A former governorship aspirant in Osun State, Chief Lateef Akande Bakare, has recounted how the penchant for vote-selling by some electorate forced him out of politics.
He said the people are not prepared for good governance, saying if he had remained in politics, he would be suffering undue pain.
Bakare, the Ajirowa of Ijesaland, made this disclosure while appearing as a guest on Frontliners, a flagship programme of the League of Veteran Journalists in Osun State on Wednesday.
He expressed displeasure that many Nigerians don’t appreciate people like himself who have genuine desire for good governance, noting that his experience when he contested for the Osun State governorship position under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party in 2007 made him realise that people are not yet ready for good governance.
Asked why he has not been seen in the political space in the state while fielding questions, Bakare, a chartered accountant, said, “My participating in politics was based on genuine desire. When I started my aspiration to govern Osun, I was looking forward to my 52nd birthday then and I felt by the time I am 55, I should be fully ready to help Osun. Myself and my team had the best campaign Osun had ever had.”
Not willing to engage in vote-buying, Bakare noted that he had to disengage from politics.
“Along the line, I found out that people were not ready for the kind of governance I had in mind. Even at party level, they (members) were collecting N5,000, N10,000. After all of that, I said to myself that I don’t want to give myself unnecessary heartaches. My campaign team didn’t suffer any hazard. I never carried any thug anywhere for the three years I participated in politics. I just found out that I would be giving myself what I would call undue pain if I had remained in politics.
The people are not prepared for real governance. Too many opportunities are being missed because of token money they demand during electioneering period. So, I had to avoid politics,” he explained.
The chartered accountant said until prompt and stiffer punishments are handed down to convicted corrupt officials, the nation would not overcome corruption which he described as endemic in the country.
According to him, whereby the prosecution of corrupt cases lingers for years, political office holders and other leaders won’t be deterred in pilfering public funds.
He called for swift prosecution and severe sentencing that would send strong signals to political leaders and other government functionaries.
For Bakare, Nigeria is not battling economic challenges, but a psychological problem that makes citizens embezzle wealth that their generation and those unborn would not consume.
He said governance is about creating a reasonable amount of wellness and well-being both for the rich and the poor, saying, “If we look at it from where we are, I will say there is a disequilibrium in the distribution of wealth. We have found ourselves where wealth is in few hands and many are suffering. And when you find that happening, you will find the society in endemic poverty situation. This is where we are now and unacceptably, a large proportion of the population is below the poverty line where people cannot eat, access education, health and other basic needs.”
Bakare stated that the macroeconomic policies of President Bola Tinubu such as subsidy removal are okay, but stressed that the complementary safety nets and the implementation of those safety nets within the socio-economic situation of the country should be looked into.
“There are multifaceted problems in Nigeria. Nigeria has psychological problem. Something is wrong with our brain. We don’t have economic problem. Poverty mentality is what drives people to wanting to steal so much money for themselves and for generations unborn,” he lamented.
The economic expert said the nation missed it the moment it concentrated wholly on oil after its discovery.
Aside from immediate punishment for corrupt officials, he advocated for national reorientation of the citizens as to their mentality about money.
