ISN'T FASHOLA LAWLESS AND UNCARING?
As a preamble, it is pertinent for me to state that I have no political leanings....and view most Nigerian politicians as irresponsible raving thugs...irrespective of which political party they belong to. They steal our commonwealth with neither shame nor remorse....even after arrest and public disgrace. They stubborly adhere to inhumane policies. They impoverise the citizenry. They find and use the poor youths as ready political thugs!
Having said that, I make bold to proceed as follows:
Gov Raji Fashola recently appeared on TV to justify the increase of school fees at the Lagos State University (LASU) from N25,000 to a maximum of N250,000....a ten-fold rise....or 900% hike. It matters not to him if he would never have qualified as a lawyer if such financial burden had been inflicted on his parents in his school days. Such peep into the past or gift of hindsight is not in his dictionary. I susppect that the governor is adamant in this decision because 2005 is nigh! He and by extension, his annointed successor needs a large pool of political thugs to "prosecute" the election. And what source could be readier than an army of uncshooled youths! Yet as he forcibly extracts these monies from his people, his govt expends it on things best described as cosmetic...flowers on roads, and bogus....Eko Atlantic Project! The latter is reported to gulp over a million naira just to reclaim a square metre of land from the ocean! And of course the aspect of settling his godfather must also receive serious attention....plus his cronies and hangers-on! I have written severally how this young man and his likes short-change the people with impunity....as they inflict the security agencies....which they control....on us whipping us into line to fulfil our part of the social contract....while they refuse to do theirs....an act of thuggery! Bogus taxes inclusive!
As the Governor of Lagos State of Nigeria is obsessed with pushing out policies that cause inflation in the economy....as he appears not to "give a damn" how Lagosians come about the monies to survive in such inflated economy, he is simply telling the citizenry to fetch such monies at any cost. This lawless young man is encouraging a culture of stealing!
By the way, do you know that Gov Raji Fashola's family house is located at Isalegangan Square on Lagos Island? And being a skilled footballer, this young man honned his skills on the palyground in this square....popularly called Onala? See an extract of my report on current events at this playground: Huge construction underway on the site. The job board reads "11 FLOORS OF LUXURY APARTMENTS". My Worry: Fashola eliminating a playground that was useful to him as a child. Two, Fashola not having any qualms about the blatant use of the word "luxury". Three, Fashola not having the wisdom to at least label the new building as a block of Office Suites....afterall, Lagos Island is a big commercial centre....that is, if he must scrap this playgroung at all cost! The same uncaring mentality plays itself out yet again in this matter of LASU fee hike. It matters not to this rabidly irresponsible young man if he fosters on parents financial burdens which were not known by his parents!
And the Osborne Bridge? A Federal High Court has just ruled that it is illegal to collect tolls on this bridge....on the premise "that it was built with taxpayers' monies....and that such taxpayers cannot be made to pay for what belongs to them". But tolls continue to be demanded on the bridge by the state government. That confirms that this man is lawless!
The politicians make sure of that....reason why they act so irresponsibly, with impunity and at variance with the wishes, aspirations and welfare of the citizens. They so act because they know they do not require our votes to get into office....or lack of those votes to get expunged from office! They do all they can to perfect the art of election rigging! Fashola looks like a monkey....perhaps explains why he thinks and acts like a monkey! As ugly outside as he is inside. Utterly idiotic! I had the luck to administer treatment to some of the thugs he used to attack opponents prior to his first term. They came into my clinic with gruesome wounds. They also "ran their mouths"...as they continued to haggle noisily over the sharing formula of their "pay" while still on admission...
Dr Tosin Akindele is a Lagos-based medical practitioner and social critic.