Lasu 82nd Inaugural Lecture: Professor Aina advocates people’s developed constitutional order, political pluralism

Cyriacus Nnaji, 

Lagos Professor of Educational Management, Faculty of Education, Lagos State University (LASU) Professor Olusola David Aina, has advocated people-developed Constitutional order and political pluralism as a critical factor in nation-building. 

Aina took the position while delivering the 82nd Inaugural Lecture of LASU with topic “Management and Leadership in the University: Dilemma or Titillation to Nation Building”. The event took place at the Buba Marwa Auditorium of the institution at Ojo, Lagos State on Tuesday, January 18, 2022. 

 He said “There is the need to anchor nation-building on the historical development and prevailing reality of each society; there is the need for people-developed (not externally-imposed) constitutional order; political pluralism should be encouraged; democratic governance should be embraced; and Quality of leadership should be measured in terms of transparency and accountability.” 

 Aina also recommended that there should be a correlation between organisational democracy and democratic governance and that congruence must be established between the leadership and management of a nation. He also advocated that existing traditional structures of governance through the Council, the Senate and faculties should be sustained. However, there is the need for a well-designed participatory institutional framework. 

While stating that Management is the technique used for dealing with and managing persons of different age groups to work together for achieving common objectives, added that Leadership is the process of influencing the activities of an organized group towards goal setting and goal achievement. With special emphasis on Leadership, he said Leadership is required in every aspect of human endeavour. Effective leaders are needed in the military, in educational institutions, in social organisations, in business enterprises, government circles, and international organisations. He revealed that a leader could be defined as an individual with the ability to motivate or induce others. “A leader is the one who accompanies and guides on a journey and ensures the destination is safely reached.” 

Speaking on types of leadership styles which include Autocratic leadership; Democratic leadership; Laissez faire leadership; Situational leadership; Traditional leadership; Charismatic leadership; Constitutional leadership and Servant Leadership, Aina added that Leadership in any human endeavour should be seen as responsibility, not privilege; strong belief in teamwork; willingness to take risks and not to fear failure; the talent to sometimes reject the logic and take decisions based on instinct and heart; the ability to use power, when necessary, but after thought and always with caution and an understanding that compromises is not a weakness as long as it does not threaten fundamental values and goals of the organisation. 

For Aina, Nation-building can involve building different ethnic groups into one national entity. This, he said, can be especially challenging in countries that colonial powers had typically divided, ruled, and suppressed their social, ethnic, religious, and cultural evolutions. He maintained “Leadership becomes a pandemic when countries gain their independence, ancient tribalism and rivalry between ethnic groups resurfaces, and can sometimes tear the nation apart, especially if their territorial borders place rival groups together or split one down the middle. Examples include Biafra, which in 1970 tried to secede from Nigeria, or the continuing demand of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) for total independence.” 

Aina opined that the interplay of leadership, management, and nation-building is intricate and inseparable. He added that Nigeria is a nation born in optimism at independence but has lived in a state of doubt and uncertainty. “All kinds of analysis and conclusions have been made on what has become a Nigerian dilemma over nation-building and national development. This is because all countries compared to Nigeria in 1960 (examples are third world countries in Asia like Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea) have made astronomical progress and developed relatively stable social, political and economic systems while Nigeria is immersed in wars, insurgencies, terrorism, economic crises, financial corruption, famine, diseases and poverty, political instability, to name a few.”  

Aina added that to ensure nation-building, it is often necessary to draw up a charter that will include national harmony, political democracy, economic and social development, social justice, cultural revival, and regional and international cooperation. At the same time, the basic principles are national unity, active participation of the people, the decisive role of the human factor, the struggle for social justice, self-reliance, and a strong relationship between people and leadership. 

Professor Aina whose contributions to knowledge have revolved around human capital development and capacity building, was at the Institute of Training and Organisational Development of the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs of the University of Pittsburgh, he was also a Programme Director for over three years. Aina had the responsibility for programme design, implementation and evaluation. Some of the programmes he has directed included Leadership and Organisational Innovation, Advanced Management Programme, and Project Management.

2023: Asiwaju is the best candidate for the presidency, says Honorable Idimogu

Lawmaker representing Oshodi/Isolo Constituency in the Lagos State House of Assembly, Honourable (Dr) Jude Chukwuemeka Omobowale Idimogu, has stated that the Former Governor of Lagos, the Asiwaju of Yoruba land and Leader of All Progressives Congress (APC) Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is the best candidate for the position of the President in 2023. 

He said among those who have indicated interest in the presidency come 2023, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu remains in a class of his own. Recall that Tinubu has made his aspiration open and has also formally intimated the president, Muhwmmadu Buhari of his intention. 

In a Telephone conversation, Idimogu argued that any other group or individual jostling for the position of president in Nigeria come 2023 must work extra hard to upstage the strong man of Lagos politics as power is not given for dash. 

Idimogu said “For me, Asiwaju remains the best among all the candidates that have indicated interest in the position. I am an APC man till tomorrow even though I am from the southeast. So my prayer is that my leader should get it.” Answering the question on why Tinubu should aspire for the presidency when he knew the moral implication of such aspiration considering the fact that there is clamour for President of Igbo extraction, 

Idimogu said that there is no moral burden in politics. “There is no morality in politics, politics is a game of numbers. Let me tell you, it doesn’t work that way, nobody gives you power for dash. You must go for it, let the southeast, let them, if they truly want it, they must work hard for it, but you don’t do it with sympathy, morality does not work in politics,” Idimogu maintained. 

 

Commenting on the zoning of the presidency, Idimogu added “I am from the Southeast but in politics it is not served alakat, you have to work for it, lobby for it and do all you can to ensure it is given to you or your zone. But the way I see it personally, you know we have two major political parties, the APC and the PDP and remember the 17 governors of the South clamoured for power to shift to the south, but as it is now, no particular zone within the south has actually been mentioned, and when I said the governors, the governors are mixed up, both APC and PDP, and for me when you look at the way it is going, this is my own personal view, APC is highly dominated in the southwest and because politics is a game of numbers, it is likely APC will zone it to southwest, because they have the strength and number, that is just the truth. 

“However, PDP if they so wish, they can zone the presidency to the Southeast, the south-south has already enjoyed the last presidency, so for me, they are out of the game, so it remains southeast and southwest,” Idimogu said. 

He recommended that APC should zone the presidency to the southwest saying “My recommendation would be for APC to zone the presidency to the southwest while the PDP zones it to the Southeast, then the flag-bearers would face Nigerians who will decide which zone they want to give it to. That is the way I look at it.”

On his New Year message to his constituency, Lagosians and Nigerians, he said “People should be hopeful, let’s have trust in our government, let’s believe in them. One challenge we have as a people is that Nigerians don’t believe in their government and their representatives, but they should have a change of mind. 

“The citizens should turn a new leaf and see Nigeria as one entity that all of us can defend and be proud of and call our own, then things will change for the better,” Idimogu advised.

Omoragbon, NCP Governorship candidate petitions Justice Liman over dereliction of duty

Cyriacus Nnaji

Pastor Peters Osawaru Omoragbon, National Conscience Party (NCP) Governorship Candidate in Edo State in 2016 & 2020, said he has petitioned Justice M. Liman of the Federal High Court Kano Division (formerly of the Federal High Court, Lagos Division).

The petition, according to him, is over what he called misconduct and dereliction of duty by the Honourable Justice of the Federal High Court.

The content of his release to the media read: “A case of misconduct and dereliction of duty against Honourable Justice M. Liman of the Federal High Court, Kano Division (formerly of the Federal High Court, Lagos Division) dated January 3^rd, 2022 by Pastor Peters Omoragbon, Gubernatorial Candidate of the National Conscience Party at the 2020 Edo State Governorship Elections.”

Speaking further, Omoragbon disclosed what transpired “The National Conscience Party instituted an Independent legal dispute against INEC and the AG of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on May 5, 2020, through Originating Summons with an Affidavit of Urgency. This case was not heard until October 13, 2020, where all the parties adopted their written submissions and judgement reserved till December 18, 2020. Even though the bureaucratic bottlenecks constituted a stumbling block to my aspiration as Governor in the Edo State Elections, I was very hopeful that no matter the undue delay, justice would eventually be served.

“It must be recalled that prior to the Edo State Governorship elections in 2020, INEC had ignominiously deregistered some political parties including the NCP. This led to a series of legal disputes against the INEC and judgement awarded against INEC, some of which are pending rulings at the Supreme Court.”

 “Ladies and gentlemen of the Press, as at today January 3rd, 2022, the ruling that was to be given on December 18, 2020, is yet to be delivered by Justice M. Liman,” Omoragbo lamented.

Omoragbo maintained that Justice Litman’s action was a deliberate act of dereliction of duty “I am constrained by circumstances beyond my control to call this Press Conference over the deliberate act of dereliction of duty by Honourable Justice M. Liman over the legal dispute instituted by our Party, the National Conscience Party against INEC and the Attorney General of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

He said it was in the light of the obvious challenge that he directed his legal team to petition the Honourable Justice “It was in the light of this abuse of office that I directed my Legal Team led by Barrister Marcus Eyarhono Esq to formally petition Justice M. Liman to the National Judicial Council for his dereliction of duty.”

Omoragbo said Nigeria is becoming a laughingstock due to what he called lack of transparency “Every day, Nigeria is made a laughingstock by other nations of the world by our lack of transparency and corruption in high places. Whose interest is being served by the inaction of Justice M. Liman if not that of INEC and by extension the Attorney General of the Federation? When will the Nigerian judiciary be separated from the executive branch?” He queried.

While displaying the certified copies of the petition, he urged the press to hold every branch of government accountable “May I end this Press briefing by imploring the Press to please, hold every branch of government accountable, from the Executive, the legislative and the Judiciary.”