Distinguished Senate President,
We bring greeting and good tidings to you and the entire membership of the Red chamber of the National Assembly.
We write as members of the third sector, ‘Get Involved Campaign’. A team of Young dynamic Nigerians whose advocacy is to get people involve in the act of governance and ensuring things are done properly. Constructive criticism is our hallmark.
We have read several articles particularly one purportedly sent to the Senate by a group called Coalition again Corrupt Leadership, (CACOL) headed by Mr. Debo Adeniran. Our first reaction to the petition against the immediate past Governor of Lagos state, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) was more of being amused than being amazed considering the fact that we view the original intention of the petition as that of a sponsored group disguised as a reflection of what might be the opinion of Lagosians and Nigerians by extension against the nomination of Babatunde Raji Fashola (BRF) as a Ministerial nominee from Lagos State by President Muhammadu Buhari,GCFR.
The most amusing aspect of the petition is the various allegations of fraud and mismanagement majorly unproven by the authors of this petition and any anti-corruption agency in Nigeria against Mr. Babatunde Fashola. Such assumption is in no doubt, laughable.
These petition has only got us thinking, who really is afraid of Babatunde Fashola? Now, as summer turned to fall, much attention has focused on whether a particular nominee has “hit the mark,”.So far it has been a classic contest between fear and anxiety, and hope and stability, and these rhetorical choices do a lot to tell us about what the people really think about the current state of the race.
The impact of emotion, pride and threat on Distinguished Senators and in some cases, their behavior — has been well researched and CACOL and its sponsors believed is the way to go. An emotion like hope signals that all is well and that we can rely on our habits, such as in the case of politics with partisanship or ideology. Let CACOL do the needful as one wonders why it took this long before this ‘regular attack’ on Babatunde Raji Fashola SAN.
Anxiety signals to those experiencing it like CACOL and their sponsors that they need to stop and gather new information. Relying on a habitual approach of blackmail in the face of anxiety, an uncomfortable emotion defined by its uncertainty about a given situation ( The Ministerial nomination) may be harmful to their interests, so anxious people feel compelled to stop and learn more if only he would.
These elements do not want him, notwithstanding the fact that he was once used as reference point for good governance in the country and whose antecedents as first term governor after serving as chief of staff to Lagos State Governor brought about the first change of political party control in the south west appointed as a Minister because they see whatever position that is due to Lagos as the stool of their father which they must inherit by force or how best do we explain their wanting to be the sole beneficiary of whatever comes to Lagos state.
The anxiety-induced petition is an obvious contrast to Fashola’s hopeful performance, who defers from the same old boring tone. There are other elements of campaign, in particular the release of their memoir. Let each of them show us what they have and hope to offer other than unfounded allegations and blackmail.
By paying attention to the ‘emotional’ dynamics underlying these prominent campaign of calumny against Mr. Fashola, one can get a clearer sense of how these people really views this appointments, regardless of what you may read in their petitions. In the end, we cannot say President Buhari did not conduct a critical assessment before making his choice while believing also in the capacity of the Distinguished Senate to do a thorough screening.
“In Lagos, affliction shall not arise the second time”. Nigeria is larger than the perpetual personal ambitions of some persons and no amount of these paid petitions and blackmail will impose a wrong choice of representatives on Lagosians and Nigeria by extension in the Federal cabinet.
We call on the Distinguished members of the 8th Senate to look at the credentials, antecedent and performance of Babatunde Fashola as the Governor of Lagos State which became a reference for governance in other States of our dear country. The evidence of the good governance is visible across all major sector of the state.
Thanking you in ancitpation of your good tidings
Yours in service,
Morgan Omodu
For; Get Involved Campaign.
