Mr. Oseni Ahmed Olajide, an Igando -Ikotun LCDA chairmanship aspirant in the forthcoming local government elections in Lagos state, in a no – holds – barred session with AlimoshoTv, revealed his plans for his community, why he is the best for the job, sheds more light on his Foundation, careers amongst other issues.
Exerpts
AlimoshoTv: Can we meet you sir?
OAO: My name is Oseni Olajide Ahmed. The founder of Hope for the masses and CEO of Tour De Ville Nigeria Ltd. Presently, a chairmanship aspirant Igando -Ikotun LCDA in the coming local government elections in the state.
AlimoshoTv: Recently, I read an interview you granted bussines day newspaper where you spoke on national issues and that got us searching for you. Can you please tell us your background?
OAO:Well, where I am from has been some sort of little controversy may be due to my manner of dressing, whenever I’m on screen (TV) people do tag me a fulani man which I have never denied but recently I felt there is a need to clear the air on it because of the current Fulani – yoruba issues. I’m not a fulani but a core Awori man from Egan, Oyinsa family to be precised under Alimosho (Igando-Ikotun LCDA) from the family of Jimoh Igbalaye Oseni. I grew up at Egan but later moved to Isolo for my secondary school education and then federal polytechnic Ede, Osun state for my National Diploma after which I moved to Imo state university for my first degree. I am a professional in my own field, a chattered administrator, a member of different proffession bodies and associates of Nigerian institute of marketing and lots more.
I started my career as a bankers at STB bank where I grew to the level of banking officer. Then, I left for the ministry of interior (federal civil service) after five years of service, I was seconded to the Nigerian immigration services. With about fifteen years in the civil service, I left for my personal business and community services. I am the founder Hope4dMasses Foundation and the C.E.O of Tour De Ville Nigeria limited and a co – partner in a company called JIS Nigeria limited.
AlimoshoTv: You left public service for private business and also running an NGO, Now politcs. Isn’t all you have been doing before now related to serving the people, why adding politics?
OAO: Yes, strengths have limitations. You can assist people in your own little way but those who can do more are those in politics. How to extend or meeting the need of large numbers of people is not until you join politcs, it can hardly be achieved. If you approach those in government ( With proposals) how many of them would key into your ideas? How many of them have national interest at heart ? How many of them have the community interest at heart? They would see your ideas as a threat to them.
I will use you as a case study; you came up with AlimoshoTv, the time you would have approached them with media proposals or i should say you must have the media unit in the government offices would not buy into it because they would see you as threat to them. And as they would say ” Ohun ti ofe je lon wa”, ( He is looking for where his bread would be buttered) they will suppress the idea. So, running an NGO with your personal money and the zeal to do such, if you then have the opportunity to be in government you will do more.
Those in charge of our politics today, tell them to do something else aside politcs they can’t,no matter what position they are holding today, take politcs away from them they are gone .These are the people littered our public space today. You are running Alimosho Tv, it is because you are a street smart and you are using brain to generate income but most of these guys can’t exist outside politics because they lack initiatives.
The law of aviation says help yourself first before helping others. So, those who can’t survive on ideas (self-help) how would they survive in office (perform) with ideas they never had? They will in other way take care of themselves by ‘looting’.
AlimoshoTv: With this your expectations, getting politcal office and looking at our politics from national to state level and to local ( Alimosho). To me, Alimosho politcs is a kind of politcs that is peculiar if not complicated kind off, how do you intend to scale the hurdle?
OAO: Let me tell you this and I have been telling people, I have come to serve, I have come not to contest but to serve and nothing more. Alimosho politics is not ‘complicated’ at all as you have put it…
AlimoshoTv: Cuts in… really?
OAO: Yes, not complicated. There is different between complication and greed and there is different between complication and selfish interest. The Americans could not determine if the last president was elected to serve them or himself. Till thy kingdom come , politcs will remain complicated every where even in the developed climes and the world itself.
Back to Alimosho politcs, there is no proper orientation because people don’t know why they are in politcs, is it because of one derica of rice or what? 90 percent could not define why they into it? You have been in politics for years and have five jobless graduates at home and you are still going to meetings, that is why some people would say “you are still going to the meetings without beneffiing” . People need to ask questions. For instance, when I wanted to get mortgage abroad, there was no money in my account but my social security helped out, there is a system. So, my joining Politics isnt about making money. I have been buying houses ,and using latest cars so it is not politcs that would do that for me. I want to serve, so, I believe in Lagos and it must work.
I am not seeing comfortable faces at political meetings, people that are depressed with great challenges. The followers are just have to keep following them because they need money to feed, so giving them little will force them to keep coming, to me this is politcal slavery. Let me tell you a story, I was at a particular leader’s place on a day and while leaving, I saw a woman, she said “Oseni you seems not recognized me, are you not Baba kubura’s son in Egan and I said “yes”. So, for someone to have said that, it means , she knows me very well and we exchanged pleasantries.
Days after, I was in same place and I met her again but this time she did not greet me very well like the other day and I tried to know what went wrong, she then told me how her child in school is in dire need of money and she has not been able to get it from the leader. I asked how much the money was ? she said “If she could get five thousand naira, she would be very happy. I nodded my head. It is that bad.
Nobody is a saint but most of the leaders buy cars for their girlfriends, do big weddings for their sons and daughters, buy houses and all but the followers are not feeling the impact of being in politics, So, is this ‘complicated’or greed?
AlimoshoTv:If I may understand you in the past minutes, you have been taking more on mindset and the need to change our thinking. Now I want you to talk on infrastructure, what who would you do differently if elected?
OAO: There are whole lots of people that needs not a dime from you. But If they can drive smoothly to their offices, to where they can get their daily a thousand naira to such people the chairman is a hero. So, if Ijegun and ikotun roadabouts are traffic free and other places, do you know what that means? I will break it down for you..
Did you know there is standard garage behind ikotun market with same length with the local government but they could not do it. I have the map with me, why can the commercial busess be moved out of the highways? It is not rocket science.
Years back, at Apongbo, I was among the committee that provided solution to that axis for free flow of traffic to the island, you will see the traffic controllers wearing cream on green they too can hold you like LASTMA does. You will see how effective it is on that axis.
Why can’t we create it for our people? If people can take Ten thousand naira for LAWMA job do you think they wont take fifteen thousand naira for traffic control job ? And we will make sure they are posted closer to their homes. But most of our chairmen won’t do it, their thinking would be fifteenth thousand naira monthly for about hundred people, they would prefer using such money for buying properties.
This can be done. There is JAAC ( monthly allocation) , IGR ( internally generated revenue) and we know how it works or should be used. I have related with several chairman, commissioners etc .
Francois Hollande, former president of france, we stayed in same building, his flat is above mine, his kids relate well with mine. After he left office, he came back to same house, that is how it should be not the other way round.Write your name with gold while in office.
Let me tell you something my mentor told me when I was having issue with him, he said let us go and see Asiwaju which is the leader of all when I told him I was going to leave the party during the last election and I did but reverted my decision before the election. I was told I will be given Special adviser but i rejected it because people don’t know how it works, Some SAs take home isn’t more than four hundred thousands naira monthly, some even get less than that, but because of greed some people will take it, immediately you take it, your house will turn to mecca of sort with people bringing problems worth millions of naira, so for me, it is not about the office but the impact you can make. Did you know what Aiswaju said when we met with him? He asked, Oseni you said you will be throwing stones from outside into the house” I said , “No sir” .
He then said you are happy you left us, though if you had rested on us (appointment) would you have gone ? That touches me.
He then faced everybody and said, “I keep telling you before you should join politics make sure you have something doing.
We have them around, they have no jobs aside politics. And if Politics disappoints you today according to Asiwaju where or what would you fall on ?
Some of them are still flexing muscles today because they are still in the system, after office they will become broke. You are better than them because you are using your brain.
Ask them what they are using the JAAC for, nobody question them and nobody can because it is the leaders that determine how to spend it, so how would development come? The monthly JAAC has analysis but who is going to question them? I have everything with me and I know how it runs I have been in the public service. So, there is no place for me as home other than my Lagos ,other than my Egan and my Awori land. Here is my own Lekki here is my own Magodo.
All my properties are scattered within Awori land because here is my root. My friends do make jest of me for having properties here but I keep telling them here is my root. Just this morning, when I woke up, I could not stand on my feet, see my hands, all because of Politics? Since I joined Alimosho Politics it has been one terrible dream or the other. To go sleep at night sometime worries me for the fear of not continue the usual bad and terrible dreams. Infact, I crawled to go pray this morning and I was assisted to get into my car. The battle line has been drawn, I won’t run from it. They killed my brother because of things like this, they killed Sakiru for things like this. So, we won’t back down. Someday, I look up to seeing you (Alimosho TV) in that Local government (Igando -Ikotun LCDA) as a partner in progress, the name AlimoshoTv is something that needs to be celebrated. If one is scared he or she can’t be crowned in his or her father’s house. These guys do not have ideas, if you walk into their offices their reactions would always be the guys that normally comes begging for media money is here.
AlimoshoTv:How much have you done in your consultations. And who is your God father because it is important in politcs, and your views about the situation in Alimosho Politics?
OAO: First of all, God is my God father. And after God is still God but I have leaders too. Meanwhile, as a leader I will follow your good steps not the bad ones. Also, you must be humble and respect them (leaders)too. As for me, I have leaders that I act on their instructions and those I won’t. Amongst all, I have leader of leaders as my leader, Asiwaju. Nobody is perfect though, we all have our foibles. You can see the numbers of people he has made; Fashola, Ambode, Tayo Ayinde, Sanwoolu,and lots more. During the #EndSars he was blamed for the lekki incident, was he the Governor? was he the president? However, he was the only one that made himself accessible through live ( phone) calling during this period. All he has made are in Lagos. we have people who have been commissioner here and Governor in another state. Why blaming Asiwaju for imposition? He has no blame at all, he always asked the leaders to bring popular candidates to him but they always took their selfish candidates to him…why can’t the leaders allow the people to choose who they want and they present people’s choice to Asiwaju. So, if such chairman failed, we would blame ourselves. I can tell you Asiwaju does not know most of the local government chairmen, our leaders do.
AlimoshoTv: How is Oseni campaign organization preparing towards APC’s registration and revalidation exercise?
OAO: Firstly, Oseni is for all. You tell someone something bad about me, you are marketing me. My people are down there in a meeting strategizing on how to bring in family and friends to join the APC even you (AlimoshoTv) , without us your platform can’t flourish. You too should help us on this, tell all and sundry about this we can’t do it alone.
AlimoshoTv: Thanks for your time.
OAO: It is my pleasure
Watch Out for Part2 and a live session on our IG and Facebook page simouataneously soon…
