Chief Waliu Olajide Ojuko is the Senior Special Adviser on Political Affairs to Governor Dapo Abiodun. He is an accomplished, humble civil and public servant who has served every governor in Ogun State aside working with mother of President Bola Tinubu and the father of the APC governorship candidate in Lagos. With what he has seen Senator Yayi do in Ogun West and beyond as a lawmaker, Chief Ojuko, who holds the title of Olootu of Ota, is optimistic that his senatorial district and Ogun State in general will experience great development when Yayi emerges the governor. He speaks on many other issues in this interview with newsdiggers.com.  Excerpts:

Take us through your background

I had my primary and secondary school education here in Ota. I had my high school in Ijebu Ode and my university in what we call the premier university  of Nigeria, that is University of Ibadan I did my NYSC in Cross River State and served in Calabar, initially as assistant postal controller. Later, I decided to go and teach. I had the opportunity of teaching in Nnamdi Azikiwe Secondary School, Hope Waddel Training Institute.

After that I was also employed by the federal ministry of communications, again as assistant postal controller. I subsequently left for Lagos State teaching service commission as a teacher in African Church Grammar School, Ifako.  After about nine months I left for Lagos State civil service as an admin officer.  In those days I was a Lagos State government scholar. It was as if I went back to serve the state that sent me to the university. My first posting in the civil service took me to the ministry of the Local government and chieftaincy Affairs.   In that ministry, I had the opportunity of working with the present Chief of Staff’s uncle, Chief Gbajabiamila was my commissioner. Again, I served as secretary of Lagos State Market Committee.  We built the first Tejuosho Market. In that committee I had the privilege of serving with the late Iyaloja General of Lagos, that is the mother of President Bola Tinubu.  From there, I was taken to Lagos State Chieftaincy Tribunal as the Secretary.  We handled quite a number of very delicate and  sensitive chieftaincy cases in Lagos State, like Obanikoro of Lagos and other chieftaincy titles.  From there, I was moved to the office of public transportation. I had the privilege of having the late Oba Hamzat, the father of the present gubernatorial candidate of Lagos as my commissioner.  I handed the sales of Lagos State boarded vehicles. I had the privilege of meeting so many big men of Lagos politics on that assignment.  From there,  I was taken to the office of the deputy governor of Lagos State, Alhaji Rafiu Jafojo.

Under him there was this Lagos State lotteries and pools betting commission. I was the maiden secretary of that commission.  It was in charge of licensing of pools, casino, gaming   machines.  That gave me the privilege of  having contact with billionaire Kessinghton Adebutu.  I was the person who licensed their Face to Face Pools all over Lagos State. I also did for Lebanese who were into promoting pool companies then.

At what point did you leave civil service?

When I was moved from there to the Ministry of Economic Planning in 1982.

I just felt I had had enough of civil service and resigned.  I started taking interest in politics and community issues.  At that time, when I closed at Alausa at 3:30 pm, I would drive straight to Ota to come and hold community and political  meetings . That’s how I got hooked into politics.

My first assignment was to be the elected state secretary of SDP.  We were the people who handled the late Abiola’s election.  I registered him into  SDP. I handled his primary, convention in Jos as an Ogun State indigene. His presidential election was also handled by me and other state secretaries in the country. We won the election but unfortunately, he was not allowed to be the president. Babangida subsequently dissolved and we were made to go into another election. I won again  as state secretary of SDP.  At that point, I became a director in Odua Group of Companies. I started with Nigeria Wire and Cable as a director, from there, I went to WEMABOD as a director. After that I also served as chairman of Western Hotels as a director. All ODUA group of companies. That dispensation went and Alliance for Democracy came. and then I became the state commissioner for Commerce,  Cooperative and Tourism, under Governor Olusegun Osoba.

When  APC came, I became the honorable  commissioner for local government and chieftaincy affairs. Under Governor Ibikunle Amosun.

When Dapo Abiodun  became the governor was appointed as his  senior special adviser on political affairs

In all this you didn’t mention Gbenga Daniel…

I worked with him. It was during Governor Gbenga Daniel’s time that I became the chairman of Western Hotels under Oodua.

My position as the state secretary, earned me the position of a director under the first coming of Governor Osoba.  It was when the Gbenga  Daniel under PDP,  became the governor that he appointed me as the chairman-director of Western Hotels.

Chief Onabanjo appointed me as a director  in then Ogun State Gateway Hotels at Otta.  Unfortunately, we had three months before that coup came.

You have worked with virtually all the governors in Ogun State, which one will you say you enjoyed working with?

They were all nice to me. Chief Osoba was like a brother to my late father.  He came from Daily Times then, you remember. We were very young then. And then he was like our elder brother. I think he was the closest to me.

If I see one of the books he wrote, he mentioned my name on page 185 of that book.  We were like family friends.

So I was very close to him.  Myself and the former deputy governor, who was also my colleague, Segun Adesegun.  We were like small brothers to Chief Osoba.

He loved going to social gatherings on weekends. Any time he was going, he would take me or Adesegun  along.

We would go everywhere to enjoy ourselves.  Despite the fact that we were in Ogun State. I think I should say I was very close to him more than the other people. The other governors too, we were close but not as close as Chief Osoba.

Let’s look at the issue of development in Ogun State, do you think we are progressing? 

Well, the Ogun State that we met when we came from Lagos and the Ogun State that we have now, I want to conclude that we are making progress.

For example, in those days, using my own community Otta as an example.  We were lacking quite a number of things then.  We are not where we are supposed to be.

But I think the state is making steady progress.  Don’t forget.  There is a difference between Ogun  and Lagos

in terms of the internally generated revenue. The money that I know was available in Lagos State then, was not available to Ogun State.  Even after that, what the state was generating under Osoba was less than 500 million per month. Today is billion.

Because of the disparity in the available funds available to the two states,  I think we can say Ogun  State is trying its best to make progress.  Our industrial estates are becoming multiple.

There was no interchange- Shagamu in Ogun State before.  It was only Otta and Agbara.  Today,  we have other industrial estates.

Our land today in Ogun  State is more and more expensive than what it was in those days. In those days, a plot of land could go cost as low  as #3,000. But today it’s a lot of money because of the economic progress we have made.  The population of Ogun State now is very rich.

A lot are living, working in Lagos and living in Ogun State and that has helped in shooting our IGR and some other things like that.

The value of our land now is almost as that of Lagos State in some places.

What will you say are the experience you have garnered over the years?

Well, I’ve been a civil servant and a public servant.  They  are two things.

As a civil servant, one learnt a lot. I was able to be in the midst of those who own Lagos State then. And of course, I was able to learn quite a lot of things and that has helped me in my public service life when I became commissioner and this and that.

What is important is to be humble and ensure that you don’t allow your position to go into your head.

Those who are going to meet today, you don’t know where your path will cross with theirs tomorrow.

One has to be very careful because as a civil servant, or public servant, you are serving Nigerians. You are serving people of those states.

And once you try to be modest, to be humble,  and to ensure that you maintain your integrity,  most importantly, don’t be corrupt.  I had the opportunity of making a lot of money.  Probably, I will not be where I am today, if  I had made those money illegally then. My schedule of duty has given me the opportunity to look at money but one  has to be careful.  My father had a name,  and I think I should maintain that name.

You have been in the political space for a while,  why are you not aspiring for political office?

You see, one thing in politics is that it depends on where you come from,  particularly the kind of constitutional politics that we play in Nigeria.

I am from Ogun West of Ogun  State. Since the creation of the state,  we have not been governor for once.  The two other senatorial districts, that is, the central and the east,  have been taking that slot.

I  have been part of the struggle for quite a long time,  even before my father died.  I remember we have swerved into different political parties from the main party that we were, all because we were looking to bring the governor to my senatorial district.  But unfortunately,  those two times we did that,  we were not lucky.

During the time of the late General Olurin, he came out from this particular senatorial district but we couldn’t make it.  Then, during the time of the Governor Ibikunle Amosun, we left APC for APM to look for the governor’s seat.  We won the election, but we were not allowed to take that short because of some political intricacies.

As a person,  because I come from Ogun West, is one of the restricting factors that I have,  because the best we can gun for is senator.

We have five local governments.  We come from the minority of that senatorial district.

The other side is Yewa side.  We are Awori which is one local government out of the five.

Anytime we go for primaries, it’s always four against one. These are the things you have to look at before you venture into it.

Unless, maybe this time. Those times we became senators on this part of the senatorial district, it was through consensus, like the one we are having now. Thanks to Senator Olamilekan Yayi,  who has now came to bail us out of that logjam.

He’s been here with us for some years. Fortunately, he has come to be our consensus gubernatorial candidate now.  Because of that,  the senatorial seat was ceded to my own local government,  which is the Awori part of the senatorial district.

Unfortunately, there have been  people queuing to become senators.  But me,  I should say I prefer appointment than going to elective positions.

How do you feel having Senator Olamilekan Yayi emerging Ogun State  APC governorship candidate?

I was interviewed by OGTV a few days ago and I told them this is my best moment in politics. Because when you are in politics,  if your area is not on the number one seat, it will just be working for the owner.

As a senator,  he has transformed our senatorial district and by extension,  the entire Ogun State,  he has given us roads,  schools, transformers,  a lot of things he has done  that we never saw before as a senator. That has opened our eyes.

And we have seen somebody who is going to be our messiah.

By the time he put himself forward for the gubernatorial seat, there was no objection  from anywhere.  Even across the state,  for the first time,  you see a senator doing things for his senatorial district and for other senatorial districts.

And that was why the man was accepted all over the state. So we are very happy to see him. Senator Yayi and I have been together since he came to look for position of senator about 14 to 15 years ago,

then he was in the House of Reps. Unfortunately,  that was the time Aregbe was in Osun as  governor. (Aregbe told us when I went to Osun with him that they cannot leave him because the three of them were the ones winning Alimosho Local Government for  Lagos State.

As a result,  they cannot leave they cannot leave Yayi for us in Ogun State. But thank God today he came in as a senator and of course,  now coming in as a governor.  He has done a lot for us in Ogun West and the state.  We never knew a senator can do as much as that.

We have had senators before.  Before him.  But he has opened our eyes.

Anybody who is going to represent us now,  as a senator,  he is leaving a very big shoe as a senator.  So we thank God for bringing him for us.

What agenda are you people setting for him if and when he wins and assumes office?

Like I said,  we were very, very much at the back seat in terms of infrastructure.

Particularly in our senatorial district.  A lot of things had eluded us. And our expectation is that he will come and fill those gaps; roads, electricity, and empowerment of our people.  Then we has to turn our rural communities into modern communities.  We have the opportunity of developing quite a number of industrial estates in Ogun West.

I’m sure by now, with his arrival, many of these things will be taken care of. Many of our communities are without electricity, many without good roads, many without hospitals, many without good schools. I  think he should be able to assist.

Awolowo was an indigene of this state.  If you go Ijebu side,  the tap, the roads, Awolowo did for them, they are still using them up till today.

We haven’t got that opportunity in this part of Ogun  State.

I think the man will come and turn a lot of things around for us.

What is your take about the administration of President Tinubu?

I will start by going back to his days in Lagos State. He was a very brilliant governor. He’s a person who doesn’t joke with intelligence report. He was running his government from all sides of the state. That helped him when Obasanjo came as President under PDP. He took over all the states in the Southwest except  Lagos State because Asiwaju had his ears to the ground.

Asiwaju has carried that to the federal level and he is going to win the 2027 election. He is a good administrator. Things are difficult for Nigerians now but at the end of the day, they will be more comfortable.  When you have a sore, and you want  it to heal, you have to put the right medication which can make it very painful. The essence is for the sore to heal. That is what President Tinubu is doing to Nigeria now.  Nigeria was in a very bad shape when he took over.  I am a sorry I am an APC man, the last president didn’t do much and that is why Asiwaju inherited so many problems.  The abolition of fuel subsidy came to some people as a shock and they never knew that he would survive it.  The man is gradually surviving it  and that is why he is getting so many of the governors to his side.  The president is not selfish. He thinks about Nigerians. Otherwise, he would have been selective with the kind of money that is coming to the coffers of the government now.  He would have said if you are not a Yoruba man, I will not give you money. If you are not an APC man I will not give you money.