Gabriel Amalu
This column has paid scant attention to the exercise of public power at the third-tier of government in Nigeria, otherwise known as the local government council, over the years. But in this essay, I hope to discuss my double encounter within few days, with the chairman of Awuwo Odofin local government council, Engr. (Dr) Valentine Buraimoh. The reason for the concentration of our enquiry on governance at the centre and the states is because the two tiers park heavier punches in the exercise and impact of public power.
On Saturday, October 3, the Holy Family Catholic Church, Festac Town, hosted Engr. Valentine, as the special guest, at the Parish’s event, to mark the 2020 Season of Creation, which was celebrated across the Archdiocese of Lagos from September 1 to October 4. In tandem with the message of the Holy See, Pope Francis, in Laudato Si – ‘on care for our common home’, the Archbishop, His Grace Most Rev. Dr Alfred Adewale Martins, through the parishes drew the attention of mankind on the need to protect and preserve our common home – the earth.
In paragraph 216 of the Pope Francis’s Laudato Si, the Holy See, reminded us: “the rich heritage of Christian spirituality, the fruits of 20 centuries of personal and communal experience, has a precious contribution to make to the renewal of humanity; a commitment this lofty cannot be sustained by doctrine alone, without a spirituality capable of inspiring us, without an interior impulse which encourages, motivates, nourishes and gives meaning to our individual and communal activity.”
Acting out the admonition for communal action by the Archbishop, the Holy Family Parish Priest, Rev. Fr. Melvis Maiyaki, invited the local council chairman, as the number one civil citizen of the community to be the special guest. At the event, in agreement with the message of the church on preservation of the environment, Engr. Valentine spoke on the need for environmental consciousness amongst the residents of the council.
He expressed gratitude to the church for leading the world to a change of heart with regards to the treatment of our common home – the earth, as the Archbishop and the Pope in their various messages relayed at the event. At the tree planting part of the event, Valentine was the first to plant as a symbol of restoration and sustainability of the environment by the church community, followed by the clergy, and the leadership of the lay faithful, including this writer, who has the honour of heading the Catholic Men Organisation in the parish.
This column has no doubt that the message of the church strikes a chord with the council chairman, who has done reasonably well, particularly in restoring the physical environment of the Amuwo Odofin Local Government Council, since he took over the administration of the council. This writer is particularly impressed with the effort to de-silt some of the major drainages in Festac Town, even though a lot more has to be done, in a manner that enables sustainability.
Valentine also impresses this writer with the level of his accessibility to the people of the community. While I have severally interacted with him, at occasions without introducing myself beyond the confines of my role at the various events, I always watch closely his inter personal relationship with those who mill around him, because of the position he occupies, and I give him a pass mark on accessibility. Unlike some office holders, he is not snobbish, neither dose he carry himself with a sense of over-worth, as most politicians do.
My second encounter with Valentine Buraimoh, was at the ceremony hosted by the Rotary Club of Lagos Festac Cosmopolitan, on Wednesday October 7. There again, I am privileged to be the supervising assistant governor, in charge of the club, representing Rot. Bola Oyebade, District Governor, District 9110 Nigeria. But for my editorial board meeting, I would have been the presenter of a Rotary pin to Valentine, as an honorary member of the club.
In choosing him as an honorary member, the club reminded him in their citation, thus: “the community will know and judge Rotary by your action and ideals. You will become an ambassador for Rotary and you will carry these ideals and principles of Rotary service to those who know you or with those whom you are associated.” That is a tall order for a politician, considering the stringent ideals of Rotary, particularly the 4-Way Text, which I have espoused severally in this column, as a guide for the exercise of public power.
But to have found him worthy, I am hopeful, Valentine will not disappoint Rotarians and the people he governs as chairman. Of course, they trusted Valentine as worthy of the honour, and even more, they invested him with a Paul Harris Fellow of the Rotary Foundation. In the citation for that honour, the club eulogised Valentine in this words: “A world for peace and goodwill comes closer to reality today as Engr. Dr Valentine Oluwaseyi Buraimoh becomes a Paul Harris Fellow.”
The Rotary Foundation is the engine house with which Rotary serves humanity. As the club succinctly pointed out, “a contribution to the Rotary Foundation is an investment in the ideal of goodwill, peace and understanding.” They went on: “as Rotary works with such individuals of good will, we believe the ideal will become a reality.” That dream ideal is turning a reality with the partnership between the Rotary Club of Lagos Festac Cosmopolitan, a not for profit enterprise, and the Amuwo Odofin local council, for public good.
All persons of goodwill would love the vibrant young Rotary club, led by Rot Uzoamaka Akanene, as president, and their collaboration with Amuwo Odofin local council, for adopting the median in the section between the main Festac entrance gate and the intersection with the 2nd Avenue for the purpose of beautification, conservation, maintenance and sanitation. The club fenced off the area and planted 60 King Palms, grass and lilies, installed a water tank and piping in the median. They also plan to maintain the planted trees and conduct a monthly sanitation exercise in the adopted area.
Like in the church’s Season of Creation, the council chairman and yours sincerely were again called upon to plant two of the King palms, as special guests. It was after this ceremony that I walked up to introduce myself to the chairman for the first time, even though I have sat with him on several civic occasions in the community. While wishing him well, I join Rotary and Catholic Church to promote a healthier environment. As Laudato Si Multi Year Roll out Plan promotes, let us all “make communities around the world totally sustainable in the spirit of the integral ecology of laudato si.”
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