By Olanrewaju Adesanya
Ahead of the 2023 general elections and the unfolding intrigues triggered by many interest groups and individuals jostling for the presidential seat of the nation, the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, on Thursday said Nigeria desires a leader with an experience of success in previous assignments.
Dr. Obasa said this at the Anchor University’s first Distinguished Public Lecture of the faculty of Humanities in Lagos stressing that leaders can only succeed when they have the requisite capacities to meet the desires of their followers.
Noting that Nigerians currently yearn for more from their leaders in the face of daunting challenges, Obasa expressed hope that the country would meet the collective dream of the citizens soon.
“If you place our country side by side some countries and compare developments in the last 50 years, you would agree that we have challenges.
“However, we are all leaders in our various spheres. Leadership has to do with the roles you play in your various communities.
“Today, people choose to go to Dubai instead of some other countries. Look at their development in the last 50 years. We heard stories of how their leaders visited Ibadan for medical checkups.
“Now, what do we have? Nigerians visiting the country and others for medical reasons.
“Today, China is a super power because of its growth and development.
“That is why we have to talk about leadership and the most important thing for us now is to have a leader who understands and can handle our situation such that a man living in a corner in Ipaja, who does not have interest in who the leader is, enjoys what should be simple amenities of life,” he said.
The Speaker argued that fixing Nigeria requires good governance and that the country currently has an opportunity to get it right ahead of 2023.
“And as you are aware, if anyone applies for a job, the first things that are asked for are the person’s credentials and experience.
“So in chosing who would be our leader in 2023, we need to ask questions about who is competent enough and had done something similar to what we desire.
“We can still remember that not long ago, we had someone in Lagos State who laid a solid foundation, particularly in relation to revenue. We know that without revenue, there is hardly anything we can do.
“We had that person who used his intelligence to move the revenue from just N600 million to billions of naira and today, the State gets multi-billion naira revenue for development.
“See the infrastructural development in Lagos State now and you will agree that we need people who are experienced and highly exposed for leadership positions.
“Leadership is not about who is old or young. We have had some young governors who have no positive thing to show about the development of their states,” he stressed.
Obasa, who was honoured by the institution, promised a robust relationship between the university and the government. He also urged the management to assist the government by making suggestions that would help the State.
The guest lecturer at the event, Prof. Ayodeji Olukoju, corroborated the Speaker’s position emphasising that the right leadership is what Nigeria needs.
The Professor of History and Strategic Studies at the University of Lagos, also commended the Lagos State government for the giant strides recorded so far.
