By Dr Tobi Adekusibe
Somehow, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State has been drawn into the latest social media frenzy about who deserves some accolades.
If it was a PR strategy, you would say the governor’s handlers have pulled a Super Sunday stunt that is reflecting positively on the image of the governor and the state. But what is happening looks pretty much like providence; a divine media blitz that has now given the governor three gbosas, to add to his already soaring, arguably rock-solid reputation management apparatus.
First came a heartfelt appreciation and prayer for the governor from Bishop David Oyedepo of Winners Chapel, one of the biggest churches in the world arguably. Ambode became the object of supplication at the church’s early worship session on Sunday, April 22, 2018 just for one thing – the construction of 19 roads and two bridges in different parts of Alimosho LG; roads mostly linking Ogun State. Winners Chapel is in Ota, Ogun State where roads are quite bad. Most of its members come in from Lagos through some of the roads that Ambode commissioned three weeks ago, incidentally on Easter Monday to, perhaps, prophetically indicate a triumphant entry into places like Winners Chapel by commuters now using his brand new 21 roads.
So when worshippers roared back with loud amen to Oyedepo’s prayers for Ambode, the world knew that the heavens had spoken.
On the heels of that intercession came another major endorsement, this time at a different gateway into Lagos State, precisely at the Gani Fawehinmi Park in Ojota where the new Gani statue was commissioned.
Accolades came from civil society groups as well as activist comrades in huge numbers. Gani, celebrated as the voice of the people, or more fittingly, the Senior Advocate of the Masses, is now being celebrated with perhaps the most imposing in Nigeria (at 44-feet) a beautiful crafted statue on a day that he would have been 80. So moved was the scion of the Fawehinmi household, Muhammed, a fiery and thoughtful lawyer like his father, that he openly announced the endorsement of the Fawehinmi clan for Ambode’s second term bid. If there was ever a whisper or a politically-motivated side talk about Ambode’s decision in 2017 to uproot the previous statue of Gani at the Ojota Park for a bigger and more befitting one, the family’s enthusiastic appreciation and open endorsement has now firmly nailed the coffin of any of such obtrusive jibe.
There must be some deep thoughts in Ambode’s strategy of drawing iconic families like the Awolowos, Fela Kutis, Fawehinmis and soon to come MKO Abiola family into his public art space. A world in which he is using the celebration of worthy icons to redefine and indeed beautify the city’s landscape with public art installations.
And then comes the trending social media buzz that ‘Ambode deserves some accolades’ on the same Sunday from the creator of that latest buzzword – the actor turned rapper, Charles Okocha popularly known as Igwe 2pac.
What did the artiste do?
He simply drove to Oshodi, stepped out of his car to behold the humongous, absolutely overwhelming level of work that is going on in the construction of roads, multi-layered bus terminals and shopping mall coming to that famous market interchange. Shocked by the enormity of the project, with all the drama and street jingo that he’s now famous for, Igwe 2pac simply concludes that Ambode has turned Oshodi into another California for which the governor deserves some accolades!
The elements seem to have decided to work in Ambode’s favour on this special April 22 Sunday. The governor is getting the accolades that he deserves and the sound of this loud applause appear ready to reverberate into the coronation day that the primaries and general elections may turn out to be.
- Dr Adekusibe, a media analyst and tutor, lives in FCT, Abuja.
