Former Minister of Works, Babatunde Raji Fashola, has posited that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu cannot render many requests of the citizens as they are not his responsibilities.
The former Lagos State Governor said the constitutional powers of the President make Nigerians expect that he can attend to their every need.
While speaking on Untold Stories with Adesuwa, Fashola said it is not the responsibility of the President to provide water for citizens and ensure environmental sanitation.
He said the idea that the President has too much power is premised on the fact that some people still have the mindset of “militarisation of the Nigerian politics.”
He added that, “The President is not an absolute custodian of power but a custodian of power in a constitutional democracy with checks and balances.
“There are differences between his powers, functions, and duties. We should not conflate them. That power vests us perhaps with the expectation that the President can make everything happen. There are certain things the President cannot do.
“These are the kinds of questions that we should be asking ourselves: Are we expecting so much from the President?
“What constitutional role does the President have with regard to things that affect the majority of people – water supply, sanitation, getting a business permit, paying rent?
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“Those are things that are not the responsibilities of the Nigerian President.”
Reacting to the discovery of a hidden camcorder at the Lekki tollgate following the October 2020 ENDSARS protest, he said it must have been planted by “some subversive elements.”
Recall that after he had visited the scene alongside other government officials and South-West Governors, the discovery sparked backlash on social media, as many Nigerians, took to their pages to air their views.
While insisting that the discovery of the camera was not stage-managed, he noted that he only wanted to help with the investigation regarding the shooting.
He said the question that should be asked is the whereabouts of the camera, adding that the issue was not raised at the Lagos judicial panel.
“Events at the Lekki tollgate and the way some sections of Nigerians turned it into comedy appeared to have helped defuse the tension. And for me, if that helped the country pull itself back from the precipice, it was worth the allegations.
“I won’t contrive that kind of thing. Those who know me know who I am. I don’t invent facts. I deal with facts as they are.
“That is what we all saw, and we handed it over if maybe it would be helpful in the inquiry as to what happened that night.”
