The governor of Lagos, Babajide Sanwo-Olu is certainly not Jesus Christ. But for popular politician, Babatunde Olalere Gbadamosi, He may as well be his current personal lord and saviour. The sinner who looked set to be condemned by the courts for trespassing the lockdown directive in Lagos state has been saved by perhaps the one person whom he least expected.
It is no news that Gbadamosi, fondly called BOG by his numerous fans, was one of those who attended the birthday party thrown by Nollywood superstar Funke Akindele for her husband. With the two main culprits already found guilty and condemned to community service and a 100,000 fine, the stage was set for the conviction of the secondary actors in the shameful fiasco. On Wednesday morning, Babatunde and his wife, along with social media sensation Naira Marley, were summarily marched into the dock to face justice.
At that point, nobody would have blamed BOG for looking unto the hills for a help that may never have come. If he had been convicted, he would have been cut off the political tree, unable to bear any fruits of ambition for at least ten years, following the rule of law. That’s a fig tree drying up, believe it or not.
As it turned out, help did come and from the most unexpected quarters. Following the speedy intervention of the executive governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the case against BOG and the others were dropped, conditional upon the trio abiding by the conditions offered by the government.
They were told to formally apologize for flouting the stay-at-home directive of the state and federal governments, sign an undertaking promising to comply with the social distancing directive, and immediately proceed on 14 days isolation to protect others from possible infection. Upon their agreement, BOG, his wife, and Naira Marley were allowed to leave the court as free men.
In a clime where politicians don’t miss any chance to knock their opponents into the mud, the state government’s gesture led to no little surprise and appreciation for the maturity exhibited by Sanwo-Olu. Knowing that BOG, one of the leading lights of the opposition Peoples Democracy Party poised to challenge him during the next elections, is in trouble, he decided to go the high road in the interests of public peace. By removing the knife stuck in the back of BOG, rather than twisting it further in, the governor has shown the people of Lagos a different side. Needless to say, the populace likes what they see.
As for Gbadamosi, he is left to feel grateful to someone who he is expected to have a political showdown with in the near future. Since his political career has effectively been salvaged by Sanwo-Olu, many people have started wondering whether he would still go ahead to contest against his saviour.
