Prince Olabinjo Ladega is former Head of the Lagos State Vehicle Inspection Office and Chairman of the South-West Vehicle Inspection Office. In this interview with Ademola Olonilua, he shares his life’s experiences and why he is not interested in becoming a king
What was it like growing up in the palace?
I barely grew up in the palace. I was born in Ibadan and that was before my father, Oba Samuel Ladega, became the Ayangburen of Ikorodu. We always went to the palace during our holidays because our parents did not want to change our school and hamper our education. Some of us were with our father in Ikorodu but I was in Ibadan where we lived before he became a king. I visited the palace frequently whenever I was on break and it was like that till I finished secondary school. I attended Ibadan Grammar school.
After secondary school, what other things did you do?
I went to The Polytechnic, Ibadan, to earn an OND and from there I went to Yaba College of Technology for my HND. After completing my studies, I travelled abroad for further studies.
What kind of child were you while growing up?
I was a gentle, quiet and inquisitive child while growing up. I was very inquisitive and this made me ask questions a lot. I made a lot of enquiries and always wanted to know the reasons behind every action. I was so inquisitive that many people called me Mr. Inquisitive.
How did you become a Vehicle Inspection Officer?
When I got back to Nigeria, I worked with some private companies, many of which are now defunct. I worked with R.T Briscoe and later joined the Lagos State Government. I was posted to the consultancy division of the Vehicle Inspection Office. I was in the consultancy division for some years before I was transferred to the Ikorodu/Epe Zone to head its Vehicle Inspection Office. From there I was transferred to Badagary and from there I was sent to the headquarters.
When I got to the headquarters, I was posted back to the consultancy division. Some people believed then that the people that were infused into the VIO unit were illiterates but that was a misconception. To make the agency balanced and to also squash such rumours, four of us were posted to the field from the consultancy division.
People had that misconception about the VIO because people came into the agency with different qualifications but we all had to pass through the workshop. Because it was mandatory to pass through the workshop for proper training, people called us illiterates. When we got to the field, we headed several departments and we started to change things because the four of us that were sent to the VIO had some management training. I was sent to several stations before I was moved to the headquarters again as an assistant to the head of the VIO, Dele Opanuga. Shortly after he retired and another person took over, I was made the assistant in charge of operations. During that period, I always thought of ways to improve the VIO. After coming up with various ways and showing my boss my recommendations, he would agree with me on several occasions.
How did you eventually become head of the agency?
Unfortunately my boss died while in service and the mantle of leadership fell on me. I am very happy that I am one of the people responsible for the way the VIO in Lagos is today and I did it with the help of some people.
When I took over, there were only four VIO stations in Lagos State – Ojodu, Onigbongbo and Ikorodu. We had one at Badagary but nobody was going there and the officers were always staying at the bus terminal. When I took over, I started putting out memos for the development of the vehicle inspection units. Fortunately for me, there was an engineer that was posted to my unit and we worked together. He is very brilliant and he is the current head of the Lagos State VIO today. When he saw what I was doing, he was impressed and I enjoyed working with him because he is highly intelligent. We worked together with the help and assistance of the Director of Transport Operations, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Transport and the Commissioner. Together we broke through and were able to make the VIO an agency to be proud of.
Why were your men seen as touts when the agency was newly established?
I corrected everything before I left. It is overzealousness. There are several arms in the VIO; there are officers, drivers and others. An officer of the VIO is usually thorough because they are educated and civil. I am very proud of them anytime I see them. They are very disciplined because of the training they get.
They go through industrial orientation and then engineering management. In engineering management, there is a subject on human relations. If you want to relate with people, you must be civil. You have to be civil when performing your duties and abide by the law. We created an avenue for the people to report rude and corrupt officers. We have a system to curb unruly behaviours. When I was still the head of the agency, my number was always announced on radio and television so that people could call in and make complaints. If you have anything against an officer, you do not have to fight them; just go to the nearest office to make a report. When you report there, go to the headquarters to make another report just in case you think the matter would not be looked into. Also, follow up the report and I am sure that when you see the punishment meted out to any erring officer, you would ask that they should temper justice with mercy. You will beg for such officer because they will have to deal with him officially.
People do not understand that nobody is above the law. The same way they talk about the VIO is the same way they say soldiers don’t obey the law and the police are corrupt. But the truth is that it is the bad eggs that have spoilt the good ones because through our training, we are all disciplined people.
For instance while I was in service, I was going to the office one day when a lorry passed one way because there was traffic on its lane. There were two cars in front of me so they blocked the lorry. The driver of the lorry then began to yell at us to get out of the road. It caused an argument that lasted for several minutes, so I had to come down from my car. I told the driver that he was wrong but he said I should keep shut because I was not wearing my uniform. I told him that I was going to impound his vehicle not knowing that the other occupant in the car was a serving general in the Nigerian army. While we were arguing, the man just got down from the lorry, took a cab and left. With the help of some policemen, I impounded the vehicle.
The next morning, a man came to my office and said he wanted to see me. He was a very jovial man and he even joked with me that I should give him drinks. He told me that he had a problem with me and because of his approach, I was attentive and ready to help him. It did not occur to me that it was the same man that was in the vehicle the previous day. While we were talking, a captain came with two soldiers. They told him that he could not come into my office but he pushed my officers away with his soldiers. He came to the front of my table and stared at me for about two minutes without speaking. I also stared back wondering what he wanted to do. He asked me what gave me the right to impound his vehicle when I could see the sticker of the army on it. I told him even though I was not the one that did that, I let him know that I had the right to impound any vehicle as far as it did not belong to the Nigerian army. I realised it was a commercial vehicle and I told him to go and pay his fine. He started fomenting trouble. I was so annoyed especially when he said he was going to take me to the barracks and I called his bluff.
Meanwhile, the visitor in my office did not say anything; all of a sudden he shouted at the soldier to come. The soldier was perplexed and he ordered him to come or else he would slap him. He stood from where he was sitting, removed the soldier’s cap and yanked off his rank. He then showed the soldier his identity card. When I saw what happened,I was the one that eventually began to beg on behave of the troublesome captain. My visitor was indeed a two-star general. I have met with many soldiers and policemen and they are very civil in their approach. But there are just some few bad ones and when you dig deeper, you will realise that they are nothing in the force. The disciplined ones are always the ones at the top.
It appears you had to deal with a lot of intimidation while still in service?
Yes I did. There were many times commercial drivers would fight and destroy our vehicles but we curbed it. If any person destroyed our vehicle, they usually regretted the action because we made them pay for it.
Also, you would think that some people would know better but when they were stopped and they realised that their vehicle document was not complete, they would begin to cause a scene and attract a crowd. Some errant motorists went as far as calling some top shots in the government to intimidate us when they were caught for any offence but it did not move us.
There are people who believe officers of the agency collect bribes from errant motorists?
I am not saying that the VIO is 100 per cent perfect but if any officer was caught collecting bribe by his superior, such a person was in serious trouble. No matter how good a law enforcement agency is, there will always be some bad eggs and because of them, they label the whole agency as a bad one.
We have given people the avenue to change things. We cannot sit in the office and know what happens on the field. Luckily we are in a digital era. We encouraged people to record any officer collecting bribe and we even gave credit to people for exposing such a bad person. It is the citizens that can put a stop to corruption, not the people in the office. If you can catch somebody and report him, it will create fear into any other person that wants to try it again.
But there is this perception that the officers who extort money from motorists make daily and weekly financial returns to their superiors?
That is absolutely false. People should do their research well before making such statements. I have also heard such before but it is totally untrue. Any junior officer that extorts money from a vehicle owner and attempts to give his superior officer should know that it is the end of his career in the VIO. No officer can involve himself in such a nasty act. An officer of the VIO can never be compromised. I am very sure about that, not that I am being told. It is because of the structures we put on the ground and the man that took over from me, Engr. Gbolahan Toriola, has maintained integrity in the agency. Toriola is a Ph.D holder and do you think such a person can collect money from a junior officer?
Were you ever seduced by a woman who needed a favour while you were still with the agency?
If I were to give instances of such incidents, I can write a book. Although women came to me, I never had an amorous affair with any of them. They came but when they began to flirt with me, I changed the topic to something more decent. Eventually, they left me alone.
What are some of the high and low moments you faced as the head of VIO in Lagos State?
When I took over, we were short of funds because people did not know the importance of the VIO. My very hard working Permanent Secretary, Director of Transport Operations and the Commissioner for Transport really did a big job before I started enjoying the VIO.
But when I first got into office, things were terrible. We did not have any good vehicle for operations. We had only five vehicles in the whole of Lagos State. We thank God today that the agency is not what it used to be and all other states have begun to use Lagos as a point of reference. Other states were worst than Lagos before but if you see them now, you will be proud.
When I was the chairman of the VIO in the South-West, I usually went to meet with governors and top government officials and they started upgrading the agency in their states. In Lagos, they started infusing people with good qualifications into the agency and it elevated the VIO. In Lagos, we have people in the agency that are graduates, Master’s degree holders and who even have Ph. D. That has elevated the agency to some extent.
Did you ever encounter any situation where you were bribed with a mouth-watering sum of money?
They could never come to me because they feared me. Before you even got to me, I had some people you had to pass through and they would ask for the purpose of your visit. Once you had been fined, they would ask you to go and pay the fine. The only people I attended to were those that were wrongly fined. For someone to bring money to me, I could ask the police to arrest the person. They knew that about me when I was in service and you can ask anybody.
The corrupt officers are usually low ranks that were brought into the agency when people were needed. Although they were trained, no matter how good a person is at his job, if the person is dishonest, he would collect bribes.
Every prince’s dream is to become a king, do you also nurse such an ambition?
You are right but it is not so in my case. I don’t want to be a king. I was approached to be king by my kinsmen but I refused the offer. My father, the Ayangburen of Ikorodu, is dead and the throne is vacant. I told my brothers to go and contest for the throne; I told them that I was not interested. When Oba Ladega was the Ayangburen, I know the kind of problems that he faced. I can never stick my neck into such problems. I want to enjoy my life as a retiree. Nobody is worrying me and the police cannot just come to my office. If they do, I will confidently ask them what the problem is. Nobody can just carry placards to my office to express grievance. Although there are some people hoping that someday I am going to change my mind, the truth is that I don’t have interest in becoming a king.
It is quite odd to see a prince who is not interested in the throne…
I will give you my reasons. I will be 67 years old soon; if I were younger, I probably would have considered being a king. But I am too old to become a king. How many years would I spend on the throne? If I die at the age of 90, it means I will use 23 years on the throne. I think it is impossible to stay on the throne for that long; so I would rather allow the younger ones vie for the post and serve the community. If I become king now, it would take some time before I adjust and the clock is ticking. When I eventually start my projects, some years would have gone from my age and I will not be able to finish what I started. So, what is the essence of going there?
How did you meet your wife?
My wife is a nurse and she was trained at Lagos University Teaching Hospital. Back then, whenever there was a party in the school, the doctors would invite us because I had some friends in the school as well. At the party, I met the woman who is now my wife and I believe it is by God’s doing because I was not in the mood to meet anybody. We got talking and the rest is history.
Why did you go to a party when you were not in the mood to meet people?
Growing up, whenever I attended parties, it was just because I wanted to dance. I did not go because I wanted to meet anybody. There are some people who go to parties just to chase women; I never had time for that. I had three friends that we moved together then and we never had time for women. We just liked dancing at parties.
How did the talk you had with her at the party transcend into marriage?
We had a lady friend who was in the same class with my wife. Days after the party, I saw the lady and she asked me why I stopped talking to her friend after the party and I replied that I did not have the time. She encouraged me that her friend was a nice lady. Eventually, I began to check her in school and the relationship later blossomed and now we are husband and wife.
How do you relax?
I go to the club to relax especially on Fridays. I go there sometimes to eat lunch and hang out with retired people like me. Some of them are even older than I am. We talk about life, politics, we joke a lot and after that I go home.
Copyright PUNCH.
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.
Contact: editor@punchng.com