I always pray. I prayed about this just as I pray about many things because communication with God at all times is important.

3. It is not wrong for a pastor join politics, Jesus endorses it:  For a Christian, especially a pastor, to suggest that if he has an opportunity to serve millions of people, an opportunity to effect policies which may alleviate the sufferings of millions of people, as it is the case in Nigeria, an opportunity to fashion policies that may transform the lives of people, I think it may be hypocritical not to participate in that. I also believe that when you are committed to doing God’s will — and His will for us all as Christians is that we must participate in solving problems, especially the problems of the needy and those who cannot help themselves — we must do those things.

That is part of our calling and in fact, our scripture says that we will be asked on the last day, ‘What did you do when you saw me naked? What did you do when you saw me sick and in prison?’ If we then say, ‘Lord (Jesus), when did we see you hungry? When did we see you sick?’ And then, Jesus will say, ‘Every time you saw those sick people, the poor and the hungry; every time you saw the naked, it was me (Jesus).’ For me, it is almost unthinkable for a Christian to second-guess public service. We must be prepared to serve the people. That is what I teach and preach in my church. There are probably hundreds of thousands of individuals as deserving who do not get that opportunity, but I do. And then I should turn it down for some reasons? It wouldn’t even occur to me, except if God were to say specifically to me, ‘Don’t do it.’

4. It’s not all about winning: That’s the point I’ve been trying to make to you. It is not about winning. That is not what I am interested in. What I am interested in is not what God says about winning or losing. I am not asking Him for, as it were, a lottery. If we were going to play a game, then I could say, ‘O Lord, will I win or lose?’ That’s not the point. The point is will I serve the people or will I not? That’s the only issue I need to consider and I don’t need any special directive on that because that is what God has already said we must do as believers.

5. Pastor E.A Adeboye and RCCG’s stand on his nomination:  In any event, the RCCG as a church cannot endorse a candidate. How can a church endorse a candidate? I serve under the GO of the RCCG as a pastor. If I am going to take any kind of action, especially an action that involves public service, it is my duty to consult with him. It would be absolutely irresponsible of me not to consult with him. And I have consulted with him. I have consulted with Adeboye fully. I am not prepared to share with you the details of our discussion. But be absolutely certain that I would not take these steps without properly consulting with him and that I did what was needful.

6. He is not a stooge of Tinubu: In any event, when you look at Tinubu, who is it that he has in any form supported that turned out to be his stooge? Is it (Lagos State Governor, Babatunde) Fashola or (former Ekiti State Governor, Kayode) Fayemi? Is it (Osun State Governor, Rauf) Aregbesola or (Edo State Governor, Adams) Oshiomhole? Is it (Oyo State Governor, Abiola) Ajimobi, (Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle) Amosun or Wale Edun? These are individuals who have contributed tremendously to the development of their states and the development of this nation. And all you need to ask those who tell you about stooges and all of that is, ‘Who are those men and women of character who they have produced to serve in the same states where we have served so creditably?’

7. He doesn’t have special plans for South West, Nigeria is one: I am a candidate of the APC, which is a national party. Don’t regionalise candidature. Gen. (Muhammadu) Buhari is a representative of the South-West, the North and everywhere else, and so am I. We were elected nationally; we were not elected to represent regions or places. It would be wrong for us to say that the reason why I am there is for the South-West. What then would the South-East and South-South say? I don’t think that regionalising it in that way is right. I think we are persons who have been appointed into national offices and we will serve in those capacities. I think that is the right way to look at this. I believe the South-West will be an engine of change and development in Nigeria. It is important that that is maintained, just as all the parts of Nigeria — the South-East, South-South and the North. Everyone has a role to play and a contribution too.

8. What Nigerians should expect from him:   I’m bringing in hard work, focus, my reputation for detailed work and also I like to support a man who believes in probity and accountability. I think that is important. I also would like to work with implementation of policies. We have shown that for eight years in Lagos State. We worked very hard on our justice sector reforms and all the other reforms of the Tinubu-led administration. Even in the subsequent administration, we worked hard with all of those who are there. We have been there in the public service; we may not be famous, but we have worked very hard.

9.  He’s got a fantastic idea on how to battle Insecurity in the nation: I think the first problem is recognising that you cannot deal with such a major assault on the integrity of the nation when you are misrepresenting the facts. And one of the things that the government, unfortunately, has done is to accuse the opposition of being responsible for the Boko Haram (insurgency), which, of course, has created a division. Look at everywhere else in the world where a country has come under attack. What the government does is to ensure that there is a bipartisan or a multi-party agreement on how to tackle the problem. You don’t politicise the issue. In this case, the false allegations made against the APC of being responsible for Boko Haram (attacks), including allegations made against senior members of the party by the government, first of all, created a distraction. Rather than identify the real causes and issues surrounding the Boko Haram (insurgency), they were busy labelling the APC. This, for me, is one of the greatest disservices this administration has done to this nation. The fact that, rather than focus on who the true enemy was, they waited until Buhari was almost killed by the same Boko Haram before, they started to rethink that allegation, is unfortunate. Whenever they find it convenient, they just throw the allegation around.

I think that the first thing, when you want to deal with a danger of such enormity to a nation, is that you must be truthful, sincere and forthright. You must identify who the true enemy is. The second is that you have to motivate and equip the military and the Commander-in-Chief must lead from the front. You cannot lead from behind. The people must see that just as you are saying to them that they must be prepared to fight Boko Haram, you are also prepared. It is apparent that our military is very disciplined. I have said this many times, the Nigerian Army is one of the best in the world; definitely one of the best in Africa. I served under UNOSOM 2 in Mogadishu, Somalia; the head of the Police that took care of the entire operation, Col. Pat Akem, was a Nigerian. He is now a brigadier. All of the troops from other nations were under his care as the head of the military police in that operation. The Representative of the United Nations

Secretary-General in that mission always insisted that Nigerians should be the one to guard him when he would go out of the UN compound. Nigerian troops have distinguished themselves in peacekeeping all over the world. It is unfortunate to hear terrible stories that Boko Haram insurgents chased soldiers away and they are not well-equipped or motivated. It is sad. If you want to win against an insurgency, then you must arm the military well. That is what is required. Look at the Chibok girls and all that has happened. Isn’t it right for the Commander-in-Chief to visit the place? For me, I think that these are some of the issues that boost morale, motivate the troops and the nation. Unfortunately, that is not the case.

The third issue is that we must also identify the fact that there seems to be a large pool from where these Boko Haram members are continuously being recruited. What is the reason for that? Many of our young people don’t have a stake in this society. They are jobless; there are no opportunities. And then somebody comes to them and says, ‘if you join us, whatever you steal or loot, including women, is yours.’ That is a problem. I think what we ought to bear in mind is that we must address some of the root causes, especially the pool from which these people are constantly recruiting from. We must address the problems of poverty and disillusionment among young people, especially in those regions where Boko Haram has largely been operating from. I believe that our government would be able to address those issues seriously and comprehensibly. If we say, so far, trillions have been spent on defence, and troops are complaining about bullets and rounds of ammunition, then there is something gravely wrong.

10. It’s a lie, Niger Delta are very reasonable: I don’t think there will be any unrest if Jonathan loses. I think our brothers in the Niger Delta are very reasonable people. I think what everyone will be looking for is a free and fair election. If elections are credible, no one will take up arms or resort to self-help. If we have a free and fair election, I don’t think that anyone will put their lives on the line to defend the government or any such thing. What is most important is a free and fair election. That is what the Independent National Electoral Commission and the government of today should aim for.

11. Why Buhari loves using pastors as his running mate: You will have to ask Buhari why he likes pastors. But I think it’s a good thing and a good sign. I think it shows that he is well and able to work with anyone — clerics and people of other faiths.

12. Corruption in Nigeria: I think our nation is at a point where corruption is almost the norm, especially in the public service. You and I know that that is probably the rule; the exception is any kind of transparency or forthright behaviour. But it is important to draw the line somewhere, because this nation cannot continue with this level of corruption. It is just impossible. I don’t think that people are born good. As a matter of fact, my belief is that most people will do the wrong thing if there is no consequence for their action. And the reason why we are here today is that there is no consequence for the actions that people take — for corruption, stealing, or anything of the sort.

That is the reason why I think that what is required, first of all, is an administration where people believe that the number one man will not tolerate corruption. If the number one man is perceived as a man that will not tolerate corruption, then you have moved light years from where we are today. I think that Buhari is somebody who is respected for his strong views on corruption. What we need to introduce today is consequence for corruption. If we don’t do that, frankly I am fearful that we may not have much left of a country.