Michael Orodare: Is this generation ready for leadership? (Y! Politico)

bu Michael Orodare

ARIYOH-IS-WORKING-OSHODI-IS-MOVING-1

With we the likes of Ariyoh in power, I have come to the conclusion that it seems this generation is not ready. I think we prefer office of the SA social media and advocacy, SA student/youth affairs among others, those are the areas where our strength seems to lie.

Anywhere I go, I always tell people with pride, that I was born and bred in Oshodi. Growing up in Oshodi was fun and full of lessons. The notoriety Oshodi was known for was source of fun for some of us. Hardly will a week pass without a clash between rival-groups of ‘area boys’ fighting for ‘junction’ and other irrelevant things.

If Bomboy is not fighting Talo, SueSue will be fighting Kosija. If 36-Kiniun boys are not fighting the Agbole boys at Orile, MC boys will be fighting Kunle boys, among many other scenarios you cannot but enjoy watching if you are bold, make Oshodi a place of no dull moment. There are so many drama on the streets of Oshodi, as you have fun, you also learn from them.

Aside from all the notoreity, and being one of the commercial centres of Lagos state, Oshodi hosts the popular and ever-bustling Oshodi market, you must have heard about it, even if you’ve not been to Lagos before. So many good things have come out of that town and we enjoyed essential basic amenities in Oshodi. We had good roads, all the major roads in Oshodi were in good shape, just as the health centres were working fine.

In 2011 when the campaign posters of a handsome, good looking youngman, Bolaji Muse-Ariyoh, I believed should be in his early 30s then, aspiring to be the next Chairman of Oshodi Local Government started flooded the streets of Oshodi, there was a leap of joy in me. He’s a youngman and I thought he should have the vision and every other skills to run the affairs of Oshodi council area smoothly and make things work better. But I and many others who thought in that direction were wrong.

I left the town some years ago, but last weekend I was in Oshodi for a social even , but my visit turned out to be a disappointment, what I saw in Oshodi was management deficiency.

Oshodi looks like a community that has been ejected from Lagos Megacity plan. Development has eluded Oshodi, basic amenities are at zero level. Oshodi has been totally disconnected from the life wire of development. It was sad walking through the major streets of Oshodi last weekend. If you trek you are in trouble, there’s no how cautious the motorcycle riders and drivers can be without splashing you with waters from the scores of potholes on the streets, mounting a bike is a danger you might not be so lucky to return home without being thrown into the pots of water on the major roads, and if you are riding your car, then the mechanic workshop should be your regular point of call.

The major roads and physical infrastructures in Oshodi have deteriorated badly. From Oshodi express, to Boladale street, Oshodi road, Brown street, Makinde street and every other major roads that were in good shapes before Ariyoh came on board are now in a sorry state.

Aside from being a visionless youth who was forced on the people of Oshodi by the powers that be, Ariyoh is just another clueless young Nigerian who has no business being in politics as a Special Assistant to a political office holder, let alone a council Chairman.

I experienced S.O Aina and Afeez Ipesa Balogun’s administration as Chairmen respectively between 1999 and 2011, it wasn’t this bad.

We have many of the likes of Ariyoh at States House of Assembly and the National Assembly, who are just young Nigerians, but are not reference points of anything that is good about Nigerian youths in politics or leadership positions.

What do you expect from a youngman who was imported from overseas to ‘come and chop’? He is clueless about the plight of the people and owes his loyalty to one person – the man or woman who brought him home to ‘come and ‘chop’. Even if a large part of the funds go to Bourdillon as some have alleged, I believe there should still be something left to at least cajole the people that he’s in charge.

We pay too much of attention on governmenance at the state and federal levels, leaving some of the unscrupulous elements at the grassroots level to ruin the local government system which is suppose to give succour to those at the grassroots.

While the local government poll was going on in Lagos in October 2011, Deji Badmus (then of ChannelsTV) interviewed the Chairman of Igbogbo/Bayeku LCDA, Gbenga Basanya, who was seeking a second term then, why he thinks he will win the election, he responded “Fashola is working and I know the people will vote for me because the Governor is working” that came from a local government Chairman seeking a re-election. Which implies that he has nothing to show for his first 3-years to secure him a re-election. And they are clamouring for Local Government autonomy.

Aside his administrative imcompetency, Ariyoh has also been embroiled in series of scandals, ranging from abuse of office which was recently investigated by the Lagos Assembly, misappropriation of funds, use of thugs to intimidate and assault perceived political opponents among other acts unexpected from a public office holder.

Interestingly, Bolaji Muse-Ariyoh belongs to a party that claims to be the best thing that has ever happened to this country.

With we the likes of Ariyoh in power, I have come to the conclusion that it seems this generation is not ready. I think we prefer office of the SA social media and advocacy, SA student/youth affairs among others, those are the areas where our strength seems to lie.

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Michael Olanrewaju Orodare has worked in the Office of the Chief Press Secretary to the Ondo State Governor as a Media Assistant. He has garnered experience writing in the The Nation Newspaper working with the paper’s Sunday Desk. He leans towards the Labour Party. He blogs at www.michaelorodare.blogspot.com and tweets from @MichaelOrodare

 

Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.

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