Your background and education
I am Gideon Osolease Obhakhan and I am from Ekpoma, Esan West Local Government Area, Edo State. I started my educational journey from Emaudo primary school in Ekpoma, Edo State. I then proceeded to Annunciation Catholic College (ACC), Irrua, where I got my secondary school certificate. My first university degree which is in Electrical/Electronic Engineering was obtained from the University of Benin, Benin City. I also have a Master’s degree in Communication Engineering from the University of Lagos and an MBA from University of Leicester, United Kingdom.
Why are you leaving a lucrative job for politics?
I must say that being in MTN has created a lot of comfort for me. However, I believe that in a country where you still have a lot of people in need, it is necessary to leave my comfort zone and contribute meaningfully to the development of this nation. This is not about a job being lucrative, because in the first instance, I am not going into politics for selfish reasons, but for selfless service to my people. With my wealth of experience, I could continue to work in corporate organisations and keep to my private life for as long as I want. But for my kind of person, I won’t be satisfied doing that because I believe that the greatest loss to a man is not death in itself but the idea that dies in him while he is still alive. There is a need to add value to humanity in any way we can and by making the necessary sacrifices because you can never have everything easy in life. I have consistently in the past tried my best to support the less-privileged in my personal capacity, but this is the time for me to take an elective position so that I can contribute my quota and also be able to work with people of like minds to influence policy driven projects that will be beneficial to our people.
How did you get the job with MTN?
Upon my graduation from the university, I started my professional career within the private telecommunications operators’ environment before the issuance of licenses to the GSM companies. In the pre-GSM era, I worked with Mobitel Limited and EMIS Telecoms, both private telecommunications operators based in Lagos. So when the GSM licenses were issued, I knew it was time to move on and I applied to MTN when they had a vacancy for the type of job that I liked to do, which is planning and strategy. As someone who had prepared well within the industry, getting the job was not too difficult as lots of work had already been done in anticipation of what was to come.
How did you get to the position of general manager?
Life with MTN was a very interesting one. Being one of the key resources at the budding stages of the telecommunications industry liberalisation in Nigeria, I have had the opportunity of getting tremendous experience in management and leadership within the industry, having grown through the ranks to the position of a general manager, and contributing immensely at various leadership levels towards positioning and sustaining MTN as a market leader in the telecommunications industry not only in Nigeria, but across Africa and the Middle East. I learnt a lot from them and gained a lot of experience that has taken me to this level. I think that is understandable because MTN is a place that I spent more than half of my adult life. MTN is a company that believes strongly in integrity and they hold it as a core value of the organisation. They encourage hardwork and it is a company that is not only focused on making profit but has a heart for the people and communities where they work and this is evident from the number of corporate social responsibility projects they have executed across the entire country.
As regards getting to the position of a general manager, I will say it is through hard work and commitment to my job responsibilities. MTN is a place that you cannot grow if you are not hard working. Rising to the top in MTN is purely on merit and there is nothing like favouritism. This has thought me that in every environment, hard work pays and I’m mindful of this now that I am going for elective position to represent my people in the House of Representatives.
When did you start taking interest in politics?
My active participation in politics dates back to 1993 in the Federal Polytechnic, Auchi, and subsequently in the University of Benin (UNIBEN) where I was also actively involved in students’ union politics. Since my graduation from the university, I have participated in politics at different levels. I joined the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria from inception and supported its activities at various levels until the merger with other political parties which gave birth to All Progressives Congress, of which I am a member till date.
How did MTN react when they received your resignation letter?
I believe it was missed feelings at the end of the day. On the one hand, they obviously felt sad considering the fact that I was a critical resource, responsible for planning and strategy in the technical area and a lot of resources was spent in training me and developing those skills which added a lot of value and contributed immensely to positioning MTN as a leader in the industry. But on the flip side, I believe they will be happy knowing that I am going to take up a new challenge which will enable me touch the lives of the people in the communities where they do business. As you are aware, MTN is an organisation that spends a reasonable percentage of their annual profit on improving the lives of the people in their operating environments.
How did your family, particularly your wife, react to your leaving MTN?
The truth is, there is hardly any major decision I have made in life without carrying my wife along. We believe in each other and we have come this far because of the trust we have for each other. In this case, we discussed it and since she knows I have been participating in politics for a long time, it was not strange to her that I was leaving MTN to go and serve my people. She has always been carried along in my humanitarian and philanthropic activities and I believe it didn’t come to her as a surprise when I eventually decided that I was going to go for an elective position in order to continue to contribute positively to the development of our society and the empowerment of our people.
From the corporate world to politics, what are the challenges you see ahead of you?
Although these are two different worlds with different rules of engagement, I would say I am not new to the world of politics. It is not a strange environment for me. However, now that I am going deeper into it as an aspirant, there will obviously be challenges because interpersonal relationship in the corporate world for instance, is not exactly the same as that in the political landscape. But in my world, adaptation techniques are not scarce and I am confident that I will be able to handle the challenges as they come. The important thing is sincerity of purpose and genuine focus on what is important in order to ensure that we deliver the dividends of democracy to our people.
Do you think you are well prepared to swim in Nigeria’s murky political waters?
Of course, yes. First of all, I am a Nigerian and I am well abreast with the political developments in the country. I know it is generally noted that the level of maturity of the political class may not be where it ought to be today, but I am confident that as more people with the right mindset continue to join to up the level of debate and contribute their quota in their own little way, we will see significant improvement across board. I’m more interested in what I am bringing to the table than the current perception out there about politicians and the political class. I am however, mindful of the fact that a man is a product of his environment and that my ability to deliver will be largely dependent on how I choose to react to that environment. This I am prepared for and I am very hopeful that I will make a change. There are many people who have done this successfully and I don’t think it is as difficult as brain surgery.
What are your chances in your party primaries?
In my humble opinion, I believe I have been able to earn the trust of my people and they are very aware politically. I have done what I think I should do in preparation for the primaries. However, it is the people that have the final say since they are the ones I am going to represent. I can only hope that our people are able to break this jinx once and for all. They need to say goodbye to people who come once in four years to buy votes with peanuts and they sing their praises each time they come.
Should you get your party’s ticket, what should your people expect from you?
The very best selfless service! I will break this down at the appropriate time but I’d like to mention here that those who are not ready to serve should not go for elective positions.
How would you rate Adams Oshiomhole’s administration in Edo?
Without mincing words, I will say that the comrade governor has done very well. If I compare the Edo State of today with what it was when he took over the mantle of leadership, I will say he deserves commendation. He has touched all the sectors and you don’t need to be told about the infrastructural development in the state because they are very obvious.
Edo State is one of the states in Nigeria today that you can see significant improvement, not on the pages of newspapers, but in real life. It will probably take the whole day or more if I have to list all his achievements. It will suffice for now if I just say so far, so good.
