Her entry into politics and the nine-vote victory that took her to the Third Republic Senate remains a dramatic pointer to her resilience. Bucknor-Akerele, besides being a former Deputy Governor, a Senator and Chieftain of the democracy pressure group, NADECO was once a journalist. She spoke to Vanguard on burning national issues. Excerpts:
How would you say journalism in your days and presently compared to the process of nation building?
I think certainly when you look at the struggle for democracy; you know I was then a frontline member of NADECO, at that time journalists were the people who actually fought and supported us in the struggle for the restoration of democracy.
Journalists are people of integrity: they believe in what is right and publish what they think is the truth. That used to be the attitude in our days and I don’t think it has changed now. But I would just like to advise my colleagues in the profession to continue to carry out their assignments in a way that will continue to uphold the standard of the profession in the eyes of the public and not the other way.
What could you remember about your growing up as a girl?
Well, growing up as a girl was very pleasant. It was a different Lagos from what we have now. Even right up to the 60s, it was a different Lagos. You know, that time Lagos was a much smaller community. There was not this huge influx into Lagos and so most Lagos families knew each other.
Neat and straight community
It was a very close, neat and straight community where you were not afraid of letting your child walk into another house because everybody looked out for everybody else and looked for other people’s children too. And that was because you took other people’s children in the community as your children.
When you look back to your days as deputy governor of Lagos State, what would you say are your regrets and what are your consolations?
One of my regrets is that the civil service, I’m sorry to say, which we met was not the civil service which we left behind. And if you talk to some of the civil servants there today, they would tell you that things have changed. The civil service of today has become more of service to self than being the service to the state.
What do you think is responsible and what then is the way out?
Frankly speaking I think we need some kind of moral rearmament. But it is not only in the civil service, this is something that has permeated throughout the society. We need moral rearmament. I think it was a shame that schools were taken over from the missionaries.
The missionaries taught us morals. They taught us to be upright and righteous and once you take that away, it means that you have a society where everything goes and you are going to destroy the whole fabric of society. I think that is what is happening now in Nigeria. The whole fabric of society is being destroyed because it is based mainly on materialism.
You were part of the recent Pan-Yoruba Conference that took place in Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s residence in Ikenne, Ogun State. What is the follow up from the meeting?
Don’t worry, we are still working. I was part of the committee that proposed to put the conference together. I can assure you that we have made our opinion known in the right quarters and we have been continuing to do so. You know as Yorubas, we never get discouraged by anything because we don’t believe that we can be left behind. We have always been leaders in Nigeria and, of course, we can still continue to be; in education, in the political arena and so we are continuing to work as we have always done.
We believe that integrity, honesty, hard work are the main components of Yoruba life. We will continue to preach peace and to let this be seen in our leaders so that when people realise it, then they will realise that by not putting Yorubas as part of our mainstream politics and government generally, the country is lacking a lot.
Now that Yorubas complain of not being part of the mainstream political control, who is to blame?
I don’t want to put the blame anywhere but I think Yorubas too are partly to blame because, when we had the opportunity, some Yorubas – because of their personal interest – actually threw it away. Let us take the question of the Speaker, for instance; if the Yorubas had been united and had shown a united front there, I don’t think we would have lost the Speakership. But because we were disunited, we lost it and this is why we are preaching unity among the Yorubas because, they say, ‘united we stand divided we fall.’ We have seen ourselves falling because we have been divided.
But Yourubas are said to be uncaring towards thier own. The case of General Diy and Olarenwaju is an instance. Yorubas have been quiet on their issue whereas the North is fighting for Major Mustapha?
First of all, I think it will be completely wrong to compare Diya, Olanrewaju and co with that of Al-Mustapha. Al-Mustapha committed a criminal offence and he was condemned by a court of law according to the law of the nation. If some people rightly or wrongly believe that he was not condemned justifiably, Al-Mustapha has the right of appeal under the law.
I would say that for anybody to be rising up on behalf of Al-Mustapha, it would probably be they are asking for the death penalty to be commuted to life imprisonment. Because I cannot imagine that anybody in his right mind will be condoning somebody who has been condemned for murder that is killing another human being.
Let us put that aside. As for the issue of whether Yorubas don’t fight for their own sons, you saw the fight Yorubas put up on the mandate of MKO Abiola. I don’t believe that Yorubas are not fighting for Genaral Diya, Major General Olanrewaju and others.
Pages of newspapers
May be it is because we have not come out on the pages of the newspapers, everything has been done, like you said, it’s only waiting for gazetting or something. It is when the time is too long and it is not gazetted, by then you will find that Yorubas will start speaking up that this is injustice.
You have been quiet since after your failed gubernatorial quest in 2007? What is really happening?
Well, my politics right now is to put the PDP on its firm footing so that we can fight successfully at the next (2015) election. This is what we are trying to do; to make sure that PDP shows a solid united front. We want to put forward our first eleven so that they will know that PDP is firmly on the ground and has got substantial people in it.
Do you think the people of Lagos State are willing to vote your party into power in 2015? Is your party making any effort to woo the people?
The mood is, for now, tilted towards PDP because the people actually are looking for change. On your second question; well, I think, already, there is a reconciliation committee in place headed by Ambassador Senator Musiliu Obanikoro. They have been at work, they have been trying to reconcile various groups and we, as leaders, have been trying to reconcile people so that they can work together.
I think for too long some people have seen PDP (in Lagos State) as personal property and not as a political party that belongs to all the members. We are trying to change that outlook and make people know that PDP is a political party that belongs to all its members and that we should be open to anybody and everybody who wants to be a member and is ready to work for the success of the party.
Your Excellency, what do yu want Lagosians to look out for in a PDP’s Lagos State government, if elected to power in 2015?
As you know, Lagos is a Centre of Excellence. We want to put forward somebody who will perform excellently. So we want to make sure this time that we put somebody forward who can be reckoned with, who will perform to show that Lagos State is truly the Centre of Excellence and who will show good example to other states.
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