Prince (Dr.) Lanre Tejuoso is the former Commissioner for
Youth and Sports under the Ibikunle Amosun-led administration in Ogun State.
Until his resignation to contest the Ogun Central senatorial seat, under the
All Progressives Congress, APC, in the February 14 elections, Tejuoso was the
Commissioner for the Environment as well as Special Duties Continue..
In this interview, he narrated
how he escaped death by whiskers when suspected assassins invaded his home in Abeokuta
recently. Excerpts:
By Daud Olatunji
A LOT of people are of the
opinion that you just came to snatch the ticket from politicians who are older
than you in the party. How true is that?
I have been on this project for ten years. I was with Senator
Amosun in the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP, in 2006. That was when I
contested for the senate under the ANPP. Then, nobody believed in ANPP, not
only in Ogun State, but throughout the Southern part of Nigeria.
Majority of the politicians believed we were on a suicide
mission, saying ‘how can you bring a political party that belonged to a Hausa
man from the North to us here in Yoruba land?’
Senatorial hopeful
It was only in his house that we were making some little noise
and I was a senatorial hopeful. We did what we could, but the rest like they
say is history.
Can you share your experience
during the assassination attempt on your life?
Some hoodlums came to attack me in the hotel where I lodged. It was some minutes
after 2am, when I saw five people; they invaded my room and brought out their
guns. They asked how I dared had the effrontery to run for Senate.
They started slapping me; they said they were asked to come and
assassinate me. They ordered me to lie down on my bed; that they were going to
kill me. It was a horrible experience. You see my forehead? (pointing at a scar
on his forehead). Honestly, I don’t know how I survived. Blood was everywhere.
God just gave me that power to
live and saved me.
I then said to myself, that if I didn’t die then, God must have
spared me for a purpose; I shall serve Him and serve my people. Hence my
resolve to pursue this ambition and that is why I am here for the Ogun
Central senatorial contest. There have been so many gladiators along the line,
but people do not know how far I have come.
You are a successful
businessman and a Prince from the Tejuoso royalty of Oke–Ona Egba in
Abeokuta, why are you seeking an elective position at this
time?
Do you realise that Nigeria’s democracy would have grown and be more matured than what we have now, if people
from the Private Sector as well as sons and daughters of traditional rulers,
like you put it had been occupying elective positions in this country?
The reason is that such elected persons would not want to bring
disgrace to the Royal family or whichever Establishment such people came from.
They would be conscious of the fact that if they fail to perform
or embezzle funds meant for developmental projects in their constituency, the
electorate would cry out and before you know it, such traditional ruler would
have called him or her to accountability and order. But look at what we have
today.
We have situations where some politicians would misappropriate
funds meant for their constituency projects and they get away with the
impunity. My vying for the Ogun Central senatorial seat, is to bring about a
remarkable difference in my constituency and therefore will not be ‘business as
usual,’ I can assure you of that.
Traditional council
The main issue is that this is the first time the Egba
Traditional Council will be represented in politics at least in Ogun State. This is the
first time the Egba Traditional Council will be having a candidate from the
royalty, coming out to say that he wants to represent them.
And that is why I have been consulting and seeking our royal
fathers’ blessings on this journey to the hallowed chamber. If there is no
success in this journey, it will be a failure for the council in its
entirety. God forbid.
What plans do you have for the
people of Ogun Central senatorial district if you are eventually elected?
I am confident of victory, by his grace. First of all, I think
one needs to ask oneself about what the work of a senator in this dispensation
actually entails. To me, a senator is to be a participant in developing
policies that should benefit the people of Nigeria.
After thinking about Nigeria, then you talk about your own
constituency. How can I benefit my people in Ogun Central? What are their
problems? How can we make national policies that will benefit them directly?
Ideally, that is what we should be doing.
Federal presence
Then, you now talk about the constituency projects. Maybe, they
give you money to execute
projects that will benefit the people of the constituency where you come from.
Of course, that money they give you must be judiciously spent in that area
where you represent. But these days, many senators receive such money and they
don’t even care about the people and the authority does not even see what they
are doing. God forbid that kind of a senator in my own situation.
Again, there are so many employment opportunities for our people at the
federal level, in addition to drawing federal presence to our State. Without
being immodest, a lot of the people at the top are mostly one’s friends or
business associates. All of these contacts would be used to better the lot of
our people.
Take for instance, the recruitment for the Nigeria Immigration
Service, NIS, which they had last time. A senator must be able to establish
good rapport with those that matter particularly with members of the cabinet;
the ministers, the Permanent Secretaries and so on to enable him fix unemployed
members of his constituency at such vacant positions and others that may open
up.
For the past four years, such opportunities have eluded us in
this state because all our senators were busy fighting the governor. How many
federal projects can you point at here, by our Senators?
How would you react to the
notion that you are not too close to the people and not accessible to the
people of your constituency?
You have said it that it is a perception and perception is
nothing but perception. The people know that I am close to them and that I am
very accessible. Ogun Central senatorial district has a vey large population
and it all depends on whom you’re talking to. Presently, we are on a
“meet-the-people” drive. Every day, we keep on consulting with the people,
because we want to hit the ground running. We must bring smiles to their faces.
Medium scale businesses
What is important is for one to nurture and maintain the good
relationship which has already been established with the people. Recently,
in partnership with a Lagos based microfinance bank, FinaTrust Micro
Finance bank, I facilitated loans for the funding of small and medium scale
businesses in my constituency.
There are however, some people who have made up their minds even
before you meet them and their perception about you is negative. Many would say
“oh, he is a prince, all princes put their shoulders high”! They therefore
expect you to be very proud.
Even before they meet you, that is the impression which they had
already formed. But by the time you move close and talk with them, they now
calm down and express surprise. I have gone through all that many times.
Take for instance, some people whom I have never met before
would tell me that they’re afraid of shaking hands with me because they see me
as Kabiyesi. But I often tell them that my father is the Kabiyesi and not me. I
am just like you too.
If I hold their hands, they would then exclaim “ah, see him,
holding my hand”. In the summary, those who hold that perception are the
ones who feel that as a prince with all the royalty, one should be arrogant
whereas it is not so and I am not.
How true is it that one of your
younger brothers from the Tejuoso royal house, will be squaring up to you in
the senatorial election in 2015?
That is the beauty of democracy. It is not a problem but first
of all, I want you to know that what every contestant needs to do is to perfect
his or her homework very well. All I have to say about that for now is that
when we get to the bridge, we will look at how to cross it but I don’t see that
as a problem for now.
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