Leadership roles are always associated with so many things. One of them is the expectation of people from such leaders as well as assumed knowledge of the individual occupying such leadership positions. Often times, what people say about leaders in positions are not always as they are. At the same time, people tend to draw conclusions on what they perceive from afar even when they may not be in any way close to the truth.
One of the leaders in this category is the Speaker of Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt Hon (Dr) Mudashiru Ajayi Obasa. While people have been praising his good leadership since he assumed speakership of the number one state house of assembly in the sub-Sahara Africa, there are still some sides of him that you may not know.
The Obasa you don’t know is the one whose mandate as a leader is to set good examples for others to follow. As bills are very important to the legislature, this marked trait of him has been properly exhibited in the manner with which he has sponsored so many people-oriented bills, which have become laws. Some of them are the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund Law (2015), Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Corps Law (2016), Lagos State Properties Protection Law (2016) as well as the Lagos Kidnapping Prohibition Law (2017). You will agree with me that all these laws have indeed brought about a lease of life to the people of Lagos State since they were enacted.
The Obasa’s leadership goes beyond the Assembly where he stands as the first among equal. As the saying: charity begins at home, Obasa has made it his priority to represent his constituency very well, making sure they lack nothing. Of course, his empowerment programmes and its attendant success are a pointer to this. Presently, thousands of youths are under his scholarship program across various institutions of learning within the country. He has continued to provide basic amenities to his constituency while his Trader’s Grant has helped to bring smiles to the faces of market men and women who have benefited greatly from it.
The Obasa you don’t know is the one who is not deterred by criticisms. Instead of allowing critics to weigh him down, he sees such as an avenue to even do more. A good example of this was his contributions towards alleviating the suffering of people during the last year COVID-19 lockdown. Even when most people in leadership positions failed to identify with their people, Rt Hon Obasa went out of his way to make food available for not only people in his constituency, but also in other parts of the state. Initially, some political detractors looked for loophole to deride his genuine interest in people. Rather than being disturbed, he did more, putting his critics to shame.
If you think you know Obasa, I bet you don’t really do if you have not seen him address issues. His speaking prowess is not only excellent but full of solutions to whatever he is faced to address. He once had a big standing ovation at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja in 2019 when he delivered a paper on the autonomy of the state’s judiciary and legislative arms of government. In the presence of the 36 state governors of Nigeria, all the Speakers of the state Houses of Assembly as well as the 36 state Judges, including other representatives from the National Assembly, Rt Hon Obasa displayed his oratory, holding every attendee spell-bound. This same speaking dexterity has been brought to the fore in every gathering he has had reasons to speak.
Cases of people/politicians abound who pay back their cronies by employing them or their relatives when they get to the position of power. This, of course, is the norm in our society as people in power only give jobs to people they know or family members. But the case of Rt Hon Obasa is not so. Since he is of the opinion that round pegs should be put in round holes, he gives jobs to only capable hands. His workforce both at his constituency and corporate offices shows that he employs people without prejudice or ethnic bias. In case you don’t know, his workforce has people from different ethnic backgrounds. This is the Obasa you don’t know; and you may want to check in with his staff to understand this better.
As is evident, Rt Hon Obasa is a unique man whose enigmatic disposition and commitment to uncommon representation has brought about a positive turn around to the entire Lagos State through his leadership acumen. He is a thinker, ardent performer, a visionary leader, a transformational leader, an agent of strategic change, a man for the people.
His astute, energetic, dynamic approach to leadership is so incisive, powerful and respected to the extent that they play significant roles in moving Lagos State forward progressively.
It is no gainsaying the fact then that having a personality like him in charge of the Lagos State House of Assembly has been a blessing in every sense. So, if you think you know Obasa, you may need to go through this piece again and see more reason to appreciate having him at the helm of affairs of the number one state House of Assembly in sub-Sahara Africa.
