What Did Sanwo-Olu Come To Lagos With?

 By Ochereome Nnanna

The first story is about a young Nigerian 45 years ago, and you see the coincidence in the story, 45 years ago, a young Nigerian came to Lagos all the way from another mega-city, Kano, who saw the prosperity, and diversity of our country, who came with nothing but in 45 years has built the biggest empire in the world — Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Governor of Lagos State.

*Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his wife, Dr. Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu

Ordinarily, this statement, which Governor Sanwo-Olu made amidst befitting accolades for Alhaji Aliko Dangote for finally delivering the world’s largest refinery in Lagos, should not raise eyebrows. So, why is it arousing mixed feelings? The reason is obvious. It is a bitter reminder of the fallout of the just-concluded elections, particularly in Lagos, where Sanwo-Olu, his political principal, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and his political party, APC, used ethnic bigotry and violence to save themselves from being shipped out of power by Lagos residents who are tired of their oppressive rule.

During that tumult, they targeted the Igbo stakeholders in Lagos, who were accused of wanting to seize the state from its indigenes. Ndi Igbo in Lagos were reminded that just decades ago, they came to Lagos with “nothing” but now want to take over the state after Tinubu’s “magnanimity” helped them prosper. They were told to abandon their property and “leave Lagos” by the agberos, area boys, and hoodlums recruited into Tinubu’s private political army. It was very childish and unfortunate for Sanwo-Olu to deploy this innuendo with regard to Dangote’s achievements as a Lagos resident.

Saying Dangote left his Kano mega-city with nothing and came to the Lagos mega-city to build “the biggest empire in the world”, the same narrative ascribed to the Igbo success in Lagos, is a talk-down on Dangote and all successful non-indigenes resident in Lagos. Lagos is definitely a land of opportunity. Has always been and will always be. There is nothing ethnic about this reality. Lagos is an inalienable part of Yorubaland. Of that, there is no dispute. But the greatness of Lagos owes very little to any exclusive ethnic factor.

Indigenous and non-indigenous factors have combined to make Lagos what it is today. Historically, you have the Awori and Egba natives, other Yoruba groups, the Edo founders of Eko (Lagos Island), the Portuguese merchants, the British colonialists, the Igbo, Hausa, Nupe, and Niger Delta settlers, and the Federal Government, which ruled Nigeria from Lagos after the departure of the colonialists, as the main motive factors. Most importantly, the oil wealth of the Niger Delta has been the major grease used to oil the development of Lagos, without which even the Dangote Refinery would have been impossible.

Dangote, like the Igbo and other non-indigenes, came to Lagos to exploit opportunities they were entitled to as Nigerians. To whom much is given, much is expected from. Apart from Abuja, many Nigerian cities have been neglected, down the ages, to satisfy Lagos. The Niger Delta was forsaken while its resources were used to develop Lagos and, later, Abuja.

Even the ports that used to thrive in Port Harcourt, Warri, Onne, and Calabar, have been relegated with flimsy excuses, while Lagos enjoys the status of the sole sea gateway of Nigeria. Everybody has the right to come here without any form of harassment or intimidation. If opportunities were better diversified, there would have been more dispersion of opportunities and development.

It is such an irony that most of the people making noise about non-indigenes flourishing in Lagos are invariably non-indigenes. Rauf Aregbesola is from Osun State. Sanwo-Olu is from Ogun State. What did they come to Lagos with? What does a Nigerian need to come to Lagos with to grow big except quality human capacity? 

What did the Indians and Chinese who are prospering in Lagos and other big cities come with? Dangote comes from the legendary Dantata family of Kano. They are famous for producing billionaires. Without the Federal Government’s free-flowing waivers and “wind assistance”, Dangote would still have been a multibillionaire because he has that seed in him.

I am looking forward to a time when true patriots with giant mindsets will resume control of such an important subnational entity as Lagos. When a person wears clothing that is bigger than him, he wears it awkwardly.

He may not even know the value of what he is donning. Let it be known to Tinubu, Sanwo-Olu, and their supporters that not everybody who comes to Lagos becomes successful. Out of every 100 residents, only one may boast of a steady one million naira in his or her account. If living in Lagos is synonymous with being wealthy, most Lagos original indigenes would be billionaires.

Because it does not work that way, we must rethink the notion of what makes one prosperous as a resident of Lagos. The primary factors are personal acumen, access to opportunities, and the ability to exploit those opportunities. It works the same way in Lagos as in other places. 

If opportunities are created in any other part of Nigeria, people who have the acumen will go there and prosper.

It pays to respect people who have overcome the odds to rise above the rest in their chosen areas. They are contributors to the success story because they pay ever increasing taxes and employ people as they grow. They are investors and stakeholders. Today, Dangote has emerged as the biggest investor in Lagos. His refinery alone controls an area five times the size of Victoria Island. Talk about “taking over Lagos”.

That guy has just become the biggest Lagos landlord! Let me see that weedy Area Boy or stick-wielding Agbero who will go to the gates of Dangote Refinery and demand that its owner “leave Lagos”.

Congratulations to Dangote, the Lagos State Government, and the Federal Republic of Nigeria, for making this dream come true. We made it!

*Nnanna is a commentator on public issues