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Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande, the first executive governor of Lagos State (1979-1983) who died on Thursday, 11 February 2021 at 91, was a rare combination of administrative genius in public governance and humility, even self-effacement, in personal life. He was a remarkable giant in public life who never made anyone feel small in his presence. Without doubt, Jakande was one of the ablest public administrators that the country has ever produced.
An encounter with the man popularly called LKJ by one of the top aides of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu illustrates the profound modesty of the spartan politician. Jakande, as the aide told me a few years ago, was in the governor’s office to see Tinubu. He had obviously announced his presence to one of the assistants in the governor’s outer office. Incidentally, he conceived and started the construction of that building. But he never occupied the office before the military seized power in December 1983. Perhaps the governor’s assistants were either too ignorant about who Jakande was or, because of his humble mien, they didn’t think he was important or relevant enough for his presence to be immediately brought to the attention of Tinubu. He was made to wait. The top aide to Tinubu came into the outer office and found Jakande waiting among many others. He was embarrassed. It was apparent to him that the former governor had been waiting for a while. Fortunately, Jakande didn’t notice the top aide, who he knew well. The latter quickly dashed in to ask Tinubu if he knew his predecessor was in the waiting room. Tinubu expressed surprise. No one had informed him that Jakande was there. He asked the top aide to usher the former governor in immediately. What other Nigerian politician of Jakande’s stature and special connection to that office and the building would suffer such blatant disregard with comparable equanimity?