So a couple of things I've seen over the past few days I would like to comment on. First was a comment on a post asking GMB's supporters to donate towards his campaign. One lady's opinion was that whoever is interested in donating just needs to pass through the Lekki toll gate; after all a fraction of the money paid will go to Tinubu, who is GMB's backer & Osinbajo's godfather. Thinking about it, I realized she's not too far off. Quite frankly I think a good many people will not feel inclined to donate to GMB because the general feeling is that Tinubu has amassed more than enough to sponsor the campaign. The flip side to that is the more Tinubu donates, the more GMB is beholden to him and he will have no choice but to pay back, only this time by collecting federal contracts.
Then I watched a debate clip between Jimi Agbaje & Akin Ambode. Both candidates were asked what they would do about the toll collection at Lekki and the arrangement with AlphaBeta. Of course Agbaje said he will do away with both. But what was more interesting was Ambode's response. On the toll gate he said the tolls will remain because it is a key source of revenue for Lagos state and at that I became confused. When the tolls were put in place, Fashola said it was because the road was built using private sector funds and needed to be paid for. Which is fine, I don't have a problem with that. But if the road has been fully paid off (and none of the candidates said anything to the contrary), why has the toll collection not stopped? Or is APC's plan to continue to use that as a source of revenue, not necessarily for Lagos, but for Tinubu to have limitless funds for his insatiable political ambitions?
And then on AlphaBeta, Ambode said the company will remain a consultant to Lagos state because of the terms of the contract. If Lagos state should try to end the relationship, they will be dragged to court for breach of contract and the payout will be huge. I know a thing or two about contract management and this sounds to me like an evergreen contract that never expires. Such contracts only favour one party, the supplier. So basically Ambode told us that Lagosians have been bound to Tinubu in a never ending contract where he collects all our money in the form of taxes and keeps a percentage. This is just too much. With every passing day I am more convinced that Tinubu is a deadweight the APC is carrying which they need to get rid off and fast. That is the only way they will have a better proposition than PDP.
