Meet the man PAS

Let me do a little bit of ‘famzing’  (A Nigerian slang coined from the English word ‘familiar’, which depicts when a normal citizen is trying to act familiar to a celebrity), with the present Speaker of the Ogun State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Prince Adekunbi Suraj (PAS), a man I had known since way back 2006.

I was an undergraduate and the incumbent Assistant General Secretary of the National Association of Agricultural Students (NAAS) Olabisi Onabanjo University chapter as at that time. School unionism which I was actively involved in brought me to limelight amongst my fellow students and I somehow became a force to reckon with in grass root communal politics in Ayetoro town where my Campus was located.

Somehow this very industrious, yet ambitious and honest indigene of the town in person of PAS who sat atop his late father's oil business, Al-Rahman Oil and Gas (polygamous family business which he managed without conflict on behalf of the entire family alongside his fleet of personal businesses with so much transparency) decided to serve the people of Yewa North, and in lieu of this he established a group consisting of ten vibrant  youths known as LIREF, an acronym for Liberation Reckoning Forumwhere I was made the PRO.

In no time he got his party’s flag (APC) to contest in 2007, though lost but held on still to his ambition, and in 2011, he re-contested as the candidate representing Yewa North 1, and he not only won this, but became the Speaker of the Ogun State House of Assembly.

LIREF did thrive for a few years up until some of us graduated from school, had to go serve our fatherland in faraway states and it automatically became defunct.

So when news filtered into town that PAS had became the Speaker, I concluded that I had lost an older friend to Power. I felt there was no medium through which I could get across to him, that I almost deleted his personal number sometimes in 2013, before someone suggested I make a call across to him or better still send a message. However, I chose the latter, explaining into details about my person and few hours later, he called me. Truth is, I never expected it and excitedly I screamed,

“Hello sir” At the other end of the phone and he Jokingly informed,

             “next time say right Honorable as I am the present speaker of the Ogun State House of Assembly” and we both laughed.

Over the years, he has refused to change. His humility and sincerity remained despite the responsibility bestowed on him in the state.

Let me further gist you about how my first visit to his office went down.

Having previously booked an appointment, I got to his office gate in Kuto,  Abeokuta  and requested to see the speaker from the gatemen. Scornfully, they looked at each other and laughed at my request.

            “Who you say you wan see again?”  One of them asked in pidgin language and I innocently replied,

            “speaker”

Not that I looked unkempt or that I was shabbily dressed, but I sensed they felt I was too ‘plain’or clearly ordinary  to have known someone of that caliber, or that because I was probably unaccompanied by cameras to depict me as a journalist, no entourage whatsoever, nor other razzmatazz that is expected of visitors wanting to see someone occupying such an ‘exalted’position, then I may not be qualified enough to see their boss. Feeling tensed now, I put a call across to him, and that surge of pride welled up in me as soon as he answered my call and requested that I gave the phone to one of the fully armed police men and like a sudden twist he began to utter,

            “yes sir, yes sir”  in quick succession, totally transfixed on a spot, in salute if I may rightly guess.

In few seconds, the atmosphere literarily changed, I was ushered in and did seamlessly scaled through all the security hurdles and in no time I was in his office.

 By the way, talking about who he is from time immemorial, needless to say he is quite accountable, detailed and very thrifty. A trait he exhibited as well the last time I visited his quarters. He patiently audited the daily needs of his household, and even had to inform the wife on the need for proper cross checks to be conducted on the market prices of commodities before purchase and to be prudent too. I made jest of him for this and he reminded me that tax payers money has to be spent with utmost prudence.

Though he is one with a very busy schedule, I told him I now have a blog alongside being an employee hence needs to interview him, and pronto he granted me despite the fact that the day I chose was especially busy for him. It was a day after this year’s valentine, 15th February, 2018 precisely.

However, he is presently aspiring to be the governor of Ogun State under the Party he had really been loyal and committed to, APC come 2019.

By the way, enjoy our very brief interview. Excerpts;

ME;    “Good afternoon sir, so how did you spend your val yesterday?

PAS;   (chuckles)  “To me, valentine is just like every other day. Although, many people believed it as the day set aside to celebrate love, to appreciate ourselves, and most importantly to reach out to the needy. Me too like most people the world over, had a nice time too, but this time with my people of Ogun State, the women actually, held a rally. The women numbering over a hundred were there decked in red and white (laughs) to signify the day. They were adequately appreciated owing to the fact that they have been supportive from the beginning, both to me and then to the APC in general and the state.

Me;    “Recently we experienced Nigerian youths illegally jetting out of the country and they are pointing accusing fingers at bad governance as an excuse, as a lawmaker and a public figure, who is part of the decision making process, what is your take on this?”

PAS;    “Well, I have said it times without number, regardless, we need to still believe in our country. We all at one level or the other have to contribute our own quota to the development of our country. And in similar vein, youths needs to be re orientated on the need to believe and see the potentials we have as a nation. There are lots of things one can actually lay his or her hands on to take one to that desirable stage in life, and of course I want to say that the quick rich syndrome is the reason why many of them seems to tow the wrong path. Lay your hands on viable things. One has to be conscious of leaving one’s country to a strange land, because when you get there, you are definitely going to begin again. This country is blessed with loads of opportunities, and our population is a good advantage for any intelligent person to leverage on, put your energy that you are wasting over there to a great use here. It is a familiar territory with a very favorable condition  which makes it easier on one’s birth land.  Obstacles would always come, as it's experienced over there, but they just chose to blacklist their minds to jet out hence falls into wrong hands.”

Me;    “You are undoubtedly a very humble person, how have you been able to balance your position as the OGHA speaker to remain accessible to the people at the grass root?”

PAS;   “I am a product of the masses, and by God’s grace, I grew up in the midst of the grassroot people, so nothing has really changed about me, except for the added responsibilities at a higher level. A  Yoruba adage says, ori ti a fi se ewe, ko kuro lorun wa (literarily,one’s head as a kid remained even as an adult) It is still the same Suraj Ishola Adekunbi. Owing to the kind of upbringing I have as well, I can never forget the people in whose midst I grew up as I can never stop appreciating them.

Me:   “Lastly, what are your areas of concentration as an aspiring governor of Ogun state?”

PAS;    “well, so far, I have been doing my bits as the Head of the Legislative arm of Government, and of course it is done with the support of my distinguished honorable colleagues in the house. We have established an effective collaboration and cordial relationship with the other two arms of Government, and you will see that in Ogun State today, our system have been working and all that we have achieved in the past, has been seamlessly done.  

As an aspirant, however, who is a part of the present administration with a raised bar in governance, if given the opportunity, my agenda is  to simply consolidate on the gains of this current administration in the areas of Education,Qualitative Health Care delivery,Urbanisation,Agriculture,providing enabling environment for our industry to thrive,as it has always been at the moment, the ease of doing business in the state would remain sustained as well. Ogun State will continue to maintain the current tempo of the development we are having and of great importance is this, to see to the welfare of the people of Ogun state through policies that will have direct impact on the lives of our people.

ME;   Thank you for your time Honorable speaker

PAS:  You are welcome Titi