Kola Kehinde/
The first civilian Governor of Lagos State, the late Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande built 30,000 housing units and refused to take one for himself or any member of his family, says a Professor of Estate Management in the University of Lagos, at an event organised by Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN).
Speaking about Jakande’s selfless nature at the 5th Lateef Jakande Annual Lecture on Housing, Professor Timothy Olugbenga Nubi, who was one of the organizers of the program, spoke of the late Jakande with great admiration. He described how his entire time of service from Governor to Minister was driven by sacrifice and empathy.
He described how his parents and many elders back then worshipped the national icon, Obafemi Awolowo, and believed Jakande was the one taking over the great position of Awolowo, which led them to tag him with the nickname “Baba Kekere”.
According to Professor Nubi, the model he used to tackle affordable housing then is still available today, only if we are willing to tap into it. Speaking on the model that Jakande used, he mentioned that he maximized the land use decree for the acquisition of land, would reduce cost of building materials by tapping into bulk purchases, and would then provide mortgages with 10 years repayment periods.
Professor Taibat Lawanson delivered the lecture, “Affordable and Inclusive Housing for all”. She highlighted how Jakande was more about actual problem solving over creating grand fancy aesthetics for praise. According to her, it was all about the people.
She also expressed how sad she felt that the conversation on housing has continued to shift away from the social perspective to the economic one.
“Yes, a market should exist but it should be on an ethical framework guided by regulatory agencies,” she said.
In her lecture, she described how Jakande based his leadership on the principle that the common man should have dignity. She mentioned how the ability to enable your followers to walk without shame is a fundamental principle of leadership, and this was done by the provision of access to education and shelter, which in the long run lead to economic livelihood, means for recreation and pathways to think of the future.
She also spoke about the trend of smart cities and that even with how great these are, in societies like this, it almost feels like something built to satisfy the economic needs of a few, distracting people from the more urgent responsibility which is social housing that would help achieve a society where the common man could walk without shame but with dignity.
In his speech, Kehinde Ogundimu, the managing director of NMRC (Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Co.) suggested the introduction of a “Jakande Affordability Index” to measure what affordability represents for housing today.
The press secretary under the Lateef Jakande government, Mr. Bayo Osiyemi, was also present. He reflected on how he was just 28 when he witnessed Jakande add affordable housing to the four cardinal programmes of the Awolowo led Unity Party of Nigeria.
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