Oyo, Ajimobi and the critics’ drivel

It is rewriting season again, that season when poetasters rewrite history in the service of devious cabals, those who connive with demons to cause catastrophe and then lead the men and women mourning their fate. For Abiola Ajimobi, two-term governor of Oyo State and arguably one of the most cerebral chief executives of the current Fourth Republic, it can only be thanksgiving season, for even the most strident of critics admit that his performance record is unblemished, never mind that bearded demons pained by their loss of the governorship ticket are still sponsoring failed poets in the marketplace of criticism as mischief. If life has taught anything, it is that substance predominates over form, and if the grouse against Ajimobi is rooted in form—his manner of speaking—rather than substance (his performance in office), then it is time the society determined for itself which path it wants to tread: the path of the uncommon, yet ennobling; or the path of the regular, yet lustreless.  Wisdom dictates that you embrace that which is good even if it does not take the conventional form.

It is no secret that Governor Ajimobi is blunt. Yes he is and there is no point denying the obvious. But the critical question is the following: Is he leaving Oyo State better than he met it? No critic worth his salt can answer this question in the negative, for then the landmarks dotting the entire Oyo landscape must chastise such a purveyor of falsehood. And so we come once again to the paradox of performance versus prejudice, facts versus fiction and again, yet again, substance versus form. Thankfully, no one has suggested that the outgoing governor is immoral, corrupt or mean. The charge, propelled from within, is quite simply the following: “Yes he has performed wonderfully but we don’t like his manner of speaking. He is too blunt. In fact, he is not a good person.” Enter any taxi, restaurant or market and this is what you will find the critics saying. Somehow, the critics always manage to preface their grouse with an admission of the achievements of the governor: “Yes, he did well..”, “Of course he has performed wonderfully…” “I’m not trying to say that he has not done well..”   And that is why I believe that it is thanksgiving time for Abiola the son of Ajimobi, for he was elected, not to tell the people what they want to hear but to make positive changes in their lives, even if it turns out to be a thankless job. After all, as the great Awo himself once said, any public office holder who is uninterested in the constructive criticisms of the masses but only in their occasional hosannas has no business being in public office. The criticism under reference here is not constructive, but then Ajimobi certainly still has a lot to learn as a public figure.

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It does not require a degree in psychology for you to realise that the Oyo State governor is one of those people that the Yoruba describe as not knowing how to hide words under the tongue. One of Nigeria’s foremost bourgeois novelists, T.M Aluko, presents a powerful picture of such a typical politician in One man, One Matchet (p.84): “Benja-Benja, Benja-Benja.’ The name was relayed around the park…Benjamin Benjamin liked it very much. He adjusted his tie; he put his pipe between his lips, swung his walking-stick in a dandified manner, and alighted fussily from the lorry…Then he proceeded to make a speech.” In the novel, Benjamin Benjamin is actually a scoundrel donning the nationalist garb.  Nigeria has so many Benjamin Benjamins today, slick talkers who rip the people off while pretending to be patriots fighting for their rights.  If Ajimobi has chosen a different, actually progressive path, then he ought to be appreciated, not derided.

The critics are quick to say that Ajimobi installed a retinue of kings in Ibadan, but they omit the part where Ibadan elders actually asked the governor to carry out the same reform for which he is being pilloried. They are quick to sing the vendetta song regarding the demolition of a section of Yinka Ayefele’s Music House, but they would never mention the tons of petitions written by residents of the area protesting frequent accidents in the area, or the fact that the governor demolished the controversial spot merely to save lives, and that he in fact rebuilt the edifice to locate the entrance at a different angle, hence eliminating the cause of frequent accidents. They would never mention the fact that the governor’s in-law and Globacom proprietor, Mike Adenuga, had sections of their buildings demolished in accordance with the laws of the land, and even paid a fine. They are content with falsehood because it is their weapon of war. They do not bother themselves with the fact that Ajimobi brought respectability and dignity to the office of the governor after years of rot, or that he restored peace to a state burdened by constant spilling of blood by brigands. But the truth remains the truth nevertheless. As Alhaji  Atiku Abubakar, former vice president, has said: “ I have seen a lot of changes, with cleaner streets and green environment. Honestly, I must commend you for the distribution of 120 tractors to local government councils. This is colossal. Agriculture is no doubt the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy. So, by doing this, you have succeeded in putting people to work and this, I’m sure, will boost agriculture and ensure food security.”

Adebayo lives in Ibadan.