Dapo Abiodun’s inclusive governance approach

I was elated to see the road to Arepo, a community in one of the Ogun and Lagos’s boundaries to have been under construction. My feelings were not for anything other than the failed attempts to get the previous government to fix the road despite many promises during the election campaign visits to the community.

Arepo is an inclusive border town and community that deserve nothing less than the best of infrastructures. The famous town along the Mowe-Ibafo axis houses top journalists, bankers and professionals who have found a home in a town with proximity to Lagos. For Ogun state, Arepo is not just a community but a cash cow for pay as you earn tax if the Residence rule of taxation is strictly followed. The number of corporate employees working in Lagos but living in Ogun state as their principal place of residence is enormous. I am sure the state is making progress in mining the tax potential of the border towns.

I was fascinated when I listened to the governor on television in one of the commissions of his projects recently. While I am not eulogizing a man that is only halfway on his mission to make a difference and impact his people, Abiodun mentioned an approach that deeply resonates with my infinite stake theory—a theory of inclusion in corporate transformation and governance. Governor Abiodun’s approach of demanding the traditional rulers to nominate roads of massive importance for construction or reconstruction within their communities is an inclusive strategy that is germane. That could provide solutions to most of the problems we are facing as a nation.

Read Also: Celebrating Governor Abiodun’s infrastructural development impact in Ogun

Let us look at it from the security challenges we have in Nigeria. The bandits and kidnappers are members of our communities. Being inclusive gives the traditional rulers a role to know their community members, their interest and be selfless in demanding social amenities and justice for their people. Governor Abiodun’s inclusive approach should be adopted beyond the physical infrastructure but extended to strategies to keep our communities safe. The road projects nominated by the community leaders will be owned by the people by the conception stage, seen as theirs and be protected from avoidable damages. I can bet it; the people will think more like the owners than the users of those nominated infrastructures.

Can we extend this approach to the other key governance indicators? Absolutely yes! Our traditional rulers are the custodians of our traditions. In Africa, our primary traditional occupation is farming in all its shapes. Just as the governor gave responsibility for the nomination of projects to the community leaders, they should be given or empowered to take the lead in food security and youth engagement.

All traditional rulers are farmers by birth irrespective of their level of exposure. They are educated and should be more empowered with capacity development in managing ecosystems of businesses and people. Community farm settlements should be established with the traditional rulers as the CEOs. These settlements will be run as business entities producing foods, crops, and poultry for the people within the districts and selling to the individual, manufacturers, and other off-takers for profits. Prices for direct consumption will be subsidized to the relative cost of production. The value chain of this community business empowerment will breed responsible citizens who will work for wages. It will bond members together in a business venture with a common interest. Security will improve, and the dignity of labour will be encouraged. An annual award for the best managed and profitable community farms will go to the traditional rulers as part of their recognitions and a reward for their business and people management skills. There is a need to upskill the influence of the traditional rulers beyond the relevance in giving out titles and supporting politicians during electioneering.

Education and youth empowerment is another area the governor’s approach could be profitably deployed. Ogun state is a noble state with first in many giant feats. The first lawyer, the first accountant and this or that. Today, the WAEC rating of states in the external examination is becoming the critical success factor for assessing our educators’ effectiveness. An inclusive ecosystem approach with parents, teachers, students, and education’s sympathizers like myself is key to making our students excel at the secondary school stage. It is not about just passing an exam; it is about developing the latent confidence of an average student, the leader of tomorrow.

An example of what an infinite mindset and inclusive approach can achieve is seen in what my team at the Positive Growth Africa and Mentoras Leadership did in Lagos. In 2016, we gathered 5000 students of the Lagos Education district I in Agege stadium for the Students’ Fortress Conference following the release of my second book. I was empathetic with the failure rate among our students and authored the Students’ Fortress, ten practical rules for passing your exams excellently in 2015. Having sold a substantial quantity among private schools, we shifted our attention to public schools as a form of social responsibility. We gave back to the community where I was born and raised. District I consisting of Agege, Ifako-Ijaiye and Alimosho local governments were ranked 5th of out 6 districts academically.

Within 12 months of the conference and establishing the students’ fortress club in the ninety-nine public secondary schools, the district pass rate moved from 39 to 71 per cent in WAEC examinations. The district rank changed from 5th to 1st ever since 2017. We did not do that alone. We did it with an inclusive and infinite mindset. The district leaders were open to our ideas and subjugated their plans for a bigger picture. The students were given a second chance to learn through the students’ fortress club, where they taught one another after school hours. The parents were not left out as they accommodated their children coming a bit late from school in an extra effort to be better.

Governor Abiodun inclusive approach to governance has a broader spectrum of replication in health, security, youth empowerment and education if carefully thought through and implemented strategically. The drive for diversity and inclusiveness will breed better societies with equality, fairness, and opportunities. A community where the son of nobody can be somebody. A society where the efforts of today will be the launch pad of tomorrow. A society where legacy is not about building roads and infrastructure but an investment in the minds and capacity of the people who are to use and maintain the infrastructures.

Without eulogizing governor Dapo Abiodun as it is too early to go that route, we will want to see a better society and Ogun state will take the lead as it has always been with the current administration’s inclusive approach.