In just two years of assuming office, there is hardly any part of the creative sector that Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State has not impacted. From the glamour of showbiz to a business environment set for Return on Investment, Lagos, under Ambode has continued to push the envelope. The State’s Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Steve Ayoyinde reveals more in this interview with Entertainment Editor, VICTOR AKANDE.
GOVERNOR Akinwunmi Ambode has done so much for arts and entertainment within the short time that he became governor of Lagos State; can you tell us a bit about his affinity to the creative industry before now?
(Smiles) Well, he’s got ears for good music. He’s an accountant, but he’s an art enthusiast and he started right from his school days. You know, his secondary school was in Warri and his university was University of Lagos. Except you’re close to him, you won’t know that he’s very deep in matters of arts.
And not just in appreciating the arts, he has also supported, even before he became governor, a number of artistes, particularly musicians. You may be shocked to hear that three of the most prominent musicians in Nigeria as at today; two in the hip hop world and one in the, if you like, Yoruba traditional music, who happens to be a female, largely owe their musical career to his support, even before he became governor.
Because he has always believed in supporting the arts which is the reason why, in drafting the strategic roadmap that he wanted to implement when he becomes governor, what was prominent in that strategic framework was the Project T.H.E.S.E which stands for Tourism, Hospitality, Entertainment and the Arts plus Sports to create Excellence for Lagos State. This is why you see that, as an accountant and former Auditor General, he has succeeded in re-shaping the finances of the state…
How rich is Lagos State in relation to all the beautiful projects embarked upon by this administration?
Lagos makes good revenue, but it pales into insignificance compared to the things that we need to do. Everybody knows that he guards Lagos’ money jealously, which is why people have been wondering where he is getting the money, but because he has been able to manage the resource and has deployed everything into projects and impactful things, he’s succeeding on those things. But his other heart and love is for arts, entertainment, tourism, hospitality and the likes, which is why he has always said that the future of the state lies in ideas and services.
Talking about ideas; the creative industry is full of plenty of them, trooping into Lagos, isn’t there going be an explosion?
That is where the T.H.E.S.E scheme comes in. With a burgeoning population here, with youths coming out of school not getting jobs and with practically every four or five Nigerians coming out of universities, one or two from them think that they need to be in Lagos to ‘make it’, you need to create opportunities for them. Those opportunities would not happen in banks or oil companies. How many can they all take? But in services, in creative economy and sports, they can be gainfully employed. That’s why the governor is pushing so much into that. And I can say without fear of contradiction or equivocation that in his appreciation for finer things of life, creativity, arts, entertainment, movies, etc is in his DNA.
How much has political bottlenecks affected his drive toward the T.H.E.S.E scheme?
I think every leader and public officer will have to understand the spirit of politics. It is not only political bottlenecks that can slow you down. Even public service bureaucracy can. Bureaucracy is not an African word or invention. It’s an English word. It means that all over the world, government requires that you must examine things critically. That said, this is a man who spent the better part of his adult life as a civil servant – 27 good years – and rising first to the position of Auditor General for Local Government, and Accountant General and Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Finance. So, he understands the terrain and I think that all his experiences really have prepared him for that position. So, if there are bottlenecks, I don’t think they have slowed him down. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to deliver in the manner that he has delivered in two years. I think he has managed very well to navigate through, not only the political gimmicks that might be there but also through bureaucracy and red tape that public service tend to create.
What about some Federal Government facilities in Lagos that the governor wishes to resuscitate and put to maximum use?
I think he’s doing a good job of it. I think he’s following on the charge that President Muhammadu Buhari gave to him on the podium when he (Buhari) came for a campaign in Lagos State. And he said that he is aware that because Lagos has always been in the opposition party from the Federal, if he becomes president, and of course, APC retains Lagos, it would be the first time since democracy returned 19 years ago that Lagos and Federal would align. It means that all the things that Lagos has been denied, this is the season that they would return. For example, the governor wrote the president himself, requesting for the transfer of the Presidential lodge to Lagos State because he has decided from the beginning that he was not going to stay in the governor’s lodge in Marina. He reckoned that if Ikeja is the capital, the secretariat is there, the ultra-modern governor’s house that Asiwaju started is also there, that he should lead by example and make sure that with his family, he lives there and works there.
We heard about plan to turn Marina to an artistic zone…
Yes. The governor’s plan has always been to turn the entire Marina and Onikan axis into a kind of art arcade, such that if you’re coming from either Awolowo Road or from outer Marina or from any part, you would be entering an artistic zone. MUSON Centre is already there, Yoruba Tennis Club, National Museum is there, another museum, Lagos Museum is coming there. TBS is there. There is a multi-purpose car park. So, you have an arcade. There will now be a skywalk from that arcade all the way to Freedom Park. So, you will have a zone that is art, tourism and culture oriented. Therefore, if as a tourist, you are listing areas of visits, you know that in one day, you can do about 15 or 18 or 20 different centres within the arcade. You will have breakfast there, you will have lunch there, memorabilia, bookshop, welcome centre, show, cinema, everything. And of course, there is also another similar arcade coming to Ikeja. We’re thinking of an Ikeja Convention Center springing from the area where you have LTV.
This year’s edition of Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) was planned to hold at the National Theatre, but that didn’t happen for obvious reason. Is hope still alive to resuscitate the edifice?
Well, like the National Theatre, there are a couple of structures that belong to the Federal Government which are in Lagos State that Lagos State desires to fix. But sometimes you realise that it goes beyond desire. There are bottlenecks that will need to be fixed, particularly for National Theatre, National Museum and National Stadium. It’s not very straightforward. Talks are still ongoing. We’re trying to perfect the whole process. For the National Stadium for example, two committees were set up from our part and from the part of Sports Ministry. For National Theatre, not only was AMAA meant to hold there, National Theatre was meant to play an important role during Lagos@50 because Professor Wole Soyinka-led committee was looking for an ideal location that can take multiple activities. Regrettably, it didn’t work out as at that time. Just like you said, we’re keeping hope alive. And we’re hoping that the bottlenecks and the red tape at the federal level will see the eagerness and enthusiasm of Lagos State to get it done. In any case, we also agree that like the Oshodi International Aiport Road, all those monuments are an embarrassment to Nigeria and therefore, the need to fix them is very germane.
Going by the support given to events like AFRIMA, AMAA, AFRIFF, Lagos International Jazz Festival, TIFF City-to-City Focus on Nollywood, Notting Hill Carnival, Felabration, etcetera, is there plan to enhance the RoI of creative industry investors vis-à-vis piracy fight, physical investments, and curbing the menace of area boys that allegedly disrupt shoots?
Yes, there are. But you know government ideally is not supposed to run businesses. Government is an enabler, government is a regulator and government should provide the incentives for such projects to thrive which is why it is important for those in the sectors that we’ve mentioned not to rely only on government. There will be grants provided as it is done all over the world, but art is not beggarly. Art is driven by passion, art is business and arts can be profitable. But of course, this government wants to provide the social infrastructures. Any money that government puts into supporting the arts is a social cost really because you need to first galvanise the industry, because even activities of government are co-sponsored by the corporate sector. In any case, for every economic activity that you galvanise, tax returns, sales tax, consumption tax, VAT, etc will still come back to government. I told you about Media City coming up at the premises of LTV 8 where we used to have Blue Roof. An Entertainment Center/Film village is coming up at Epe. Epe is being opened up with road infrastructures. It means that the things that individual artists may not have money to do, government can provide so that artistes would be gainfully employed, shoot more movies. Look at what we did at Toronto International Film Festival last year. The only thing Lagos State did was to support artistes to attend and then we supported them with a pavilion – Seed money. Guess what, this year, one year after the whole thing, another Nigerian film by Mo Abudu has been selected; a film about Lagos. Out of the eight films that went to Toronto last year, six or seven of them are among the 10 highest grossing films of 2016, practically all shot in Lagos. And all the 10 highest grossing films have made more than two billion naira. Tax comes to Lagos State. Even if Lagos state had supported one or two of the films, Lagos State has made more money from that seed money support through tax, through social engagement. People would buy popcorn, people would buy soft drinks, tickets, maiguards would get jobs, Uber would get work, taxi drivers etc. There is a chain and at the end of the day, government still benefits. That is the kind of social infrastructure in the area of creative economy that this government believes in.
Any plans for community cinemas?
Yes, we’re thinking about it. You’ll see that we’ve started regeneration of the Under-Bridge. Polly Alakija has done fantastically well with Falomo underbridge. We have cleared Obalende. We’re coming to McGregor, we’re doing Ojuelegba, we’re doing Ikeja. If in three years, we’re able to fix six or seven under bridges and we have a pilot, with say, Falomo and McGregor, we believe that such can be the catalyst for community cinemas because the proposals are already on ground. 200, 300, 400, 500 seaters can now be replicated in at least, the 20 local government areas before going to the LCDAs.
What about piracy?
We’re working with the federal government. The governor has actually scheduled a meeting with some stakeholders to add to the initiative that federal government has started with the police. The honourable member of the House, who is the Chairman of Tourism, Arts and Culture in the House, Desmond Elliot, is working with myself and the Acting Commissioner for Tourism on that, to seek the governor’s intervention to complement what the federal is already doing, because 70 percent of the work is being consumed in Lagos, probably produced in Lagos. So, if the buy-in of Lagos is not there, whatever we’re doing elsewhere may not really benefit the industry. So, we’re thinking, not only in terms of piracy but also in terms of, in fact, the two key things that they are presenting to governor is how to lead the anti-piracy move, how to strengthen it and how to protect the industry, particularly those who shoot on the streets.
That takes us to the menace of area boys that allegedly disrupt shoots…
Yes. Although we discovered that most of those people who complained that they were attacked never got permit from Lagos State Video and Film Censors Board, which normally has the machinery, as they do elsewhere, in New York and other cities in the world. If you’re shooting exteriorly in New York, New York City provides you with two police which is also what we try to do here. But of course, we know that we can improve on it and it should never be an excuse that those who don’t have permits can be attacked. No. you shouldn’t attack anybody. But those who are also breaking the law abinitio should not. They ought to get permit. So, two things that the governor will be seeing the key stakeholders about – piracy and the issue of opportunistic attacks that some producers encounter on their way.
…Any other challenges of achieving the full potential of tourism in Lagos State?
Well, there are so many things that the state is dealing with because of the issues of economic downturn that the rest of the country is witnessing. Lagos is like the Mecca and therefore, the kind of funding that ought to go into finer things of life may not be sufficient because you’ve got to deal with health, you’ve got to deal with education, in terms of public schools, you’ve got to deal with road infrastructure on a daily basis, deal with flooding, deal with security because Lagos is basically subsidising other states. People are out of school as I said to you, they’re coming to Lagos. People are looking for jobs, they’re coming to Lagos. Those who are not coming, they’re waiting for subsidy from their relatives working in Lagos. So, the social cost is high. Lagos has to deal with all those things. There is a report by the police that 80 percent of those who engage in street trading in Lagos State come from a particular state in Nigeria. You don’t need visa to come to Lagos. We can’t return you to where we are coming from. So, we need to deal with all these things and it becomes a bit of a burden dealing with all the vagaries. And in providing public transportation, you’re not just dealing with only Lagosians, you’re dealing with visitors who are trooping in on a daily basis. You need to clear garbage, clear their rubbish, clear their refuse, you’re dealing with people trooping in on a daily basis. You can say that is an issue, of course. Huge headcount is also an advantage. Once we’re able to track people, pay your taxes, do the needful and we’re there.
I think the governor once requested a framework from the creative industry in Lagos. Have they forwarded anything to that effect?
Unfortunately not. He met with artistes, particularly musical artistes after One Lagos Fiesta and requested for their framework. I am sad to say that nothing has happened since then from their part. But of course, we won’t say because that has not happened that we’ve not recorded successes in other areas, particularly in the area of visual arts, particularly with what we’re trying to do with the movies now, piracy, etc. But it shouldn’t be that government should contract, be paid and walk away. We’re looking for an enduring framework that can benefit everybody.
So, what has changed in terms of security and how has that been able to boost night life in Lagos?
A lot. Reports from the security people say that in the last two years, crime has reduced by 65 percent. Of course, you will see or hear of armed robberies. I mean, this is a megacity. It happens in many megacities. So, dealing with crime is a part of the realities of megacities. But the capacity for the state to manage crime and criminality, to deal with such issues is high. It’s the highest in West Africa, perhaps one of the highest on the continent. So, that sends signals to the investors. It reassured visitors. You will be shocked that part of the reason why the economy of Lagos State grew last year more than even the previous year in the year of recession is also because more people visited Lagos State. More hotels are being built. It’s people from outside mainly and internal tourism that is funding the needful. More choice restaurants, more boutique hotels, more new beaches are being developed. Even, we in our own way, we’re creating Epe and Badagry Marina so that we’ll have the kind of beachfronts that you see in Capetown, in Port Elizabeth, in Miami and all those things because we know that we can secure the place. So, it has improved the economy and evidence was the fact that last year, Lagos made more revenue. The first half of this year alone, Lagos has made more revenue compared to the first half of 2016 that was a very good year anyway.
The next celebration of Lagos is at the forthcoming Notting Hill Carnival. What is the level of preparation and the feedback from the Nigerian community in London?
What is happening in London is pop art theme. Lagos is supporting Felabration in London and in Lagos; London of course during the Notting Hill Carnival, and in Lagos in October because August marks the 20th anniversary of the death of the greatest musical icon of Africa, Fela Anikulapo Kuti, who lived all his adult life in Lagos. He was a Lagosian, so Lagos is supporting that and just like last year, Lagos is also supporting the transformation of the Nigerian Corner to Lagos Corner. We have two major themes to celebrate Lagos@50. And then, there is a month-long festival of creativity, arts and craft and artworks by Lagos students who made some fantastic canoes together with Polly Alakija who is the chairman of the Lagos State Council for Arts and Culture. And then, there’s Bolanle Austen-Peters with ‘Saro The Musical’ which is going to London after ‘Wakaa’ of last year. So, for like five days in the first instance and throughout the end of August till the end of September, Lagos will be reverberating in the whole of London in the cultural sense. And it is important for us because that is brand love for Lagos State in the year that we’re still celebrating the 50th anniversary of our state.
Of course everybody is waiting. They’re eager; they can’t wait to see Lagos because part of what will herald the whole thing is Sunday the 27th. And we have the ‘Ekopolitan Experience’ as part of the Love Lagos Weekend in London Season 2. Last year, it was ‘Love Lagos Weekend’, now this is Season 2. The ‘Ekopolitan Experience’ will be the prelude to Lagos Corner and Felabration. And that will be like walking into Eko that will be created in London – Lagos food, Lagos music, Lagos@50 clothing, children of Nigerians in the Diaspora winning prizes to sing Lagos songs, poetry, and best of Nigerian DJs – everything that would remind you of Lagos.
