Only God will decide next Lagos governor, says Akiolu

OBA Riliwanu Akiolu I Monday said only God will determine who succeeds Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola as Governor of Lagos State when his second term expires in 2015.
Akiolu was speaking at the inauguration of the newly-constituted Council of Obas and Chiefs, of which he was returned as Chairman for a five-year tenure to run till 2017.
In his response shortly after the inauguration of the council by Governor Fashola at the Banquet Hall, Lagos House, Alausa, Akiolu warned his colleagues to shun anyone parading himself as the next helmsman of the state.
He remarked: “Those who are deceiving themselves, they will chop (eat) your money and chop your money and nothing will happen. I will not be party to say that this or that man will be the next Governor, the future belongs to God”.
The 65-man council consists of Obas and White Cap chiefs with Akiolu as chairman and four vice chairmen, including the Obas of Ikorodu, Epe, Ikeja and Badagry.
Meanwhile, a former Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, yesterday described as cheap and miscalculated fake campaign posters that flooded certain parts of Lagos State at weekend, purportedly presenting him as running the governorship race in 2015.
Obanikoro, who is out of the country at present, said whatever was the motive behind the move has failed ab initio because, apart from the fact that the strategy is old-fashioned, the timing was ill-advised.
Obanikoro said the move was intended to achieve either of two things: To present him as desperate or a politician of uncompromising tendencies. He, therefore, concluded that both intentions have failed because they could neither push him out in the ring nor stifle him.
He added: “Honestly, this has not come to me as a surprise because I understand the terrain in which I operate. But I would have thought that even if those who relish in destructive politics still admire the trade, they could have at least gone a notch up in their game. This is cheap, ill-timed and a miscalculation.
“I know where this is coming from, but it is good for the PDP because it shows clearly that the opposition is jittery already and when the time comes, our party, which is bigger and better now, will put them in their place. If all this has set out to do is cause disaffection among us, too bad because it failed even before it was recognised as mischief.
“Interestingly, the same approach was used against the President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan and it failed because it was false. Even a member of the opposition party, Hon. Opeyemi Bamidele, recently had a whiff of his party’s bad politics. It has since been discovered that it was not true. And coming after me when others have failed shows they are myopic and lacking strategic thinking.
“I have been around for too long to be played on so cheaply. I know the game better than they do. I understand procedure and respect laid down party rules and regulations. I am disciplined enough to know what line to cross or avoid. So, why waste their time over Obanikoro who does not reckon with their existence or what they do? I advise them to go back to the drawing board and re-strategise. This is sheer time wasting and grossly unproductive.”
“Two weeks ago, this set of people sponsored a story saying the party leadership was considering me as its flag-bearer, a move the party debunked immediately. At least, from this point of view, they have exposed their desperation and the inanity in their strategy, which reflects very poor thinking. But note: neither the PDP nor Obanikoro is worried. It is just one of those comic reliefs.”