Category: Femi Macaulay

It was a tragic drama and a dramatic tragedy. A spectacular 21-storey giant had a great fall at Gerard Road, Ikoyi, Lagos, on November 1.  The high-rise under construction in the highbrow neighbourhood was reduced to a lowly status.

Tragically, many people who were at the site, for one reason or another, died.  The dead included the ambitious builder of the ambitious residential tower and CEO of Fourscore Homes, Femi Osibona. He was aged 55.

It is said that art imitates life. Life can also imitate art. News of the Ikoyi building collapse and the spotlight on Osibona brought to mind a play by the distinguished Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen titled The Master Builder, first published in 1892.  Described as a play of “heightened ambiguities,” it is regarded as one of Ibsen’s “more significant and revealing works.”

Here is a synopsis of the play from Wikipedia: “Halvard Solness is a middle-aged master builder of a small town in Norway who has become a successful architect of some distinction and local reputation. One day while having a visit from his friend Doctor Herdal, Solness is visited by Hilda Wangel, a young woman of 23, whom Doctor Herdal recognises from a recent trip that he had taken. The doctor leaves, Solness is alone with Hilda, and she reminds him that they are not strangers – they had previously met in her home town 10 years ago when she was 13 years old.

“When Solness does not respond immediately, she reminds him that at one point during their encounter he had made advances to her, had offered her a romantic interlude, and promised her “a kingdom,” all of which she believed. He denies this. She gradually convinces him, however, that she can assist him with his household duties, and so he takes her into his home.

“Solness is also the manager of an architectural office in which he employs Knut Brovik, his son Ragnar Brovik, and Kaia Fosli. Kaia and Ragnar are romantically linked, and Ragnar has ambitions to become promoted in his architectural vocation, which Solness is reluctant to grant or support. Solness also has a complicated relationship with his wife Aline, and the two are revealed to have lost children some years ago as a result of a fire. During this time, Solness builds a closer tie with Hilda while she is in his home, and she supports his architectural vocation and new projects.

“During the construction of his most recent project which includes a towering steeple, Hilda learns that Solness suffers from acrophobia, a morbid fear of extreme heights, but nonetheless she encourages him to climb the steeple to the top at the public opening of the newly completed building. Solness, inspired by her words, achieves the top of the tower, when he suddenly loses his footing and crashes to his death on the ground before the spectators who have arrived for the opening of the new building. Among the spectators standing aghast at the sight, only Hilda comes forward as if in silent triumph. She waves her shawl and cries out with wild intensity “My—my Master Builder!”

Read Also: Ikoyi collapsed building death toll hits 44

Osibona’s life ended at the site of his building like that of the master builder in Ibsen’s play.  In the play, the building did not collapse, but the builder fell to his death. Osibona’s building collapsed and killed him.

He had a grand architectural dream. The fallen tower was one of three towers, collectively known as 360 Degrees Towers.  He painted a picture of the project in an interview with TVC about three months ago. “We are actually building a seven-star hotel,” he explained. “They are flats, but we make it feel like you are living in a seven-star hotel. Everything that is in a seven-star hotel, you will have there. But the only difference is that you own the property. We have not advertised and we have sold more than 50 per cent…Here in 360, we have security, exceptional view, offices, clubhouse, and open recreation area. Practically everything you have in a seven-star hotel.”

The project and the builder attracted attention in 2020 when it was reported that Osibona had tried to prevent officials of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) from sealing off the building in question. The agency was said to have observed some “anomalies.”

The agency’s general manager, Gbolahan Oki, was quoted as saying Osibona “got an approval for a 15-storey building and he exceeded his limit…and the materials he used are so inferior and terrible. The materials he used, the reinforcement, are so terrible. He got approval for 15 floors but built 21.” There is a controversy over the number of floors he got approval to build.

The claim that he was supposed to limit the towers to 15 storeys but went beyond the number raises questions not only about structural integrity but also the builder’s integrity.  It is thought-provoking that Osibona in the television interview mentioned two cases in London that bordered on his company’s breach of building approval. According to him, in 1999 he had applied to build a two-storey extension.  “The council wanted to write two-storey, they wrote three-storey. When we started developing it, neighbours went to report to the council because in London when an area is for two-storey buildings, you can’t do a three-storey,” he said.   He added: “They made a mistake; they agreed that they made a mistake so I should not do the three storeys. I went on and did the three storeys.”

On another occasion, he had applied to build a six-storey structure. “Again the council made some mistakes; they wanted to write six-storey, they wrote seven-storey,” he said. These accounts are indeed intriguing.  He claimed that the authorities made a mistake in two different cases, which he exploited.

He claimed to have worked successfully as a developer in London, Atlanta and South Africa, after his university education in England and “buying and selling shoes and suits” from 1991 to 1997.  He had also executed some building projects after he returned to Nigeria, before he dreamed of his biggest work which eventually proved to be too big for him.

He was a hero in the country’s real estate development sector but the collapsed tower calls into question his heroism. Tragic heroes have tragic flaws. Osibona gave an insight into a possible flaw.  He said: “When I first came to Nigeria, I believed in consultants. If an architect tells me something I’ll do whatever he tells me to do; if a structural engineer tells me something I’ll do whatever he tells me to do. It was later that I realised that these consultants only offer advice based on the book, they do not understand the practical aspects of the work.”  Ironically, he was not a trained builder but saw himself as a master builder.

The state government’s investigation into the disaster is expected to unearth the immediate and remote causes, and prevent a recurrence.

Music collectors are defined by their music collections. The extraordinary music collection of Mr Femi Esho, Chairman/CEO of Lagos-based Evergreen Musical Company Ltd, who turned 75 on October 29, makes him a music collector extraordinaire.

“I started collecting music at the age of 12,” he told attendees at an electrifying event that celebrated “10 Music Legends of Lagos Evolution” in December 2017. The show, which took place at City People Event Centre, Gbagada, Lagos, was organised by City People Entertainment, Evergreen Musical Company and Members of Music Icons.  It was a celebration of Apala, Sakara, Juju, Highlife, Fuji, Waka, Folk, Agidigbo, Afrobeat and Were.

Many of the melodies that evening were blasts from the past.  They were from a time when things were not what they are now. I had wondered: What makes music evergreen? Today’s music will become yesteryear music tomorrow. But evergreen music is not just yesteryear music. Evergreen music means more than yesteryear music. The quality of memorability makes music evergreen. The sounds of yesterday prompted reflection on the sounds of today.

Ultimately, Esho was the star of the show. His company is described as “Africa’s greatest custodian and producer of music of yesteryears.” He was at the centre of the show with his long white beard, doing what he had mastered over the years. He gave insight into the works of the awardees and why they deserved the awards. He displayed impressive knowledge of Nigerian music history.

When I first met him some months before the event, at the Lagos residence of his friend who is also my friend, he gave me a valuable collection of the works of Afrobeat king Fela Anikulapo Kuti that included “5 Audio CDs, 1 DVD (Live Performances) and 24-Page In-Depth Biography.”  We got talking and he got me thinking.

His passion for music is infectious. I thought about his services to Nigerian music and his enthusiasm. When he gave me his calling card, I was struck by the fascinating quote inscribed on it: “Without music, life would be an error – Friedrich Nietzsche.”

Information supplied by his daughter and Managing Director of Evergreen Musical Company Ltd Bimbo Esho, who has chosen to follow her father’s path, shows that the outstanding music collector is in a class of his own. She said: “Today, Femi Esho is the undisputed largest collector of music of yesteryears with over 150,000 vinyl plates made up of 78rpm breakable plates, 45rpm and 33rpm, hundreds of reel-to-reel tapes, thousands of cassette tapes of various music along with archival materials such as His Master’s Voice (HMV), various reel-to-reel machines, various turntables with the oldest 100 years old, books and newspaper articles on Nigerian music, video recordings of early Nigerian music icons.”

Before he formed his musical company, he had worked for the Lagos State government under its first military governor Mobolaji Johnson, and a major architectural firm. He had also set up an Advertising/PR agency, and ran a printing consultancy.

His social life equipped him for the formation of his musical company. “He was a regular at popular clubs like Paradise Hotel, Independence Hotel, Central Hotel, all in Ibadan,” his daughter said. “In Lagos, he was a popular patron of the Kakadu Hotel, Paradiso, Cool Cats Inn, Lido Bar, Central Hotel, Western Hotel, West End Coliseum, Abalabi, Ambassador Hotel, Stadium Hotel, Caban Bamboo.” She also said he “gave his entire life to music” in the early 1990s.

Apart from his musical company, he also formed a band dedicated to evergreen music. It is a testimony to his band’s quality and the demand for evergreen music that the band has performed at prestigious places in Lagos, including Metropolitan Club, Ikoyi Club, MUSON Centre, Island Club and Yoruba Tennis Club. It has also been patronised by various corporate giants.

He has presented radio and television programmes promoting evergreen music, particularly Highlife. He presented “Highlife Renaissance” on Raypower, the first private radio station in Nigeria, weekly for about three years.  To mark Nigeria’s centenary celebration in 2014, he reviewed Nigerian music from 1914 to 2014 in a programme on the network service of Nigerian Television Authority (NTA).

His musical company has revived the works of music greats such as Bobby Benson, Eddy Okonta, Rex Jim Lawson, E.T. Mensah, Joe Mensah, Haruna Ishola, Victor Olaiya and I.K. Dairo through a repackaging project involving music from the 1920s.

“Highlife and some of its variants originated from Nigeria, Ghana and a few other African countries, hence it can be described as our gift to the world,” Esho observed, adding “In terms of the reign of Highlife, you can hardly find more than three of four recreation spots where the music is still enjoyed by patrons of musical bands. We feel that the situation portends a great danger to our indigenous contribution to the world of music, something that has the potential of being a major income earner for Nigeria if properly harnessed.’’

Esho launched the Evergreen Music Heritage Foundation, located in Surulere, Lagos, “to preserve and safeguard musical heritage.”  Significantly, it is “a one-stop place for research and documentation of over 10,000 Nigerian musicians,” and  ”will help to create a world-class archival institution to cater for the needs of researchers, anthropologists and sociologists the world over.” The public and private sectors should support it as a service to culture and tourism.

Born on October 29, 1946, in Ilesa, in present-day Osun State, he has attained an international stature based on his services to music, which he regards as a universal language that transcends boundaries.  A striking story, narrated by his daughter, demonstrates the value of his efforts to preserve yesteryear music. When he visited Ghana in 2008 to seek permission rights to release the works of some old Ghanaian Highlife stars, the late Jerry Hansen of the Ramblers Dance Band, who was then 86, “could not hold back his tears as he exclaimed that it was a great shame that Femi Esho came all the way from Nigeria to present to him all his lost works.” The drama showed the importance of music collection, and underlined Esho’s significance as a music collector.

I wish the man of melodies more melodious years.

Perhaps predictably, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has responded to public suspicion regarding the expected judicial panel report on the controversial Lekki tollgate shooting in Lagos, on October 20, 2020.

As the first anniversary of the #EndSARS nationwide turbulence created disquiet, the governor spoke on rebuilding the state at the10th meeting of the National Council on Lands, Housing and Urban Development, held in Lagos.

Sanwo-Olu said on October 21:  “The panel concluded its sittings about three days ago and has asked for time to put the reports together behind closed doors. We do not know the content of the report, but we want to say publicly that, upon the handover of the report, we will be making it public. We will not cover up anything.

“This is not who we are and that is not what our government stands for. We will make full disclosure of whatever recommendations that the panel will come up with.”

He recalled that the state “was hit by violence in the aftermath of the EndSARS protests”; and “witnessed massive destruction of infrastructure, iconic buildings, transport infrastructure, police station and others.”

The greatest destruction was the tragic destruction of lives in parts of the state during the unrest.  In particular, there are loud claims that soldiers had “massacred” peaceful protesters against police brutality at Lekki. The Lekki incident continues to generate widespread interest because of its human rights and accountability angles. A 2020 Country Report on Human Rights Practices, released by the US government in March this year, further drew attention to the lack of clarity, and the need for clarity, concerning the shooting.

“Accurate information on fatalities resulting from the shooting was not available at year’s end,” the report said. The use of the word “massacre” by anti-government narrators to describe the alleged mass killing on the evening of that day has been faulted by pro-government voices who insist that it is untrue, or a tendentious exaggeration.

Read Also: #EndSARS’ anniversary and beyond: please claim and expand your great moral victory!

The pro-government voices ask: If there was a “massacre” at Lekki, where are the bodies?  They also counter the claim that the soldiers had got rid of the bodies, arguing that there have been no announcements of missing persons by relations of those allegedly massacred and disposed of.

The Lagos State Judicial Panel on Restitution for Victims of SARS-related Abuses and Other Matters was set up in October 2020 to investigate cases of police abuse of power and human rights violations, and determine restitution for victims. Importantly, the panel’s findings are expected to clarify the controversial Lekki shooting. Did soldiers indeed “massacre” civilians engaged in a peaceful protest against abuse of power by the now-dissolved Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad of the Nigeria Police Force, known as SARS?  The Lekki protesters were the focal point of the nationwide #EndSARS protests.

It is noteworthy that the  Nigerian Army initially claimed its personnel were not at the tollgate when the incident happened, then later admitted it had deployed soldiers to the place with live and blank bullets, maintaining that soldiers shot blank bullets into the air to disperse the crowd and did not kill any protester. So there was shooting. The question is: Were protesters shot with live bullets?

Alarmingly, panelist Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN) was quoted as saying ”There are attempts to frustrate the #EndSARS Judicial Panel from reaching meaningful conclusions on investigations into the Lekki tollgate incident of 20th October 2020.” Who tried to “frustrate” the panel’s investigative efforts concerning the Lekki shooting?  How? “I will give details subsequently,” Adegboruwa said.

He spoke to journalists after panel chairperson Justice Doris Okuwobi (retd) announced, on September 18, the suspension of the panel’s sitting until further notice.  This development, a month to the panel’s October 19 deadline, was a cause for concern.

It was unclear if Adegboruwa’s claim had something to do with the suspension of the panel’s sitting. The chair explained: “There are two reports that we are expected to work on; we are not close enough to any of them. We cannot continue with the sitting and end the assignment without concluding… We have to collate and evaluate petitions already heard so as to make findings and recommendations, even on the Lekki shooting.”

It started as a six-month investigation.  The initial deadline was April 19, 2021. Then it changed to July 19, 2021 following a three-month extension. Then it changed yet again to October 19, 2021 following yet another three-month extension. How did the panel find itself in this situation? Could it have been avoided? Did the panel have too much to do in so little time? Will the panel’s reports be credible?

The panel did not resume sitting before the deadline, and ended its sitting on October 18, a year after its inauguration.  According to Justice Okuwobi, the panel received 255 petitions from members of the public, 252 were considered for hearing, and it reached decisions on 182 petitions. The panel awarded N410 million as compensation to 71 petitioners. It is not clear what will happen to the 52 petitions that were not heard before the panel ended its sitting, and other petitions not resolved.

Significantly, on the long-awaited report on the Lekki tollgate shooting, the panel’s chair said it was being prepared and noted that the investigation of the incident, including the taking of evidence and exhibits, had been completed. She said the panel’s recommendations would include compensation to victims, if any, of the Lekki tollgate incident.

The panel had received about 14 petitions concerning the incident. The petitioners alleged that soldiers from the army’s 81 Division, Victoria Island, Lagos fired live bullets that killed protesters.  They also claimed that policemen shot at protesters.

The army’s cooperation with the investigators left much to be desired.  Commander of 81 Division Brig. Gen. Ibrahim Taiwo had testified before the panel, denying the claim against the army.  Curiously, the General Officer Commanding 81 Division, Maj. Gen. Godwin Umelo, and the Commanding Officer, 65 Battalion, Bonny Camp, Victoria Island, Lagos, Lt. Col. S.O. Bello had shunned the panel’s invitation on more than one occasion. In particular, Lt. Col. Bello was a person of interest because he led the battalion involved in the Lekki shooting.

After the army stopped cooperating with the panel, the panel’s chairman in January was reported saying the army’s failure to honour lawful summonses meant that it could not justifiably complain of a denial of fair hearing after the panel had presented its findings to the government.

All eyes are on the panel and the state government. The public wants to know the panel’s findings and recommendations on the Lekki shooting, and the government’s position.

By Femi Macaulay

 

Enablers of banditry and terrorism in the country are certainly categorisable. There are sponsors and suppliers in a hierarchy of enablers. Curiously, the Federal Government’s war against bandits and terrorists has exposed more suppliers than sponsors. But sponsors are the giants that make it possible for suppliers to thrive.

When it was reported that 400 alleged Boko Haram sponsors had been arrested, it suggested a new level of seriousness in the fight against terrorism. The arrested alleged financiers of the terrorist group were said to be businessmen, including bureau de change operators. They were arrested in Kano, Borno, Abuja, Lagos, Sokoto, Adamawa, Kaduna and Zamfara.

The arrests were believed to have been carried out based on investigations. The suspects were, therefore, expected to be prosecuted without delay. The Special Assistant on Media and Public Relations to the Attorney-General of the Federation, Dr Umar Gwandu, was reported saying the prosecution of the suspects “will commence as quickly as possible.”

Three months after the arrests in April, the suspects have not been arraigned. It is puzzling that the Federal Government is apparently delaying their trial.  Gwandu was later quoted as saying the process to prosecute them was ongoing. “Journalists will be notified at an appropriate time,” he said.

It is unclear when the said process would be completed, and the suspects arraigned. Also, it is unclear why the process has not been completed. If investigations had implicated the arrested suspects, there should be no difficulty in putting them on trial. The longer it takes to arraign them, the greater the public feeling that the government is not quite ready to deal with alleged sponsors of terrorism.

The narrative that the country’s security crisis is fuelled by politicians, government officials and businessmen has been spread by those who blame saboteurs for insecurity. For instance, Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom and Imo State Governor Hope Uzodinma attracted attention by circulating the allegation that saboteurs are to blame.

Ortom of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the main opposition party, had described kidnapping for ransom as “another lucrative business in Nigeria with strong suspicion of connivance with government officials.” Uzodinma of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the ruling party, told journalists that politicians were funding banditry to sabotage the Buhari administration.

The arrest of 400 alleged Boko Haram sponsors is an opportunity for the government to show that saboteurs exist and they are not faceless. This is why their prosecution should not be further delayed. Their trial will also encourage public confidence in the government’s effort to tackle insecurity.

The Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), should note that it is important to put the suspects on trial without further delay in order to establish the truth.  It is not enough that they are awaiting trial.  His aide spoke about “an appropriate time” for their trial. That time is now.

It is noteworthy that the identities of the arrested alleged terrorism financiers have not been officially publicised, which is different from the treatment of cases involving arrested alleged suppliers of arms and food to bandits.

Obviously, bandits need weapons and food, which enable them to carry out their evil activities. In June, the police arrested 60-year-old Umar Muhammed, an alleged supplier of weapons to bandits. According to the police, he used his vehicle to transport hidden guns from one place to another, and he was caught with weapons.

In another case, policemen on patrol stopped four men suspected to be bandits on motorbikes on Tsaskiya-Ummadau Road, Safana Local Government Area of Katsina State.  They are: Ibrahim Abdullahi, 40; Tukur Musa, 35; Abubakar Ibrahim, 21, and Rabi’u Hamisu, 19. The police found N3.4m, and Abdullahi, their leader, was said to have revealed that they were gun suppliers and had received the money from a notorious bandit, Tukur Rabiu, for six AK-47 rifles delivered to him. He said he got N100, 000 as commission for each weapon he supplied.

The police said:  ”Rabiu is hibernating at Rijana Forest, along Kaduna-Abuja Road… The suspect also confessed to be a gunrunner for one Abu Rade, a notorious bandit hibernating at Rugu/Dumburum forests of Katsina and Zamfara states.”

Also, the FIB Intelligence Response Team (FIB-IRT) arrested members of a group that allegedly supplied drugs, bread and other food items to bandits operating in Zaria, Kaduna State and its environs. They were apprehended at the Rigachikun base following a tip-off, and revealed that they usually supplied bread to bandits at Galadimawa, Damari, Kidandan and Awala camps in Birnin Gwari and Giwa local government areas, Kaduna State. One of them said they also supplied information to bandits which helped their kidnapping and cattle rustling operations.

Bakery owner Hassan Magaji, who was arrested, said: “It was my workers that were arrested by the police on their way to deliver bread, and they brought them to my factory.” According to him, “The boom in my business began when I started supplying bread to bandits.” He had an agreement with them that they would pay upfront for their bread supplies.

He gave striking figures that showed bread consumption in the bandits’ camps, which possibly involved kidnapees, and the good profit he made.  ”They started with bread worth N20, 000 and gradually increased it to N50, 000 a day,” he said. “After removing the cost of the ingredients, I make as much as N150, 000 in a week.”

Business was better for him whenever the bandits kidnapped many people, he observed, adding that he supplied bread worth N70, 000 daily to the bandits that abducted some university students in Kaduna State. There have been recent cases of mass kidnapping of students for ransom in the state.

Suppliers of arms and food to bandits help them to sustain their evil activities. Not surprisingly, the police accused the arrested suppliers of criminal conspiracy.  The fight against banditry should be not only against bandits but also those who aid them, just as the fight against terrorism should be not only against terrorists but also those who aid them.

Sponsors and suppliers who fuel the country’s security crisis have a lot of explaining to do. The authorities also have a lot of explaining to do when they fail to promptly prosecute arrested alleged insecurity enablers.  A striking instance is the case of the 400 alleged Boko Haram financiers who are said to be awaiting trial three months after their arrest.

By Femi Macaulay

 

There is no doubt that the Murtala Muhammed Airport Domestic Terminal 2 (MMA2) in Lagos is an exemplary result of public-private partnership (PPP). It was constructed 14 years ago under a Design-Build-Operate-Transfer (DBOT) agreement with the Federal Government, the first major DBOT project of such magnitude in Nigeria.

”There is no airport terminal in Nigeria that has the flow of MMA2 because it was well thought out and designed,” Resort International Limited (RIL) Chairman Dr Wale Babalakin (SAN) observed at the 2019 annual lecture of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) in Lagos, where he spoke on “Infrastructure Development and Growth in Nigeria: Prospects and Challenges.”

Babalakin’s company, Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited (BASL), is the private partner in the partnership and operator of the terminal. It is noteworthy that the company, the reserved bidder, was asked to handle the project after the preferred bidder’s failure to perform.  He said the company achieved a high design standard because the terminal was designed by Nigerian and South African architects.  He deserves credit for his contribution to the country’s infrastructure development. He turned 61 on July 1.

“If we had been allowed to continue, phase two would have been completed 10 years ago and we would have had one of the best Airports in Africa,” he said in his lecture. It is unclear why there was discontinuity, but it is clear that the country would have benefitted from continuity.

The country’s underdevelopment is the result of poor infrastructure development. Babalakin noted in his lecture that infrastructure development “is about serious commitment and a lot of intellectual rigour.” Sadly, it seems these essentials are in short supply in the country’s corridors of power.

Babalakin’s MMA2 success possibly prompted the Federal Government to consider concession arrangements for other airports.  In 2016, the government announced  that it had concession plans for  all the 22 federal airports to enable them to function efficiently and profitably, beginning with the ones in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and Kano. At the time, he had observed that his company’s “eye-opening effort” encouraged the authorities to pursue concession deals concerning the airports.  Importantly, Minister of Aviation Sirika Hadi in June said concession arrangements for the four airports would be completed by August. It remains to be seen if the standard set by Babalakin would be achieved.

Considering his notable MMA2 achievement, it may well be that the country lost a big infrastructure development opportunity when the Federal Government controversially terminated the 2009 concession agreement with another of his companies, Bi-Courtney Highway Services Limited, for the reconstruction and modernisation of Nigeria’s busiest and most important highway, the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, under a DBOT agreement. Babalakin said the government “terminated the concession for lack of performance without disclosing to the public that they had held us down for 22 months.”

His company was the preferred bidder under the Umaru Yar’Adua administration, but the Goodluck Jonathan administration terminated the agreement in 2012 after Yar’Adua’s death. Ironically, Jonathan was vice president at the time the agreement was signed.  The public-private partnership was jettisoned and the government awarded the contract for the road project to Julius Berger Plc. and RCC Nigeria Limited.

”It is just a repeat resurfacing of the 1977 road,” Babalakin said in his lecture two years ago.  ”The architecture of that place has changed phenomenally since 1977 and our design accommodated all the changes… Our total cost was N112b. Now, over N350b has been spent on 40% of what we planned to build and they are still at 40%.” It is noteworthy that the road repair is ongoing.  Chairman of the House of Representatives committee on works Abubakar Kabir, in June, during an inspection of roads in Lagos and other parts of the Southwest, said the Federal Government was working towards completing the road rehabilitation project before May 2022.

There is a significant difference between resurfacing the road and modernising it. If his company’s design had been allowed to materialise, the country would have benefitted from the difference.  He explained in an interview last year: “The project on that road included seven overhead bridges… I’m not even sure there is one overhead bridge on the one being built now. Also, our project had proper lay-bys; you didn’t have to buy petrol on the road. You had to go off the road for about one minute where you would find a restaurant, small hotel and all the facilities you would require. We had three of such on each side of the road. We also had a truck bay that could accommodate 12,000 trucks and was expandable because we counted the number of trucks on the road then and they were about 4,000. Now, we are told that they are about 6,000.”

Another project involving Babalakin’s company that shows how the government’s actions ironically contribute to the country’s underdevelopment is the planned redevelopment of the old Federal Secretariat, Ikoyi, Lagos.

Babalakin’s RIL  had paid N7 billion for the property in 2005 after a successful bid, and in October 2006 signed a Development Lease Agreement (DLA) for 99 years with the Federal Government to redevelop the disused Secretariat complex into 480 luxury apartments. But the property lies in ruins 16 years after the agreement because of obstacles created by the Lagos State government which said the Federal Government should have sold the complex to it.

The company went to arbitration against the Federal Government and won. Under the agreement the Federal Government was supposed to be responsible for obtaining a no-objection approval from the Lagos State government, if necessary.  The company was awarded N50 billion as damages in a judgement delivered by the tribunal in December 2015.  The cost awarded has not been paid by the Federal Government, and the Lagos State government has not changed its obstructive position.

Whether it’s an aviation project, a road project or a housing project, Babalakin has encountered government-driven obstacles to his infrastructure development efforts. But the seasoned lawyer-cum-businessman remains a consistent advocate of the public-private partnership approach to development.  Based on his personal experience, he listed the enemies of public-private partnership in Nigeria  at the 2016 Nigerian Economic Summit in Abuja, including the attitude of the government, lack of respect for sanctity of contracts and the rule of law, lack of investor security, corruption and malice.

Notably, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, in March, at the opening ceremony of a two-day retreat of the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) in Abuja, observed that Nigeria needed public-private partnership arrangements to solve its massive infrastructure deficit because the country required at least $2.3 trillion over the next 30 years to deal with the infrastructure gap which the government alone could not provide.

So Babalakin, a vocal and active champion of public-private partnership, remains relevant to the country’s infrastructure development goals. The pathfinder is still needed to find paths.