The Vice-Presidential candidate of the All Progressives
Congress, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has been getting some big
endorsements since his emergence, with the latest coming
from Obafemi Awolo's wife.
In this interview with Punch's Kayode Falade, he opens up
on his nomination and national issues:
You were not in the early picture of contenders for the
vice-presidential slot. When and how did your name pop
up? I think my name was always being mentioned. My
name came up early. Maybe a great deal of importance
wasn’t attached to it but it came up early. At least, in the
press, it was reported frequently early too. This has been
on since almost four or five months ago. There have been
speculations for that long. Thus, my name has always
popped up.
As a pastor and legal practitioner who is not much of a
politician; why did you accept the offer when you were
nominated? I accepted the offer because I believe one of the
most important contributions that any person can make to
a society is public service. For me, it didn’t require much
reflection because I have always believed the most
effective way of making maximum impact on the welfare
and well-being of our society is through public service.
You’ve always emphasised prayers. Did you pray about this
before you accepted?
I always pray. I prayed about this just as I pray about many
things because communication with God at all times is
important. I also think people, maybe, get more religious
when it comes to political office. People tend to say God
told them to do something or the other; but I think the most
important thing to bear in mind is that as far as the
Christian is concerned, there is something called the
priesthood of the believer, which means that every believer
is a priest unto God. It also means every believer has a
duty to serve man as if we are serving God. In other words,
service to man is service to God. For a Christian, especially
a pastor, to suggest that if he has an opportunity to serve
millions of people, an opportunity to effect policies which
may alleviate the sufferings of millions of people, as it is
the case in Nigeria, an opportunity to fashion policies that
may transform the lives of people, I think it may be
hypocritical not to participate in that.
I also believe that when you are committed to doing God’s
will — and His will for us all as Christians is that we must
participate in solving problems, especially the problems of
the needy and those who cannot help themselves — we
must do those things. That is part of our calling and in fact,
our scripture says that we will be asked on the last day,
‘What did you do when you saw me naked? What did you
do when you saw me sick and in prison?’ If we then say,
‘Lord (Jesus), when did we see you hungry? When did we
see you sick?’ And then, Jesus will say, ‘Every time you
saw those sick people, the poor and the hungry; every time
you saw the naked, it was me (Jesus).’ For me, it is almost
unthinkable for a Christian to second-guess public service.
We must be prepared to serve the people. That is what I
teach and preach in my church. There are probably
hundreds of thousands of individuals as deserving who do
not get that opportunity, but I do. And then I should turn it
down for some reasons? It wouldn’t even occur to me,
except if God were to say specifically to me, ‘Don’t do it.’
Did God reveal your victory?
That’s the point I’ve been trying to make to you. It is not
about winning. That is not what I am interested in. What I
am interested in is not what God says about winning or
losing. I am not asking Him for, as it were, a lottery. If we
were going to play a game, then I could say, ‘O Lord, will I
win or lose?’ That’s not the point. The point is will I serve
the people or will I not? That’s the only issue I need to
consider and I don’t need any special directive on that
because that is what God has already said we must do as
believers.
And what did He tell you?
No, I won’t disclose that to you.
The Redeemed Christian Church of God, where you are a
pastor, has come out to say it never endorsed you…
I don’t think the church has ever said any such thing. Also,
the church does not endorse candidates. The General
Overseer of the church, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has not
said any such thing. He has not issued any statement. In
any event, the RCCG as a church cannot endorse a
candidate. How can a church endorse a candidate?
But did you seek Pastor Adeboye’s consent before
accepting the nomination?
I serve under the GO of the RCCG as a pastor. If I am going
to take any kind of action, especially an action that involves
public service, it is my duty to consult with him. It would be
absolutely irresponsible of me not to consult with him. And
I have consulted with him.
Did he give you his consent?
I have consulted with Adeboye fully. I am not prepared to
share with you the details of our discussion. But be
absolutely certain that I would not take these steps without
properly consulting with him and that I did what was
needful.
The opposition has labelled you a stooge of the National
Leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. What is your
reaction to that?
I think it is irrelevant. I cannot dignify that with a comment.
What anyone should do is look at my track record. In any
event, when you look at Tinubu, who is it that he has in any
form supported that turned out to be his stooge? Is it
(Lagos State Governor, Babatunde) Fashola or (former Ekiti
State Governor, Kayode) Fayemi? Is it (Osun State
Governor, Rauf) Aregbesola or (Edo State Governor,
Adams) Oshiomhole? Is it (Oyo State Governor, Abiola)
Ajimobi, (Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle) Amosun or Wale
Edun? These are individuals who have contributed
tremendously to the development of their states and the
development of this nation. And all you need to ask those
who tell you about stooges and all of that is, ‘Who are
those men and women of character who they have
produced to serve in the same states where we have
served so creditably?’ I think the statement is not really
worth the comment.
One of the reasons given for ‘zoning’ the APC vice-
presidential slot to the South-West was that the region
sacrificed so much for the emergence of the party and that
it has been marginalised in the current dispensation. As a
candidate of the South-West, what are your plans for the
region?
I am a candidate of the APC, which is a national party.
Don’t regionalise candidature. Gen. (Muhammadu) Buhari
is a representative of the South-West, the North and
everywhere else, and so am I. We were elected nationally;
we were not elected to represent regions or places. It would
be wrong for us to say that the reason why I am there is
for the South-West. What then would the South-East and
South-South say? I don’t think that regionalising it in that
way is right. I think we are persons who have been
appointed into national offices and we will serve in those
capacities. I think that is the right way to look at this. I
believe the South-West will be an engine of change and
development in Nigeria. It is important that that is
maintained, just as all the parts of Nigeria — the South-
East, South-South and the North. Everyone has a role to
play and a contribution to make.
Why then did your party say it gave the South-West the
slot?
I’m sure that is not an official statement of the party. I am
sure that is a speculation. I don’t think it is fair to say that
is the official position of the party. The party may have its
reasons; but officially, the fair thing to say is that Buhari
and I were nominated by the party to be national, not
regional, officers.
As a lawyer, you are trained to obey the rule of law while
Buhari is a retired Army general, who gained power several
years ago through a coup d’état. Are you sure there
wouldn’t be a conflict if you are elected?
I’ve interacted extensively with Buhari and I think he is
conscious of the fact that we are in a civilian dispensation
and that we are bound by the rule of law and the
Constitution. He has repeated this so often. He has
demonstrated this by going to court every time he lost
election, pursuing the rule of law and legal processes.
He could have completely ignored it. He could have said, ‘I
don’t even believe in the rule of law. I don’t believe in the
system.’ But he has consistently done the right thing and
whenever he speaks, you’ll notice that he always goes back
to the Constitution. I believe whatever we may say about
the military dispensation, we should realise that the era
was not famous for the observance of the rule of law. But I
think that after all of these years, Buhari has had plenty of
time to reflect and all his utterances in the many years after
military rule show that he definitely subscribes fully to the
tenets of the rule of law and fundamental human rights and
also understands that democratic rule is different from
military rule. Thus, I have no problems at all working with a
man like him.
Some schools of thought have it that you are of less
electoral value, compared with Governor Adams
Oshiomhole, Governor Rotimi Amaechi and even Governor
Raji Fashola. The argument is that the party is making a
mistake by going for somebody who has never contested
or won any election. Is the argument valid to you?
I think that, perhaps, there is an advantage to that, because
it means that I have to work harder. And as you can see, I
am working very hard. I think that hard work always pays
off. We’re going round, speaking with the people to know
their concerns. I take nothing for granted and that is one of
the most important things I’d like to bring into the
campaign. We must do what we need to do, we must work
harder than ever, we must answer questions from the
public. We are not saying to the people, ‘I am so well-
known. I don’t need to come and speak to you.’ Thus, that
might well be an advantage for the party; that I cannot take
anything for granted. I need to work hard to get the party’s
policies known and recognised. I think it is important that
the party has chosen this and I am sure that it took
everything into consideration before making the choice that
it made. Of course, all the gentlemen you have referred to
are thoroughly qualified individuals who would have
brought something of worth and value to the ticket; but
that’s the nature of the APC, we have many to choose
from.
What are the things of value you are bringing to the table?
I’m bringing in hard work, focus, my reputation for detailed
work and also I like to support a man who believes in
probity and accountability. I think that is important. I also
would like to work with implementation of policies. We have
shown that for eight years in Lagos State. We worked very
hard on our justice sector reforms and all the other reforms
of the Tinubu-led administration. Even in the subsequent
administration, we worked hard with all of those who are
there. We have been there in the public service; we may not
be famous, but we have worked very hard.
Considering the fact that the Office of the Vice President
has no portfolio under the Constitution, how confident are
you that you can realise all these?
Buhari and I have had several discussions. I know that he
will not waste the peculiar attributes that I will bring to the
table, because he is a person who obviously values
contributions from other people. I have worked with him
and I have seen him at work. I don’t think that he would
waste my contributions. I think he will happily receive
contributions and give me roles to play that will ensure that
his administration benefits maximally. What’s the point of
having me on the ticket, if he is not going to use what I will
bring to the table? I don’t have any doubts at all that Buhari
will find my contributions useful enough for him to say,
‘This and that are the things I’d like you to do.’
Which roles do you think he would ask you to perform?
I cannot speculate on that. You will have to ask him.
One of the most serious issues the country is facing is
insecurity. How do you think this should be tackled?
I think the first problem is recognising that you cannot deal
with such a major assault on the integrity of the nation
when you are misrepresenting the facts. And one of the
things that the government, unfortunately, has done is to
accuse the opposition of being responsible for the Boko
Haram (insurgency), which, of course, has created a
division. Look at everywhere else in the world where a
country has come under attack. What the government does
is to ensure that there is a bipartisan or a multi-party
agreement on how to tackle the problem.
You don’t politicise the issue. In this case, the false
allegations made against the APC of being responsible for
Boko Haram (attacks), including allegations made against
senior members of the party by the government, first of all,
created a distraction. Rather than identify the real causes
and issues surrounding the Boko Haram (insurgency), they
were busy labelling the APC. This, for me, is one of the
greatest disservices this administration has done to this
nation. The fact that, rather than focus on who the true
enemy was, they waited until Buhari was almost killed by
the same Boko Haram before, they started to rethink that
allegation, is unfortunate. Whenever they find it convenient,
they just throw the allegation around.
I think that the first thing, when you want to deal with a
danger of such enormity to a nation, is that you must be
truthful, sincere and forthright. You must identify who the
true enemy is. The second is that you have to motivate and
equip the military and the Commander-in-Chief must lead
from the front. You cannot lead from behind. The people
must see that just as you are saying to them that they
must be prepared to fight Boko Haram, you are also
prepared. It is apparent that our military is very disciplined.
I have said this many times, the Nigerian Army is one of the
best in the world; definitely one of the best in Africa. I
served under UNOSOM 2 in Mogadishu, Somalia; the head
of the Police that took care of the entire operation, Col. Pat
Akem, was a Nigerian. He is now a brigadier. All of the
troops from other nations were under his care as the head
of the military police in that operation.
Some personalities from the Niger Delta region have
threatened that if Jonathan does not win, there will be
unrest. What is your take on this? I don’t think there will be
any unrest. I think our brothers in the Niger Delta are very
reasonable people. I think what everyone will be looking for
is a free and fair election. If elections are credible, no one
will take up arms or resort to self-help. If we have a free
and fair election, I don’t think that anyone will put their lives
on the line to defend the government or any such thing.
What is most important is a free and fair election. That is
what the Independent National Electoral Commission and
the government of today should aim for.
Do you see INEC accomplishing it?
The distribution of the Permanent Voter Cards has not
shown INEC in a very good light. I would really urge INEC to
rise up to its responsibilities. These coming elections are
very important for the future of our nation. And I think it is
important for INEC to live up to its responsibilities;
understand the importance of the elections and understand
why the elections should not be tainted in anyway by any
kind of suggestion that they were not properly conducted. I
think INEC really has a duty to this nation — to ensure that
things are done properly this time.
Buhari chose another pastor, Tunde Bakare, as his running
mate in his last bid for the presidency in 2011. Does he
have a disposition to clerics? You will have to ask Buhari
why he likes pastors. But I think it’s a good thing and a
good sign. I think it shows that he is well and able to work
with anyone — clerics and people of other faiths.
It is believed that Buhari’s quest to sanitise the political
system is an overambitious one due to the level of
corruption which political leaders in Nigeria have grown
accustomed to. What’s your take?
I think our nation is at a point where corruption is almost
the norm, especially in the public service. You and I know
that that is probably the rule; the exception is any kind of
transparency or forthright behaviour. But it is important to
draw the line somewhere, because this nation cannot
continue with this level of corruption. It is just impossible. I
don’t think that people are born good. As a matter of fact,
my belief is that most people will do the wrong thing if
there is no consequence for their action. And the reason
why we are here today is that there is no consequence for
the actions that people take — for corruption, stealing, or
anything of the sort. That is the reason why I think that
what is required, first of all, is an administration where
people believe that the number one man will not tolerate
corruption.
If the number one man is perceived as a man that will not
tolerate corruption, then you have moved light years from
where we are today. I think that Buhari is somebody who is
respected for his strong views on corruption. What we need
to introduce today is consequence for corruption. If we
don’t do that, frankly I am fearful that we may not have
much left of a country. CLICK HERE TO READ FULL AND TOUCHING NIGERIAN CELEBRITIES BIOGRAPHY AND SCANDALS
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