Everyone is talking about him. Everyone is impressed with the ease at which he’s settled down pretty quickly and hit the ground running. Right now, within Kosofe and outside of it, the one name on the lips of most residents is Moyosore Ogunlewe, the Executive Chairman of Kosofe local government. Many are shocked at how swiftly he’s gone about the business of governance despite his young age and one with no prior experience in governance. In just four months, Moyo has taken on the construction of about ten roads within the local government with only one or two of them left, waiting to be commissioned, all the others, completed and delivered to the people. This is something that may have taken several others a year or more to accomplish. He’s purchased several new vehicles to ease the operations of the local government officials and has also put smiles on the faces of the market women by getting them a bus as well. Right now, if you wish to incur the wrath of these women, cast the faintest of aspersions on the character of their beloved Moyo and you will be shocked how fast they will bring the roof down on you.
As it is presently, if you call Moyo Ogunlewe the poster boy of the APC at the grassroots level, you can’t possibly be wrong. He has impressed everyone and surpassed the expectations of many. He has stunned his critics and left them speechless. They didn’t see this coming. They expected him to spend his first year learning the ropes and making lots of mistakes that could prove costly to his administration. But rather, this young, dynamic administrator has been spot on with every step he’s taken so far. The interesting thing about all of these though, is that Moyo is not fazed by his seemingly impressive progress, neither is he carried away by the encomiums that have come pouring in for him. He appreciates the accolades, but he lets them bounce off him. According to him, “the accolades are good, but let’s face it, I haven’t done anything special. This is why they voted for me – to work for them and deliver the dividends of democracy to their doorsteps. There’s still a whole lot of work to be done. This is not the time to get distracted. This is not the time to be carried away by praises from the people, this is the time to stay focused and deliver to the people every single thing I promised I would deliver to them.” Smart and wise beyond his years, don’t you agree?
Last week, City People’s Senior Editor, WALE LAWAL (08037209290) visited this hardworking gentleman and got him to share his thoughts on the call by millions of Nigerians asking Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to contest for presidency come 2023. It was a passion-driven Moyo that shared with us how strongly he feels about seeing Asiwaju becoming the next president of the federal republic of Nigeria in 2023, taking us way back to his childhood days when he first knew the Jagaban long before he became the Iconic personality the entire country now respects today.
Can you share your thoughts with us on the immense clamour for Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to run for the presidency, how does this excite you? What are your expectations from him in terms of his response to the call?
I have shared this with you several times, there comes a time in a man’s life when he must make a decision at a particular time. Now, we’re saying, if he doesn’t make a decision, we’ll make that decision for him. He has served this country. He has served the people of this country. He has fought for democracy and it is time to support him. If he doesn’t declare, we will declare for him!
That’s how strongly you feel about this?
(Smiles) If it is zoned to the South-west, he is by miles the best man for the job. I can’t find any other man that comes anywhere near Asiwaju.
I recall you mentioned in my first interview with you how Asiwaju would come over to the house to see your dad when you were still a kid and how you had grown so used to him and today, you have evolved yourself, you’re now in government under the leadership of Asiwaju. Describe this man that you’ve always known since childhood to us, tell us a few things many Nigerians don’t know about him.
Asiwaju is a very, very intelligent man. I remember then when I was very young before he became governor, he used to come to the house in Ogudu GRA to be precise. And you could see the intelligence running through him whenever he spoke. He was much younger then. He’s just a likeable and lovable man. When you get close to Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, you would know that the man listens. When you sit with him, he allows you to share ideas with him. He doesn’t make decisions and say this is what this is whether you agree or not, he allows people to contribute. He will tell you, what do you think, oya, tell me. And at the end of the day, you agree or you disagree, but he never makes any decision on his own. And that’s what we need from the president of this country, somebody that will listen. For instance, if something is happening in Ogun State or Lagos, he won’t say, hey, go there and do this. No. Instead, he will ask, what is happening there? And that’s what it should be about. It means his ears are with the grassroots and once your ears are with the grassroots, it will be a lot easier to solve issues. That’s the kind of person Asiwaju is. He was at my graduation at the University of Buckingham. When I walked up to him, he said, ‘ah, Omo Ogunlewe, come and take a picture with me.’ He didn’t even think about what was happening between my father and him. That’s the kind of person Asiwaju is. He’s a lovable man, he deserves the shot.
A lot of people have said various things about him, his qualities and attributes that stand him out as a leader, now that you’re under his leadership, what would you say is that quality that stands him out the most for you?
As a leader, he’s a man that listens. And that’s the most important thing. He listens to advise. He listens to the cry of the people, that’s what governance is about. You can see what he did in Lagos. He was governor for eight years. We all saw the transformation then. You can even still see the road map of Lagos now and all other states are emulating what Lagos state is doing. It’s not a joke. I don’t see anybody in the southwest that has the kind of CV Asiwaju has. You don’t toy with things like this. The man transformed Lagos into one of the best cities in the world and that’s the most important thing. Whether you like it or not, that is what it is. So, it is not about sweet-talking, no. The time for sweet-talking is over, it is time for action. The man has paid his dues hundred per cent and he deserves to be president of this country.
What do you think an Asiwaju presidency will bring to the table for Nigerians if and when he becomes the president of Nigeria?
Asiwaju will put the right person in the position that suits him the most. He will put the round peg in the round hole, that’s what it is. Yes, you cannot do everything yourself, but take a look around you and see the level of people Asiwaju has brought up. There is nobody in this country, I repeat, there’s nobody in this country that has brought up leaders like that. We can even start mentioning names. The names are there, they are no secret. This is not a matter of sweet-talking anybody. Fashola the minister of Works, was under the tutelage of Asiwaju. The vice president was under the tutelage of Asiwaju. The stars of the moment are under the tutelage of Asiwaju. Now, the question is, these stars of the moment, who made us know them? Who brought these stars up? Who identified these stars? Those are the questions we should be asking. Now, if the person who identified these stars says, I want to be president, yes, he has not declared, why won’t we support him. In fact, he does not need to declare, we’re declaring for him. We shall declare for him because if you can identify stars across the board and you can see them doing very well, then the man deserves to be president. We are going to push him until he declares and becomes president. That’s what we want.
Do you have any fears that he could come up against very stiff opposition from within his own camp when the crunch time for primaries approaches?
Well, in life, there’s always a Judas, so it’s expected. It’s a competition. Life is always a competition, but we are not scared of the competition. They can bring it on, Asiwaju will come out victorious. It’s a normal thing in life that people that you bring up sometimes want to square up against you, but we’re not scared. It’s politics and everybody has their own interest, but my own interest, as a young person, is Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
If you get to have a one-on-one chat with Asiwaju this very minute, what will you tell him? How would you help convey the expectations of Nigerians to him at this crucial time?
As I said earlier, Asiwaju is a very good listener. He listens to people. Sometimes, he could just call you and he says sit down and you guys will start having a round table talk, and that’s the kind of person we need. For me, as far as I’m concerned, there’s no better man for the job. Yes, the pressure will be much when he’s president, but it still won’t stop and won’t change who Asiwaju is. No, no, he won’t. If you go to his house, you will see it, he attends to people. He will attend to you. If you go to his house in Lagos or in Abuja, you will see the man, he will attend to you. Even when he’s walking to his car, he will lean towards you and bring his ears close to you so you can talk to him, confirm this from anybody, and he says, ‘talk, quickly.’ Then, he nods and says okay, he gives you an answer and leaves. He’s not somebody that you go to his house, wait for hours and yet you won’t see him, he will allow you to see him and talk. Even as he’s rushing to his car, he will still bring his ears down so you can talk to him. Though, when he becomes president its going to be a lot of pressure but we will see him and we’ll talk to him and see how we can address the issues facing the nation. That’s all we need as far as I’m concerned.
You’re also someone who’s very knowledgeable about the intrigues of politics, whether it’s at the grassroots, state or national level, what are your concerns as to how the north would make this easy or difficult for him come2023?
Asiwaju is a great politician. He has paid his dues. I’m sure he must’ve moved around. Asiwaju is a very strategic person, he won’t declare his ambition if he’s not sure of the ambition. That’s the kind of person Asiwaju is. He is an unbelievable politician and people like that only come once in a generation. We can only learn from him. He’s an unbelievable man and I wish him well.
Were you ever aware years back that he has always had this soft spot for you and he hoped and wished you could cross over to the APC from the PDP where you were back then?
Yes, I was not aware but I heard that he wanted me in his team. I have always been in his team. Yes, I was in another political party but even while I was there I shared most of his ideas and ideologies. For me, I’m in his team now and when the time comes, we will all know who is in his team and who’s not. I’m sure that when that time comes, you will probably see me at the war front.
How happy is dad right now, seeing the kind of support you’re getting from everyone around you? Am sure from Asiwaju down to the high ranking senior officers of the party, they must be pleased with what you’ve achieved within such a short while..
Well, mine is to promote the party and that’s what I’m doing. We’re going into an election and the question everyone is asking is, what have you done, which is the most important thing. I want to make the campaign very easy for me when I’m campaigning for Asiwaju and then, I am also thinking, how do I get more votes for him. So, I’m going to do a lot of work before the election because it’s what you do that you will use to campaign. You won’t just get up one morning and start making noise, there must be a reason for you to say let’s support this man. And once they see that someone like me, that I have done so much and is still willing to do a lot more, is saying, this is the right direction, why won’t they follow suit?
Are you aware that you have raised the bar incredibly high, coming in as a fresh administrator and under four months you’ve done stuff that would probably have taken some people close to two years to achieve? You have raised the bar yourself, now the question is, can you sustain the momentum and are you looking at slowing down soon at some point?
No, no, no. I’ve raised the bar and that’s how it stays. We’re here to serve the people and that’s exactly what I’m doing. For me, all other local government chairmen are doing great in their own respective local governments, I’m doing my own part as well. We don’t have a choice, we have to keep doing more. This is our state, we have to develop it. Whatever we do now will also help us in the future and that’s what it is. I’m a politician that thinks about the future. Yes, so, I will keep doing my best. I will keep raising the bar and making sure the people see what their money is being used for. That’s what matters to me.
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