The incumbent Senator repre¬senting Lagos Central Senato¬rial District who is also seek¬ing a re-election, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, appears not so disturbed about her ambition as she believes only the people would have to de¬cide whether or not she deserves a second term in office. She spoke to Sunday Sun about the challenges, the objection to the nomination of Senator Musiliu Obanikoro as minis¬ter. She also talked about the issue of the card readers for the f elections. Excerpt:
What would you say is the most challenging part of your career as a politician?
The most challenging is the burden placed on you and you cannot blame the populace for that. You cannot because of the level of poverty, and you are not holding an executive post where you have the budget to do most of your programmes, but you are just relying on salaries. The financial bur¬den is quite challenging but I thank God I made the sacrifice and I am happy that I am able to do it. And you see, when you give all, you don’t really care about the aftermath of what you are doing. Maybe the excitement is not there because you are always giving all because, assuming I am eating out of it, maybe I will be craving that I have to go back by all means. I see it as work and I thank God that my constituents appreciate my little efforts because what I have done is quite little.
I have seen that, no matter how little, and this is a lesson for all of us, you don’t wait until you have a bag full of money before you reach out to the peo¬ple. Just one naira can meet the need of someone. So just do whatever you can, and it might be that the person you are doing it for needs just additional one naira. This is always a lesson for me in life that I don’t have to wait until I have tons and lots of money before I reach out to people.
We watched the drama that was staged by the leadership of the APC in the Senate over the ratification of Senator Musiliu Obanikoro’s nomination for a ministerial position. What is the implication of this to the Nige-rian system?
It is not a drama. You can see what has transpired even in Lagos after they had confirmed him. You can see that there was riot and that was why we didn’t want him. If his party in Lagos did not want him to be their gubernatorial candidate, who said the President has to give to Lagos someone who his own party rejected? So, to me, he is rejected by their party.
We don’t want someone like that. We want someone, no matter his party af¬filiation, that would put Lagos first.
By marriage, I was given the privilege to serve Lagos and since my husband assumed office in Lagos, I have never taken that privilege likely or abusively. I do what I am supposed to do and I take my job dutifully, and I do my best at all times. Look at it, the Senate Presi¬dent chose to rule everyone out of it, despite that my colleagues and I gave a very brilliant argument but he ruled ev¬erybody out just like that and you know the meaning of that? It is as if we hadn’t spoken at all.
So, I had to say “No, we don’t want you”. At least, no one would rule me out of that. I had to say: “No, we don’t want you” and I am not going to mince words on that. I will continue to say that he is not fit for the position.
He is not fit, with his reputation right now, to be a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and if President Jonathan would continue to take touts, and I don’t have to mention names, so be it. My concern is Lagos, which you know is evident. Why would you be putting the leadership of this country in different areas in the hands of touts? It is very, very worrisome for me. Wor¬risome! Look at what they did on the streets of Lagos. We marched and it was peaceful. But for them, look at the destruction they wrought.
And why would you ask people to march on a working day? A working day that is for business. So, it is just too disheartening. I think I have to rest my case on this.
On post election violence, you have said you wouldn’t want Senator Obanikoro and now, the Senate has approved his nomination. Do you nurse any fear in your heart on that at the moment?
We are not going to be afraid. We are not going to be afraid at all. Any cause that is not worth dying for is no cause at all. This is a course. This is the opportu¬nity we have to say what we want. You see, my antecedent is different.
We came in from the Abacha era. We have invested so much of time and re¬sources into this and this means a lot to us.
To us, it is a struggle; it is a movement and until our people are liberated and have the right to live in an atmosphere and in a country where everybody can dream and have access to education, power, good health, infrastructural de-velopment; until we have access to all these, we don’t have a country.
How do we prevent post-elec¬tion violence?
Let me tell you, I am not going to pre-empt anything but we are ready. We are ready to vote.
What do you have to say about the issue of the card readers not recognising the fingers of some people? Does this not spell a risk for the elections?
That is just a speculation. Professor Jega said he is ready. The card readers are ready. Have you seen one that is not functioning well? The people who have the card readers in their custody said that they are ready. Why don’t we give them the benefit of doubt? We should allow the process to continue and I think Nigerians, too, are ready.
We are ready for elections. We are ready to give our voice through our votes that this is where we want to go and this is the direction we want to go. Any good leader has to relate to the people, or is it not democracy? Let the people decide and I think that the entire world is seeing the goodwill of the APC, contrary to their speculations of trying to divide this country, using religion.
There are a lot of us that have inter-married.
My husband is a Muslim and I am a Christian, and there is no conflict, whatsoever, as to whom we serve.
I respect his religion and he respects mine. Most people would wonder that when they are praying in the Islamic way, I would stretch forth my hands. It is an act of respect. If God in heaven, the God of all flesh, hears us all, who knows the voice that God hears at different instances? Have we all seen God? So, before we see Him, let us pay respect to anywhere and anyone who calls on God.
Why do you think you deserve a second term in office?
I don’t know about that. I don’t know whether I deserve it or not. Let the peo¬ple decide. I am just doing the bit I can. I, actually, don’t know and I can’t say I deserve one.
The people will decide that and I am not afraid to have the people decide. Any one running for any post, from the presidency down below, should not be afraid of what the people would say.
Source: Sun
What would you say is the most challenging part of your career as a politician?
The most challenging is the burden placed on you and you cannot blame the populace for that. You cannot because of the level of poverty, and you are not holding an executive post where you have the budget to do most of your programmes, but you are just relying on salaries. The financial bur¬den is quite challenging but I thank God I made the sacrifice and I am happy that I am able to do it. And you see, when you give all, you don’t really care about the aftermath of what you are doing. Maybe the excitement is not there because you are always giving all because, assuming I am eating out of it, maybe I will be craving that I have to go back by all means. I see it as work and I thank God that my constituents appreciate my little efforts because what I have done is quite little.
I have seen that, no matter how little, and this is a lesson for all of us, you don’t wait until you have a bag full of money before you reach out to the peo¬ple. Just one naira can meet the need of someone. So just do whatever you can, and it might be that the person you are doing it for needs just additional one naira. This is always a lesson for me in life that I don’t have to wait until I have tons and lots of money before I reach out to people.
We watched the drama that was staged by the leadership of the APC in the Senate over the ratification of Senator Musiliu Obanikoro’s nomination for a ministerial position. What is the implication of this to the Nige-rian system?
It is not a drama. You can see what has transpired even in Lagos after they had confirmed him. You can see that there was riot and that was why we didn’t want him. If his party in Lagos did not want him to be their gubernatorial candidate, who said the President has to give to Lagos someone who his own party rejected? So, to me, he is rejected by their party.
We don’t want someone like that. We want someone, no matter his party af¬filiation, that would put Lagos first.
By marriage, I was given the privilege to serve Lagos and since my husband assumed office in Lagos, I have never taken that privilege likely or abusively. I do what I am supposed to do and I take my job dutifully, and I do my best at all times. Look at it, the Senate Presi¬dent chose to rule everyone out of it, despite that my colleagues and I gave a very brilliant argument but he ruled ev¬erybody out just like that and you know the meaning of that? It is as if we hadn’t spoken at all.
So, I had to say “No, we don’t want you”. At least, no one would rule me out of that. I had to say: “No, we don’t want you” and I am not going to mince words on that. I will continue to say that he is not fit for the position.
He is not fit, with his reputation right now, to be a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and if President Jonathan would continue to take touts, and I don’t have to mention names, so be it. My concern is Lagos, which you know is evident. Why would you be putting the leadership of this country in different areas in the hands of touts? It is very, very worrisome for me. Wor¬risome! Look at what they did on the streets of Lagos. We marched and it was peaceful. But for them, look at the destruction they wrought.
And why would you ask people to march on a working day? A working day that is for business. So, it is just too disheartening. I think I have to rest my case on this.
On post election violence, you have said you wouldn’t want Senator Obanikoro and now, the Senate has approved his nomination. Do you nurse any fear in your heart on that at the moment?
We are not going to be afraid. We are not going to be afraid at all. Any cause that is not worth dying for is no cause at all. This is a course. This is the opportu¬nity we have to say what we want. You see, my antecedent is different.
We came in from the Abacha era. We have invested so much of time and re¬sources into this and this means a lot to us.
To us, it is a struggle; it is a movement and until our people are liberated and have the right to live in an atmosphere and in a country where everybody can dream and have access to education, power, good health, infrastructural de-velopment; until we have access to all these, we don’t have a country.
How do we prevent post-elec¬tion violence?
Let me tell you, I am not going to pre-empt anything but we are ready. We are ready to vote.
What do you have to say about the issue of the card readers not recognising the fingers of some people? Does this not spell a risk for the elections?
That is just a speculation. Professor Jega said he is ready. The card readers are ready. Have you seen one that is not functioning well? The people who have the card readers in their custody said that they are ready. Why don’t we give them the benefit of doubt? We should allow the process to continue and I think Nigerians, too, are ready.
We are ready for elections. We are ready to give our voice through our votes that this is where we want to go and this is the direction we want to go. Any good leader has to relate to the people, or is it not democracy? Let the people decide and I think that the entire world is seeing the goodwill of the APC, contrary to their speculations of trying to divide this country, using religion.
There are a lot of us that have inter-married.
My husband is a Muslim and I am a Christian, and there is no conflict, whatsoever, as to whom we serve.
I respect his religion and he respects mine. Most people would wonder that when they are praying in the Islamic way, I would stretch forth my hands. It is an act of respect. If God in heaven, the God of all flesh, hears us all, who knows the voice that God hears at different instances? Have we all seen God? So, before we see Him, let us pay respect to anywhere and anyone who calls on God.
Why do you think you deserve a second term in office?
I don’t know about that. I don’t know whether I deserve it or not. Let the peo¬ple decide. I am just doing the bit I can. I, actually, don’t know and I can’t say I deserve one.
The people will decide that and I am not afraid to have the people decide. Any one running for any post, from the presidency down below, should not be afraid of what the people would say.
Source: Sun
