‘ACN’ll Serve As Catalyst For Change’

Senator Ganiyu Olanrewaju Solomon, GOS, representing Lagos Central Senatorial District, is the only senator re-elected out of the three that represent Lagos State in the outgoing dispensation . He is already being seen by some as the probable  Minority Leader of the new Senate. In this interview, he states that his party, the ACN, will capitalise on its numerical strength in the Senate to give Nigerians a better representation. Excerpts:

What are your expectations from the numerical strength of lawmakers elected on the platform of Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN?
What this means is that we now have more voice in the National Assembly and with our orientation, the orientation of our party members at different levels throughout the country; we should see ourselves as agents of positive change. I think with that we would be able to make appreciable impact in the National Assembly.
I believe very strongly that one would also be able to influence the government at the centre to be more pro-people in its programmes, in its approach and in everything it does because we are of the view that we have not done enough for the masses who are the whole essence of governance.

How do you intend to wade through this challenge with the large population of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, members in the House?
Apart from the improved numerical strength of our party and other parties as well, we should lay emphasis on the quality of people coming in as well. They are people that have been tested and people have confidence in them to stand on their own regardless of the intimidation or tendency of the majority.
To me, our legislative responsibility is about our people. We would come up with strategies that will ensure that those issues that call for non-partisanship are brought to the front burner. What I mean by that is that you can claim partisanship on certain issues. But you can’t claim partisanship when we look at issues that involve Nigerians, issues that will better the lives of Nigerians. We would emphasis those issues rather than what I would call mundane issues -issues of procedure and what have you? Issues that will improve the lots of Nigeria.
I’m very sure when such issues are brought up, anybody will have the audacity to publicly go against them. So, that is part of our target. We want to let the public judge who are the public enemies. For instance, when we hope government should no more on provision of infrastructure, on issues of electricity,  education and  industrialisation, which will in turn improve the level of employment and eradicate unemployment.
Regardless of our number, we want to be the catalysts for change, we want to give directive; we can, regardless of what our number is. We can give directives, we can be the torch with which they see through the darkness and that is what we intend to do. Our number will not be a barrier, but with determination, we believe we would pursue the agenda of our party to be agents of positive change.

As a ranking senator, is there anything you think was not done properly in the outgoing dispensation which you expect to change in the one?
Ultimately, we should look at the benefit of any particular issue we want to discuss. When some years ago, America for instance, wanted to discuss the  fundig of political campaigns by candidates, they all agreed that they should not be partisan. They looked at issues dispassionately. The two chambers should empathise more when certain issues come up. We should look at the broader benefits of issues. We should not be partisan.
Let me give you an example; Lagos State created 37 local council development areas in addition to the existing 20 local government areas. What are we talking about. The law does not allow giving extra money; it is whatever money that is accruable to the state for the local governments within the state that will be shared accordingly. This is not harmful to the Federal Government, its not harmful to anybody, but such is the arrangement that we want.
Don’t forget that the process of putting in place the 57 local governments was done through a referendum. But we could not get the required law from the National Assembly because of partisanship. That is not how it’s supposeed to be. Yes, we play politics but wheb it comes to issues that are fundamental, we should avoid unnecessary politics.
Also, let’s take the issue of revenue sharing  formula as a case study; what we have now is obsolute. The law allows for periodic change of the revenue sharing formula. What the Federal Government is having is too much, compared to its activities, duties and responsiblities. What’s the Federal Government doing with such a huge share of our national cake? Unfortunately, this issue cannot be discussed because it would appear as if we are depriving their party of the needed fund. But its not about the party, its about the nation. The masses should be considered in this context because any improvement in allocaton given to the state and local government will one way or the other impact on the masses in Nigeria as a whole.
This will be remarkable, instead of having an overbloated central government that is practically doing nothing. In some other democracies, well-developed democracies that is, the central government concerns itself with issues like immigration, security and  diplomacy among others. What is the business of the Federal Government with the provision of primary health centres? What is the business  of the Federal Government with building primary schools? One would have even overlooked all these if they are doing it right, but they are not even doing it.
They allocate money year in year out for infrastructure, show me, where is the infrastructure. Let any body show me one thing the Federal Government has done in Lagos State from 1999 to date. If there’s any, I’m sure you can count them on finger tips. Where has all the money gone? If there is any issue within the state, it is the state and local government that people hold on to, not the Federal Government. So, we should change the revenue sharing formula.
But when we want to have it, we must forget partisanship, whether you are ACN, PDP or whatever party. We should also remember that it is just by mere coincidence that we have a particular party at the centre. It can be another party some other time. We should be more visionary in looking at things and always consider the masses.

You have been touted as the likely Minority Leader in the new Senate. What are your projections in this regard?
I think the whole essence of having a minority party in the parliament is not only to protect the interest of the electorate but principally to act as a check on the potential excesses of the party that has the majority. But it does not mean that you won’t have occasions when you have to collaborate. That is when the issue of non-partisanship comes in.
For example, when the issue of transmission of letter of vacation by the president came up, the line of party grouping faded in the Senate, the issue of which party you belong to or what part of the country you come from was pushed to the background. Everybody was talking on the side of the constitution. We all supported the doctrine of necessity. There were collaborative efforts to save the country from crisis that it was heading for.
So, when necessary, there may be collaboration, but always, the opposition is known as the minority to ensure that the ruling party is always on its toes. The minority serves as the watch dog. We believe we should have more vibrant opposition, it’s not just to be unnecessarily antagonistic but to ensure that the right things are done or the minority collaborating, the ultimate beneficiary should be the Nigerian electorate.