By Emeka Alex Duru
For some, when it rains, it pours. This seems the fate of the immediate past Lagos state governor, Akinwunmi Ambode. Since his breezy exit from power on May 29, 2019, the former governor has not been having it easy in the politics of his intrigue-infested All Progressives Congress (APC). At both state and national levels of the party, he is an orphan of sort, abandoned by colleagues and even former aides. To add it up, he is under investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. Last Tuesday, August 20, his Epe home, was reportedly raided by the anti-corruption agency in what the body explained as being in line with its schedule of duties.
This dimension of the Ambode’s travails began to take shape, earlier in the month, when Justice Chuka Obiozor of the Federal High Court, sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, ordered the freezing of the sum of N9.9 billion belonging to the Lagos State government and domiciled in three new generation banks. The judge gave the order following an ex-parte application by the EFCC.
The Commission had prayed the court to freeze the accounts pending the conclusion of investigation and possible prosecution of Adewale Adesanya, a worker in the office of the Chief of Staff to Ambode, while he was in office. An affidavit by the EFCC had claimed “a huge inflow of N9,927,714,443.29” from the state accounts into a bank account opened on September 17, 2018 and operated by Adesanya.
It added that the schedule of the account showed that the accused and the other signatories allegedly made fraudulent transfers from the state accounts and dissipated the funds housed in them. Though the agency did not expressly name the former governor as the suspect, it was alleged that he was the actual target. While the insinuation ran, Ambode in a statement released on his behalf by his media aide, Habib Aruna, said no account of his contained N9.9 billion let alone being frozen by the EFCC.
According to him, the accounts in question that were frozen by the Federal High Court belong to the Lagos State Government and not the former governor or any individual. “Those accounts were opened in the course of normal operations by the Lagos State Government for its administrative purposes and not for the former Governor’s personal transactions as was being wrongly insinuated. The former governor was not and will never be involved in any unauthorized use of government property and resources”, the statement added.
That was not the end to the matter, at least, as the early morning raid on his country home, by men of the Commission, in his absence, suggested. If anything, the unusual visit may indicate more testy days ahead for Ambode. His ordeals, have of late dropped in torrents. While the waiting game for President Muhammadu Buhari’s ministerial list lasted, many had assumed that Ambode would pick the slot for Lagos, if for anything, as compensation for the humiliating way he left office without the privilege of a second term that his predecessors in the state had enjoyed. When eventually, the names of the nominees were released and his was missing, it was concluded that he was yet to get reprieve from his erstwhile godfather and national leader of his party, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The tiff between the two began to attract headlines in the build up to the elections, last year, when what initially started as rumour in the social media on the disagreement between them, eventually turned real, following Tinubu’s endorsement of Babajide Sanwo-Olu, erstwhile Managing Director, Lagos State Property Development Company (LSPDC), as the APC governorship candidate for the State.
In the mist of the confusion, it was alleged that Ambode was advised to withdraw from the contest, at least to save face, an option, he reportedly turned down, leading the APC to go for Direct Primary – the first of its kind in the politics of the state. While the results of the primary of Tuesday, October 2, 2018, tumbled in, showing Sanwo-Olu in the lead, it was apparent that Ambode had lost his second term bid. That, effectively marked the commencement of his trials, as he was instantly dumped by colleagues, starting with his Deputy, Idiat Adebule and later, Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Tunji Bello.
The former SSG is back in the Sanwo-Olu administration as a Commissioner. But for Ambode, his absorption in the politics of the party, either at the state or national level, may remain a far cry, at least, for now.
Suspicions are that the former governor may have stepped on his mentor, following a petition, in August last year, to the EFCC, that Alpa Beta, a consultancy owned by him (Tinubu), was at the centre of a N100billion fraud, tax evasion and money laundering. The petition was written by one Dapo Apara, former Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the company. It alleged that Alpha Beta had “become an avenue for official corruption of government officials, a conduit pipe for massive money laundering scheme, tax evasion, among other vices”. While Apara was the face of the allegation, Ambode was suspected as the mastermind.
Not much was heard of the petition, subsequently. It was however learnt that in the inner circles of the Tinubu political family, the mere thought of the petition was considered a capital sin for which Ambode must pay dearly. “That was how he stretched his luck too far. He bit the finger that fed him. He wanted to be clever by half. Now he is reaping from his perfidy”, volunteered a senior Lagos government official, who pleaded anonymity in a chat with our Reporter.
Thus, for the former governor, the days ahead, may be rough and tough. His public perception profile, is not particularly enchanting. Unlike his predecessor, Babatunde Fashola, who in his stormy days with Tinubu, fell back to the people on account of his perceived sterling performance in office, Ambode may not enjoy that grace. While in office, he did not particularly have exciting image management. While he was perceived in some quarters as being haughty, in other instances, he was accused of not having a thorough knowledge of the workings of governance. The mountains of refuse that literally took over the state and potholes that were allowed to develop into craters on Lagos roads while he was governor, did not speak well of him before the citizens and residents. And not having a proactive image management strategy, whatever good works of his administration, were eroded by allegations of non-performance.
Ambode carries that tag of abandoning the state, even out of office. To add the sordid perception to his current travails in the hands of the EFCC, can be quite onerous.
