Why Osinbajo is the right man to lead Lagos rebuilding

Building public trust at this crucial time in Nigeria can be a Herculean task but if the government is going to get any shot at convincing the people otherwise, then Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has to be man to lead that line.

This is not the first time the VP has led the Buhari administration's agenda to build public trust.

Many might have forgotten but in 2015 shortly after the election, there was unrest in the Niger Delta and the militants were threatening to destroy pipelines and oil installations. Something needed to happen quickly.

With the urgency and peculiarity of the issue, President Buhari sent Prof. Osinbajo to the region and he did not only quell the tension there, he brought prosperity to the region.

The Ogoni Clean-Up that was a huge problem was resolved and clean up work began immediately. Then came the modular refineries. Since then, four modular refineries have become operational, employing thousands of people just like the Ogoni Clean-Up managed by HYPREP.

This was only the beginning of the peacemaking journey. 

As Acting President, he went to Maiduguri and the Northeast even after terrorists had threatened his life. He ensured that starving Nigerians were given food directly and that the warning of the World Food Programme was acted upon immediately. 

With his own money, he built a world class tech school for children of IDPs — the NECT Learning Centre Maiduguri. He knows the power of education. 

That takes me to the 50th anniversary of Biafra. Some critics have said many things about the Buhari government ignoring Biafra and all that but Osinbajo was there as Acting President to deliver a speech and also share the pains of the people.

I recall Amotekun as well. When there was tension between the AGF/Minister of Justice and Southwest governors over the legality of Amotekun, he called both parties and settled the dispute.

Osinbajo's Gosa intervention is one of the most underrated in Nigeria. The Gosa community was going to clash with the Nigerian Army over land but as fate will have it, Osinbajo's convoy drove past. He alighted from his car and spoke to the youths, he then invited them to Aso Villa for resolution. 

One of the popular intervention of the VP has to be in 2017 when the DSS invaded the National Assembly. We all know that story and how it ended.

I can go on and on but Osinbajo leading Lagos rebuild gives me succour that the inherent trust gap between the government and the people will soon be completely bridged.