By Adetunji Taiwo Orisalade
Oh Yes, I maintain it. And one million times over after sleeping and waking up, I would say the same thing. And before you crucify me or make some sort of condemnations as our people are loathe to do, you could simply have asked me: Why this stance? The reasons for this stance and honest advice are clearly discoverable as you proceed to read this short, but lucid write-up.
Unarguably, the most important question on the lips of all Nigerians, home and abroad, is: Whow Will Succeed President Muhammadu Buhari?
This question is being asked all over and it is not limited to the political environment alone. The mass of Nigerians in the business world, religious circles, social groups, etc, are very much interested in this Nigerian that God would eventually bless with the crown of leading Nigeria from May 29, 2023.
The search for this Golden Prince had commenced in earnest and there are growing alliances across ethnic, religious, business and social groupings on a daily basis to make sure Nigeria have the person best suited for the position. The intensity of the search, no doubt, had been spurred by the need to solve the myriads of problems besetting the Nigerian federation.
Currently, President Buhari, in spite of his health challenges, had done his best and equally have admirable achievements that are traceable to him. I know definitely, these achievements would be clearly rolled out at the point of giving an account of his stewardship and Nigerians may be surprised that his administration had achieved so much. The economy of the country may be so biting these days, but the blame cannot be put entirety at the doorstep of the well-meaning President. His administration is fast rounding up, hence we are in dire need of a President that can, alongside his well chosen team, harness together our human resources, national resources, capital formation, technological development, social and political factors towards a healthier economic growth of Nigeria.
When there is a better economic growth, the citizens and foreigners, who had invested in Nigeria would be better for it. In short, Nigerians in their large numbers would be happy.
Who then can do this job of ruling Nigeria better for us?
Of recent, the elders, who are naturally obliged to guide and direct the affairs of the society have been lending their voices towards this search for the Golden Prince. Firstly, the revered legal luminary, Aare Afe Babaola, SAN, had advised the Nigerian political parties to search for the very best candidate devoid of any mundane consideration. The learned silk went on to specifically point to a person with sound educational background, being not less than a university graduate, without any clog of having been involved in corrupt practices. According to him, the would be President must also not be too old, but of sound health.
In his words, “The candidate must also be extraordinarily brilliant and must have sound knowledge of current affairs, work ethics, leadership experience, good human relations and also have a clear-cut vision and mission for Nigeria.” He puts the age limit of such candidates for the Presidency at below 60 years.
In a similar vein, a former military Head of State, General Abdulsalam Abubakar, rtd, had also stated that the country needs younger people to lead it from 2023.
According to him, “Nigeria of 2023 and beyond would not need leaders with a walking stick, but the younger generation to give leadership a new lease of life.”
The above are words of the elders and are definitely words if wisdom!
Apart from the above, the average Nigerian on the streets clearly needs a President who can put food on their tables and make them smile. And this is just the bottom line!
In other words, the in-coming Nigerian President must be an ardent administrator, who is very concerned about the well-being of the teeming masses!
Who then is John Kayode Fayemi and what really does he want?
Dr. Fayemi, a great scholar of Ekiti parentage, is no doubt a well-known figure in the Nigerian oolitical ladder. He is currently the Executive Governor of Ekiti State and also doubles as the Chairman, Nigerian Governors’ Forum, NGF. He was governor of Ekiti State between 2010 and 2014, before he staged a comeback in 2018. During his first tenure, there was a massive turn-around of things in the state and the enduring bliss then was not lost on the indigenes. The economic developments of the state was unprecedented with legal backings to every initiated policy.
Unfortunately there was a checkmate of the bliss enjoyed by Ekiti people towards the end of his first term due to some political crookedness by the powers that be then. Nigerians have now been let into the whole ugly scenario, which establishes that his admirable administration was not resented or revolted against, but rather that the election was grandly manipulated to oust him.
Upon his ouster, Ekiti State fell back into a state of delirium and legacy projects that would otherwise have benefited the people of the state were deliberately abandoned.
However, upon his second coming, most of these projects, alongside those of his predecessors have been completed and some nearing completion. This was in strict obedience to a law passed by the Ekiti State House of Assembly, which makes it mandatory for any succeeding administration to complete and hand over any uncompleted project, yet on ground and unfinished by the past or previous administration.
In this category are the Civic Centre, Ekiti Parapo Pavilion, New Ado-Iyin Road, and the Cargo Airport. There is also the Ikun Dairy Farm and Ranch, brought back to life in partnership with Promasidor, with a daily production of 2,000 litres of fresh milk.
There are other investments, particularly in the agriculture sector, such as JMK, Dangote and Stallion – all establishing rice mills in Ekiti; others like Promise Point are putting Cassava Mills in place, developing major cocoa initiatives. A total investment of about $300 million had come into the state in three years in this respect.
Ekiti is again enjoying the dividends of democracy courtesy of the great administrative prowess of Dr. Fayemi.
Between 2015 and 2018, Dr. Fayemi was Nigeria’s Minister of Mines and Steel Development. It is clearly on record that his performance in office was very outstanding to the extent that he initiated lots of innovations and turned the ministry into a huge revenue earner for the Nigerian federation.
The amiable and self-effacing governor had been the Chairman of the NGF since May 23, 2019 and had led his co-governors, without rancor ever since.
As a detribalized Nigerian, he had been able to carry his colleagues along and the Forum had impacted so much on the Nigerian polity.
The Forum, under his sterling leadership qualities had cast away, several times, their political togas and acted unitedly and firmly in even challenging policies of the Federal Government that adversely affected the states and their people. This is really commendable!
According to a source, when asked to comment on Dr. Fayemi on his performance as Chairman, NGF, this is what he had to say: “His colleagues love him, his leadership direction, and the dynamism he has brought to bear, especially on the NGF.”
Dr. Fayemi is not a political demagogue, but rather his acclaimed leadership stemmed from his ability to carry all manners of people along. He may not be a street person, stopping to eat roasted corn, plantain or yam by the road side, but surely he is a loving personality with altruistic tendencies. He is at home with all manners of people.
Dr Fayemi is equally not an accidental politician. His political formation process had commenced several years ago in his university days, where he had been very politically active and a very known figure in Unilag’s political milieu. He was the Secretary of the Youth in Solidarity with Southern Africa in Nigeria, YUSSAN. He was a Student Worker at the ANC/SWAPO Office in Nigeria, located at Keffi, Ikoyi, Lagos, Nigeria. He was also the General Secretary of the United Nations Students Association UNSA. He was in the Movement for National Awareness, MONA. At the University of Lagos Students Union Parliament/Senate, he was a vibrant member. Quite apart from his political activities on the Unilag Campus, he had also sharpened his journalistic teeth so early and was Editor, Watch Magazine and the Editor-in-Chief, Alpha Magazine, the Eni Njoku Hall House Magazine. Lastly, he still had time for exra currucular activities and was a member of Theatre 15, University Theatre Group. All these were in his formative years.
Having regards to all the above, one then cannot dispute the fact that Dr. Fayemi had been well prepared for the tasks he had been undertaking in his later years in life.
In Ekiti, he ran a value-driven government in which there was integrity and accountability. By the time he was leaving office in 2014, Ekiti ranked first on the Transparency Index of the BudgetIT Report. In its current report, EKiti is rated amongst the top three states.
Equally in the state’s Bureau of Public Procurement website, every single contract awarded by the government, the contract sum and the contractor handling same are listed there for the public to see.
Dr Sunday Aniyi in his write-up, ‘Dr Kayode Fayemi And The June 12 Struggles’ had this to say about him: “Of special mention is Dr Fayemi, governor of Ekiti State, who was one of the young and vibrant foot soldiers, who dedicated their talents, career, time, lives and all to get the annulment of the June 12 election reversed and see to the enthronement of MKO Abiola as President. He was arguably the engine room of the exile operatives, especially those in the National Liberation Council of Nigeria, NALICON, and National Democratic Coalition, NADECO. For Dr Fayemi, anti-military rule campaigns and June 12 was the struggle that defined his character as a man who invests his entire energy in whatever he believes in. Right from his University of Lagos days, he had been consistently involved in human rights and democracy agitations. Right from the Epetedo Declaration and like many patriots who had to flee for their lives to exile, Dr Fayemi exhibited valor and bravery of the highest order. The struggle to de-annul June 12 election signaled the steel of character he is made of. He demonstrated uncommon commitment and loyalty to the demilitarization of the Nigerian political space.
While in exile, he, along with others started the ‘Nigeria Now’ tabloid, which was published to highlight the negativity of military rule in Nigeria. He was the vociferous editor, who combined studentship with journalism, activism and diplomacy. For example, even though he was pursuing his PhD in King’s College, London, under an extremely inclement conditions at this time, he was a major protagonist along with other patriots such as Tajudeen Abdurahamn and Olu Oguibe in the New Nigeria Forum.”
He went on further: “He coordinated and joined in the many protest rallies held on the streets of London to draw international attention to the many atrocities occasioned by the military rule in Nigeria. It must be noted that his pro-democracy struggle preceded the June 12 election, but the annulment of the election gave him a wider space of involvement that went beyond the New Nigerian Forum’s activism. Providence positioned him ahead of a troubling time to serve as a field worker, organizer, consul, diplomat, courier, intelligence, officer, reporter, radio manager, journalist and advocate.
“For example, in spite of the huge gulf in age difference between him and the heavy weight personalities he had to interact with, Dr. Fayemi remained a singular ally that major stakeholders in both NADECO and NALICON had absolute trust in.”
Also Bolanle Bolawole, in his article, ‘Fayemi: Knight In Glittering Armour,’ which was first published in Sunday Tribune on May 25, 2014, also had this to say: “Dr. Fayemi, incumbent governor of Ekiti State, going for second term, was a moving spirit behind NADECO Abroad, pillar of the June 12 struggle, and brain behind Radio Kudirat. Were he in the Army, his contributions to the struggle to enthrone democracy qualify him for the epaulette of a full General. Fortunately, he is one of a few of those who toiled for democracy, who also have had the opportunity to nurture it. The giant strides he has made in less than four years in Ekiti attest to the view that those who fought for a cause are better able to advance its interests. This is understandable: those who fought to bring us democracy are more likely to guard it with jealousy as well as demonstrate a passion to grow it much more than those who stood to be counted as supporters of vile military dictators.”
Again on Thursday, December 9, 2021, at the auditorium of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, NIIA, Victoria Island, Lagos, venue of the 60th Anniversary Distinguished Lecture Series of the Institute, delivered by Ekiti State Governor, Fayemi, former Foreign Affairs Minister, Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi, disclosed how Fayemi put his life on the line to set up Kudirat Radio through which NADECO disseminated its messages.
He took participants down memory lane, recalling the exploits of Fayemi, whom he referred to as an “activist governor,” during their NADECO days.
Akinyemi said, “This is a country where people forget things so easily. The governor was the anchor, the motivator, the promoter of what became Kudirat Radio International. At that time, we had a lot of sleepless nights. As you know, we were broadcasting from one of the Scandinavian countries. This was a dangerous mission, because you know how they (Abacha junta) went on this spree of assassinations of those that they felt were threats to the regime. But what you didn’t know was that the first radio freedom that was used in this country, he (Fayemi) brought in that radio to Cotonou, Benin Republic. He could have been arrested at the airport if they had searched his bag and had found transmitters. And how he would have explained his way out of that, we thought of it, but he took the risk.
“Well, General Akinriade and I were on the ground there biting our nails as that plane landed and wondering what would happen, but he brought in the equipment. I’m not going to tell you how we got the equipment into Lagos but they broadcast from Lagos for months while he was then setting up the permanent one. So, that was the risk that he took.”
According to the former NADECO chieftain, “Being in exile was not Easter or Christmas for those who were actively involved. And at least, he risked it. We could say he deserves the reward of being a governor because he earned it.”
Prof. Eghosa Osaghae, Director General of NIIA, equally spoke after the presentation by His Excellency, “It is evident that His Excellency is a scholar of international relations; never mind that he specializes in the arts and sciences of warfare, which is good for him and good for our country. But today, just to acknowledge and to say to him that he is a worthy student, who has represented all of us well, and as one who’s going to continue to represent us, wearing the cap of wisdom, and authoritatively speaking to issues of international affairs and foreign policy, I am very pleased to announce that all of the governing bodies of NIIA have gotten together and decided to induct His Excellency with the fellowship of NIIA.”
Osaghae told Fayemi that “following this induction, you are to be referred to, and known as a Fellow of the NIIA.”
What of the comments and commendations about Dr Fayemi? It is massive! Hear some.
According to a veteran journalist, Segun Dipe, Dr Fayemi is a focused person and a promise keeper. “He built his promises on 5 pillars, viz: Good Governance, Agriculture and Grassroots Development, social Investment, Knowledge Economy and Infrastructure Development. And he has ensured that he touched on all the five pillars.”
Upon the receipt of the Governor of the Year Award, 2019, from the Vanguard Newspapers Group on July 16, 2021, the chairman of the occasion and former Minister of Industries, Chief (Mrs) Nike Akande, said that the award was in recognition of the awardee’s “positive contributions to human, social and infrastructure development in their community, society and the nation at large.”
Gbenga Ogunremi in a tribute to Dr Fayemi at 56 BENGA OGUNREMI IN A TRIBUTE TO DR , said, “An impressive sequence of outstanding performance over time in any given responsibility, no doubt, underscores Fayemi’s ingenious capacity for good governance, best practices and ability to deliver public goods, with the first in the series being his sterling performance as Ekiti State governor between 2010 and 2014.”
He went on further, “Dr. Fayemi was appointed a federal minister in charge of an erstwhile moribund Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, not quite long after leaving Ekiti as governor. It was a period of exceptional performance that witnessed a series of mind-boggling reforms that took the stagnating sector to the next level of increased productivity and other positive developments that eventually repositioned it as the new frontier for economic diversification.
“Revenue from exports in the mining sector increased by 592 per cent within one year of his stewardship, while he was able to improve funding for the sector by securing over N70 billion intervention fund from development partners such as the World Bank and the Natural Resources Development Fund, something unprecedented in the annals of the sector’s history.”
Rounding up, he stated, “The country’s President, Muhammadu Buhari, duly acknowledged JKF’s excellent performance as minister when he remarked at a valedictory session, which preceded the weekly FEC meeting in his honour that it would be hard to get another substantive minister of steel who would be as strong in intellect and courage enough to check effectively Nigerian and foreign collaborators who were ferrying away our resources.”
Dr Fayemi was a recipient of the Zik Prize in Leadership Award for Good Governance bestowed on him on the 29th day of July, 2013 by the Advisory Board of the Public Policy Research and Analysis Centre, PPRAC.
Flowing from the above, it is evident that Dr Fayemi clearly falls and fits into the specifications of the Golden Prince/Successor, being searched for to take over from President Buhari. His Excellency has the requisite educational background as a scholar of international repute. Age is on his side and his health is not wavering. He has never been indicted for any corrupt practice in governance. He is an orator with power of delivery under any situation. He has the needed social and political connections across the length and breadth of the Nigerian nation.
With Dr Fayemi on ground, which candidate cum successor to President Buhari are we looking for again?
John Kayode Fayemi, Ph.D, must not run AWAY from the presidential contest.
He must throw his hat into the presidential race ring. He has all it takes to be the next President of Nigeria after President Buhari. And he would govern Nigeria justly with laudable achievements to his credit!
JKF Must Not Run Away!
JKF Must Contest the Presidency!
JKF is the Best Candidate the All Progressives Congress, APC, Could Field to win the Presodency!
•Rt. Hon Orisalade, a former Deputy Speaker of Ekiti State House of Assembly, writes from Upara Orisa/Oluroye House,
Aofin Compound,
Ilogbo-Ekiti, Ekiti State.
