- Parental or self development and readiness and commitment towards aspiration.
It is no more news that one of the candidates in the 2023 Lagos Gubernatorial election Gbadebo Rhodes-vivour cannot communicate in the language of his people, the people he wants to govern.
Lagos is known to be a Yoruba state, her people speak the popular Yoruba dialect. GRV, as he is fondly called, has been showcased in many footages battling to even greet or communicate properly in his people’s language.
I will describe Gbadebo as an undetermined, ill-mannered, proud, disrespectful, and insensitive guy due to his regular style of crediting his inability to communicate fluently in his father’s language to exposure, and also non challantly exposing his unreadiness to be better.
He has severally referred to Lagos as a cosmopolitan state, hence why his communicating in his father’s tongue isn’t important to him. Where is the place of self development if you can’t get all from your parents?
There are many Gbadebos out there, with different mixed ethnic parents. His mother isn’t Yoruba; so we don’t expect her to speak Yoruba as her first dialect or even at all.
I will be referencing another young individual who is of Gbadebo’s age bracket and was intentional about improving himself and preparing for his political aspiration, Bankole Wellington, popularly called Banky W. Just like Gbadebo, both parents of Banky aren’t Yoruba. He’s from a Yoruba father, and he also schooled abroad. Banky contested for House of Reps for the first time in Eti-osa 2019 under an unpopular party. I guess one of the challenges he faced then was his inability to speak Yoruba or fluently. He wasn’t out there abusing and disrespecting the culture and his people, he engaged the services of an Oba-ile, Akure-born Olalekan Fabilola, olukoni Yoruba lori ero ayeluraja (an online Yoruba teacher) and it took him months to learn and improve his Yoruba speaking skill. He didn’t relent until he became a better person.
That’s how to know someone who is truly prepared to lead. A leader is never tired of learning. A leader learns daily and is always ready to improve and become better than yesterday. A leader is humble and doesn’t pride in ignorance.
On the other hand, Gbadebo has contested in three different elections, two before now, in three different political parties. Yet, he never made the slightest effort to get better.
Our parents may not get to teach us everything, if we are privileged to get the basics, it’s our duty to be intentional about developing ourselves and be better daily.
Gbadebo in 12 years of seeking public office couldn’t improve his ability to communicate with his people in the language they understand. Such character isn’t fit to lead the same State.
He should forget about this election, go back to the basics and make himself better prepared for the next contest in four years time when Sanwo-Olu would have completed his second term.
