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Lagos is 50 and as a former federal commissioner for works and housing, you played a major role in the development of the state. Are there reminiscences that share closely with the 21st century Lagos?

Before I come to my appointment as federal commissioner for works and housing, I think we should go back to history about Lagos State Movement. First of all, I will like to say that the British had three colonies in Nigeria as at 1st January 1900: the colony of Lagos, which was established in 1861, the protectorate of Northern Nigeria, established 1st January 1900 and the protectorate of Southern Nigeria, also established on 1st January 1900. At that time the British had three distinct colonies in Nigeria. In 1906, the colony of Lagos and the protectorate of Southern Nigeria were merged, but not administratively. It was a merger really more on paper, just like the amalgamation of 1914, which was also a merger largely on paper headed by one person, the Governor General, Lord Lugard.

The administration of the three British colonies remained distinct; they were separate by and large. Lagos, in 1947, the time of Richard’s Constitution, remained a distinct administrative unit under the British government. I remember vividly that the administrator for Lagos colony was one Mr. E.A Carr and his deputy was Major J. C Allen, who used to coach the students cricket at CMS Grammar School. So, the administration of Lagos colony had remained intact not only integrated into the Nigerian administration.

In effect the three units had three separate administrations even as at 1947. So, the Lagos colony remained distinct and all those who were born in Lagos remained British Citizens until independence. They had full rights of citizenship like any Briton anywhere in the world. That distinction is very important to show the distinctiveness of Lagos since it was colonised by the British in 1861. People talk loosely as if Lagos had been fully integrated into Nigeria. I read recently a few days ago, that Lagos remained part of the Western Region until its creation as a state. That is not true.

Lagos remained a distinct colony until 1920, under the Macpherson constitution. The colony of Lagos is about the same size as the present Lagos State. Lagos colony was merged with the Western region in 1950 and in 1954 after the Gedegbe l’Eko wa (Lagos is standing alone) agitations by Lagosians, that they were not really a part of Western region and that they were distinct, so, the city of Lagos was excised from the colony province, which was incorporated under the Western Province under the Macpherson Constitution. John Macpherson was the governor from 1948 to 1954 (Governor of Nigeria), so the city of Lagos was a town at that time. It was taken out of the Western region and made the federal territory and the regional government of the federal territory of Lagos became the federal government. The remaining part of the colony province, that is the Epe, Badagry and Ikeja divisions remained as colony province until 1967, when Lagos State was created.

Quickly, let me go back to the gedegbe l’Eko wa slogan. The first serious advocacy for Lagos to become a state was in 1960. There was Lagos State Movement created by some young men at that time, all of them now deceased. They included Mr. H.M. Ali Balogun, a lawyer and a member of the Ali Balogun family at Victoria Street.

Kasali Kotun was a brilliant lawyer, who incidentally paid my fees for admission to practice law in Nigeria. He lived at No. 6 Ido Oluwo Street and my father’s house was No 1. Ido Oluwo Street. He saw me saw me grow up as a child. A brilliant lawyer, KK was a popular appellation for him. His father, Ajiroba, after whom this street (Alhaji Okunnu’s office address) was named, was Karimu Ikotun.

Another person I will like to remember, because it is good to remember the past and the people who were there should be honoured. We are honouring those of us who are living, forgetting about the dead, who made Lagos State possible. The third person was popularly called “Black Prince”, Prince Akintoye, one of the sons of Oba Kunle Akintoye II. He became Oba when Esugbayi Eleko was exiled by the British. He, however, won his case in the British council later and that led to his return at about 1932 (he was exiled about 1925).

So, Black Prince was one of the founders of the Lagos State Movement. The fourth one was known by everybody when he was alive, TOS Benson. There were others but these were the moving spirits. Before I became commissioner, there had been follow-up of what started in the early ‘50s. After the war, I was very much involved with the movement for the creation of Lagos State, especially after the coup. Bolaji Johnson was made the administrator of Lagos, at that time the country was in asunder. Whether we remained as one or different countries, Yakubu Gowon’s government, you remember, took over in July 1966, because of the chaos in the country, with the Eastern region threatening to secede; now one thing led to another, Major Bolaji Johnson added another thing, he set up two bodies as it were; the group of elders and the group of young people.

For the purpose of the ad-hoc constitutional congress, they were composed of five Nigerians from each region (western, eastern, northern and mid-western), five delegates and five advisers. Lagos was given the slot of two delegates and two advisers. From the elders group was Dr. Teslim Elias, who later became commissioner for justice and Lateef Jakande. What followed was deliberation to see whether Nigeria would stand still as a nation or break away to separate bits. The idea of Lagos being a state occupied that part of our deliberation until the life of the conference was terminated.

Very quickly, by early 1967, Gen. Gowon was still the head of state and the agitation for states was still very much alive, so was the issue of dividing the country into confederate states. The East was still very much agitating for a separate country. The declaration of succession in May 1967 led to Gen. Gowon declaring the makeup of Nigeria in administrative terms from regions to states, and it painted a choice structure. It is significant to say that Lagos State in geographical term remained as it was 100 years ago.

Let me pay tribute to Gen. Gowon, he created Lagos State. People don’t honour him for that, even a street named after him – Broad Street – was changed by another regime, which I think is spite – lack of appreciation of history as it were. He created Lagos State and I haven’t heard much about him in the celebration of the state at 50. Two, other people, who were very much associated with the creation of Lagos State and who are still alive are Allison Ayida and Philip Asiodu. These two people and a few other people made the creation of Lagos State possible. They are Nigerians like me, but when you now talk about indigenes of one state or the other, which I don’t really buy, they are not indigenes of Lagos State, though they lived and are still living in Lagos State.

Asiodu married one of us and he is still alive. Without them, there will be no Lagos State, so, let’s celebrate them. At the beginning of the conference, only mid-Western region opted for a federal system of government. Lagos State was split because Jakande wanted the regional system, but Teslim Elias and my humble self were inclined to the federal system of government. The North was for confederation like the East, so also was the West. So, towards the end of the conference, when the North embraced the federal system of government, Lagos State and Western region followed suit immediately. The Mid-Western region had always been for the federal system under Tony Enahoro, it was only the Eastern region that stood its grounds on confederation or nothing. One thing led to another and on 27th May, 1967, Gen. Gowon abolished the regions and created a 12 State structure, which included Lagos State.

How does someone like you feel when people say that there are no true indigenous citizens of Lagos State?

I am a Nigerian. There are a very few of us, who are Nigerians now, every other person is either an Ijaw, Urohobo, Igbo, Idoma, Tiv, Hausa or Yoruba. But that wasn’t the Nigeria of my youth. There was nothing like all these new found Urhobos, Igbos, Yorubas and so on. We were all one. Nigerian politics equated Lagos politics. Lagos was Nigeria in those days; no politics in Kaduna, Enugu, Ibadan or any other part of the country; it was Lagos, which was cosmopolitan. There were two major political parties: the Nigerian Youth Movement and Democratic Party of Nigeria and NCNC which was created in 1944, following the strike action by the students of Kings College.

Lagos or Nigerian politics at that time did not entertain ethnic-

So, corruption fight is going to take many years; it will outlive Buhari. Until we create a new race of people with civic education for people at schools at the grassroots and for those of us, who are grownups to have extra mural classes and turn us into Nigerians and not Igbos, Yorubas or Hausas; to love one another, to love our country, to work for our country and not to work for our pockets, not to steal public funds but to regard public funds as sacred