OMOGBOLAHAN L.A. BABAWALE
Public Affairs Analyst
Convener/Lead Resource Person
The Think-Tinubu Initiative states, “The Oxford English Dictionary defines a ‘pathfinder’ as ‘someone who can find paths through unexplored territory’ while the Merriam-Webster Dictionary puts same as ‘one that discovers a way’. Either ways one may be tempted to look at it, it does not negate the incontrovertible fact that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR over the years has always been a pathfinder in every place, any position he finds himself. Whether you may want to look at it from his days at the Chicago State University (CSU), United States where he led those he was collegiately connected with, or you want to explore his days at the multinational, ExxonMobil where, as the then company’s Treasury and wizkid, he raised funds used to build a new befitting office for the oil giant and made it to stop rental payments till date. Or would you rather want to look at his effulgent contributions to the activities of the pro-democracy group, NADECO in the days of struggles for democratic ethos that we all enjoy today. His antecedents in the (now) third biggest economy in Africa – a legacy he bequeathed; Lagos State would readily show him as a true ‘sacajawea’ in today’s Nigeria.
As glowing as his trajectory over the years may be, can he single-handedly bring same to bear on a heterogenous and complex nation like Nigeria? That calls for serious thinking. With people’s varied biases as to governance dimension in the country, how does he weigh in on so many perceived injustices that can, at least, satiate the sentiments of the majority, when it is obvious no one can guarantee a hundred per cent perfection in leadership or governance? If the above postulation is by assembling a team that keys into his vision and leadership philosophy, the question then is, ‘How many of his appointees are willing to be co-pathfinders in his committed efforts geared towards re-writing – the history, retooling the democratic tenets, revamping the economy, and re-engineering the entire governance architecture in the country?’ From the foregoing, can we ask how many among them so far have shown capacity? How many have displayed such zest and gusto to compliment Mr. President’s efforts?
In the undersigned’s assessment of President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet members, only a handful has been seen to be up and doing. One may be tempted to say may be because, principally, their jobs have something concrete or tangible to do with the public. So, their successes or otherwise naturally resonate with the masses. These individuals in their numbers are not without one man who, hitherto, has been largely regarded, in many quarters, as the ‘poster boy’ of the Renewed Hope mandate of the Tinubu administration. If there are ten (10) of such appointees, he would be between the first 5. If there were five (5) of them, he would be in the first 3 and if there were only one person, he would be that only one man who can be described as the co-pathfinder in the current administration. This man is no other person than the Minister of Interior, Hon. (Dr.) Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo. His back-to-back milestones across the agencies under his supervision are testaments to this assertion as it is obvious to the blind and even audible to the deaf!
Never in the wildest imagination of Nigerians did they think of the possibility of a way out of the perennial migraine associated with the issuance of international passport at the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) offices across the country and even in the Diaspora. It was a conundrum that seemed intractable. But here we are today, accessing passports within 24-48 hours of application and capturing. Something that would have taken eternity to process except for individuals who were ready to play the ball – of bribing the immigration officials for what they would usually term, ‘express’. Yours Truly was also a victim of circumstance. I remember how a friend of mine came all the way from Lagos to fast-track his passport application in Abuja. He still ended up spending nearly a week after paying for ‘express’ process. It was that chaotic before the coming on board of Hon. (Dr.) Tunji-Ojo. Or is it the re-invigorated service delivery of the immigration office through border efficiency? A fête that was a corollary of the recent launch of operational vehicles for more proactive and efficient policing on border security? Many testimonies abound.
Hon. (Dr.) Tunji-Ojo has proven himself as a trendsetter who, within a short time popularised the Renewed Hope agenda of President Tinubu, and has been largely responsible for why some of the naysayers against the party – All Progressives Congress (APC), including adversaries of Mr. President now have cause to give the latter and his team the benefit of doubt as to make positive impact on governance in all its facets. Like the Biblical Moses, Hon. (Dr.) Tunji-Ojo is one of the Aarons of the Tinubu administration, helping in accentuating the milestones of the current administration vis-à-vis its manifestos and electoral promises. This, these Aarons have consistently and hitherto carried out with their several shackle breaking landmarks across the various governance architectures in the country. The list is endless. Within the agencies under the purview of Minister Tunji-Ojo alone, his achievements in less than 6 months of coming on board as a Minister of the Federal Republic is enough to campaign for a Tinubu re-election.
Therefore, let no one live in doubt anymore. Let the misanthropes and cynics have it at the back of their mind that the Minister of Interior, Hon. (Dr.) Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo is not stopping, not now, and not anytime soon in embarking on projects, institutionalising policies, and creating synergies that will not only sell his principal – Mr. President as a man of his words, but also indeed give Nigerians many reasons to be proud of the most populous black nation of the world – Nigeria as their country. Tunji-Ojo knows we have a country to build. He would rather, he left a good legacy for the generations to come than the situation he met on ground. Like he said, he would not blame himself for the Nigeria he met, but castigate himself, in harsh terms, if he fails to bequeath a better Nigeria than he met it. And as co-pathfinder that he is, there is no looking back. Onward forever is the goal!