Where Is Aregbesola’s Big table?

“The best government has philosophers in charge”—- Plato

In whatever we are doing, the logic which is a nucleus of wisdom must be considered so that our marginal error in any judgment of a given situation would be very low; else the creationist account which says “my people perish because they lack wisdom” will be mantra on our lips.

There was this ancient fable which teaches us wisdom about turtle and scorpion. Turtle as we all know is a good swimmer, while scorpion is not, but what it lacks in swimming, it has it in its deadly sting. So, the turtle and scorpion wanted to cross a particular river and as the turtle made effort to jump into the river, the scorpion appealed to it to carry it across.

In its wisdom, the turtle stressed that what of ‘if you sting me while carrying you across’? ‘The scorpion replied that there was no logic in it because if you sink, I will sink with you’. With this dialogue, the turtle was convinced that the scorpion would keep its sting for its safety too, but the expected happened in the middle of the river as the scorpion stung the turtle heavily while still at its back, and the turtle began to sink so also the scorpion.

However, while the duo were sinking, another round of conversations began, turtle said: “but I thought you said that there was no logic in stinging me while helping you across the river, what made you do it now and the sinking scorpion then replied that, “it is not a matter of logic, it is in my character”.

When I began to ruminate about why the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo is not allowed to rest years after he had gone to the beyond, and why our politicians on the corridors of power could not afford to measure up to the profile of the man, a situation that might have warranted those politicians to be dancing back and forth on the same spot like yoyo, the submission of the ancient Philosopher, Plato on politics and government came to my mind straight, and so I was forced to read some of his views about the government, people and the society.

Therefore, when I heard Plato saying that man senses are susceptible to imperfect judgment, for they appealed to the specifics like seeing and touch, reason, a subset of logic and a product of philosophy is always coming out with truth, because it appeals to ideas.

The interesting aspect of his research was that Plato also studied politics and government. He believed that the best government has a philosopher in charge. The minds of philosophers are trained to use reason and understand ideas. According to Plato, the knowledge they gain this way would help them govern wisely and create the best conditions for the people they rule.

In order to carry out his research in practicality, after many years at the Academy, Plato wanted to test his beliefs. In 367 BC, he went to Syracuse on the Island of Sicily, off the coast of Italy. He went there to teach the new ruler of Syracuse to be a philosopher. But he failed in this effort. Plato returned to write and study in Athens. He died at the age of 80.

Now, let us ask ourselves, do we still have Philosophers in charge in this country or in our states of the federation? When last was the country witnessed unprecedented development? What happened then? These posers would certainly provoke us as a people to look into history of this country, maybe we could find some pieces of assertions to put together for this argument.

Penultimate week in Ibadan, Oyo state capital where legislative summit for the South/West and Edo was held, our late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo was not allowed to rest again, for his name and spirit were invoked regularly, because of his legacies resulting from his good governance, way back from his headship of the Western region in the 50s. The question is why is it that the man who ruled his people in the 50s is still a benchmark in governance till today? The answer is not far-fetched; Awolowo was a Philosopher who lived ahead of his time.

In order to employ reason as a tool, it will not be too much a labour to check out how Awolowo administered then: immediately Awolowo got the mantle of leadership to rule the Western region, the first assignment he embarked upon was to get a ‘big table’ where carefully selected wise men and philosophers in their chosen disciplines were tasked to develop framework for the development of the region and that was what brought the best out of people like late Professor Sam Aluko and others.

Then, many of our academics and wise politicians were given tasks which engaged them actively, and normally, human mind will produce the best if challenged. The buck stopped on Awolowo’s table and as a Philosopher himself, he would retreat into his study and peruse over the assignments given to his best eleven, this would afford him to come out with the best programmes, and the credit of the best brains would come to their assembler.

These days, our leaders do not borrow the leave from the way the man governed his people, rather they shout his name as if the spirit would show them the path. The path to good governance is not a rocket science, what a leader needs is a ‘big table’ where intellectual market would be put to task, and the political will to implement all carefully reached recommendations should not be lost. That is it.

Again, it is established now that fleet of degrees being paraded by some people are no longer fit to qualify them into the big table of good governance, so what our leaders need is to reflect and ruminate on the kind of people they surround themselves with, because nowadays the demand of greed and self-centeredness is taking over from the broad view of the national interest.

Give it to Aregbesola on his programmes: O’YES, O’REAP, O’CLEAN, O’TOUR, O’TECH and others. They are all product of deep thinking and ideas and I know that majority of the good people of Osun state will agree with me that things are changing now because for the first time, people at the grassroots are feeling the touch of government.

Awolowo spoke of four cardinal points, Aregbesola comes up with six point integral action plan, good direction, but where I have an axe to grind with the latter is his ‘big table’. Honestly, I appreciate what the governor might have passed through in assembling his Commissioners and Special Advisers, but I must admit that most of the people in government today are not capable of giving the people on the street some fresh air, because they lack knowledge, ideas and the know-how of the terrain of the state, despite the fact that they are from here.

I am in the know that the governor has brought a new lease of life to the weekly meeting of the cabinet, something we had never experienced in real term in Osun state for a long time, but what is the quality of the debate? Well some of the outcomes which we have heard have shown that things are changing there, but what about the quality of the debaters and how do they analyze issues affecting our people directly and indirectly? This is where I disagree with the governor on the selection of some Commissioners and Advisers based on political patronages as his political detractors would make us understand.

Politically speaking, yes it is correct, but I know for sure that philosophically, Aregbesola is not a conformist which lay man calls ‘push-over’ and that is an advantage he has over those who could not breadth until their political godfather speaks. In that wise, I suggest that Mr. Governor re-examine his ‘big table’ so that the line-up programmes would not become subject of ridicule on the streets of Osun.

At the risk of being labeled a rebel within, one area, I would point out in protest is the sleeping Bureau of Public Communication and Strategy headed by Mr. Semiu Okanlawon. Of course, Okanlawon and all the people assembled for the task of briefing the public on the thinking of the governor on all issues are experts who have excelled in journalism, but close to a year and half of the existence of the bureau now, these fellows are just not forthcoming with information that could assist the government they claim to be serving let alone the public they ought to inform.

As a result, a leader who is mindful of his big table will not wait this long to unbundle idle bureau where ego trip has become a vogue if the result is actually desired, let it be known that our people have right to choose their perception, and they have the right to keep their opinions too, but it is the duty of the government to inform us about the way we are being governed. Yes, I am part of the government, and I am a media man myself who is not completely perfect in his discharge of his duty, but the table of the governor is bigger than an individual.

Let it be known that the way I reason may be different from the way an average establishment man does, it is because I knew what the good people of Osun state passed through in the hands of infidels, I recollected how doors of prisons were opened for the innocent ones, how death was cheap and how thugs of ‘Sunday Igbohos’, ‘the laws’ and other dregs of the society were elevated to eminent position in the state; allowing the state to relapse into the coma of the locust era will be unforgiving for non-performance of some few people at the big table, because the slain Ayo Kembas and Saheed whose spirits are now at peace will turn in their graves

Aregbesola has proved himself to be a Philosopher king and he has lined up programmes of action including his effort which gave the Yoruba nation a lost identity back through his rebranding of Osun state, but I strongly suggest he re-examine his big table so that his name will be recorded as the man who came to government and made the difference.

Once again, I take responsibility for the salient points raised in this piece and I stand by it anytime.
I rest my case.