The Presidency has countered the position of the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy Bayo Onanuga over what has been described as a divisive comment that Lagos is “a man’s land” that belongs to the Yoruba.
Speaking on Wednesday on Arise News, Special Adviser, Media and Public Communications (State House), Daniel Bwala, rebuked Onanuga’s comments, insisting that “Lagos is a no man’s land.”
The status of Lagos in the scheme of things in the country received special commentaries in the lead up to the 2023 elections following the candidacy of former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi.
Obi and his ‘Obidient’ supporters had launched a serious campaign to upend the usual Nigerian political structure through social media. The mass movement was seen as a threat to the structure they described as “a corrupt structure”, a system they were more than ready to destroy.
The commentary led to claims and counter claims on the status of Lagos.
Onanuga, after the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC)’s victory in presidential and Lagos governorship election, attempted to reinforce the opposing argument that Lagos indeed belongs to the Yoruba and that regarding it as “a no man’s land” was incorrect.
He blamed the Obidient Movement for the narrative that Lagos was a no-man’s land. The narrative had aligned with the remarks of Lateef Jakande, the first civilian governor of Lagos State, who in his inaugural address on October 1, 1979, had said, “In 1886, Lagos was again set up as a separate colony in response to a petition by the people of Lagos who resented being governed from the Gold Coast. It was administered by a Governor of the Colony of Lagos under Letters Patent dated 13th January 1886…
“The administration continued under various constitutions until 1954 when Lagos was separated from the rest of the Colony and constituted a Federal Territory, that is to say, a No-Man’s Land.
“The creation of Lagos State, like all great events, is not the achievement of one single person…”
Disregarding Jakande’s position, Onanuga, in a March 18, 2023 post on his X handle, warned against what he described as “Igbo interference” in Lagos politics.
He wrote, “Let 2023 be the last time of Igbo interference in Lagos politics. Let there be no repeat in 2027. Lagos is like Anambra, Imo, any Nigerian state. It is not No Man’s Land, not Federal Capital Territory. It is Yoruba land. Mind your business.”
In another tweet on the same day, Onanuga added, “I hope the Obidients and their LP have now realized that Lagos is not ‘no man’s land’. The state has indigenous owners and today they emphatically made the statement loud and clear.”
However, echoing Jakande’s position on Wednesday, Bwala disagreed with Onanuga arguing, “Let me tell you why Lagos State is different. Lagos State is a no-man’s land. In the last election, the president who comes from the southwest did not win Lagos.
“That tells you the cosmopolitan nature of Lagos State. Secondly, the richest man in Africa is a northerner. His business is not in Kano, it’s in Lagos.
“Almost every rich man that you know in Nigeria has business undertakings in Lagos. And the Nigerian people are represented in Lagos. [If] you go to Lagos, if not because probably the majority of the people are Yoruba speaking, you will wonder whether Lagos indeed is from the southwest.
“Does this negate the fact that other regions also want to have their own hubs? Let me land. London has more investment than the entire states in England put together. New York has infrastructure, all investment, more than the rest of the states in the United States, including California.
“Paris has more investment than anywhere. So in every country, wherever you find the commercial nerve of that country, you are likely to see the need to put infrastructure in place in order to boost the economy of that country. Whatever Lagos benefits, benefits the country.
“So the idea that you put more in Lagos than in other states of the Federation should be put into proper context. Lagos is a no man’s land. Lagos is the hub of Nigeria.
“Lagos is the pride of the country. Lagos is the beacon of economic growth of the country.”
