Speaks on life as activist, footballer, politician, family man

By Ozioruva Aliu

Deputy Governor of Edo State, Mr Philip Shaibu, who clocks 50 today, in this interview, talks about his childhood and trajectory
as an activist and politician. The former President, National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, who describes himself as a student of the Oshiomhole school of thought, also speaks on his relationship with the National Chairman of All Progressives Congress, APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.

What does clocking 50 mean to you?

I feel great attaining 50. It has been a life of struggle. My struggle started right from secondary school till date. I have been an activist and I have made up my mind to do what is right. I am from a very humble home. My father was a very humble man. He died as a pastor and my mum was a primary school teacher in Etsako, Edo State. I was brought up in the way of the Lord. My parents were Roman Catholics. They later established their own church but I remained a Catholic. The interesting thing is that my father was liberal. His liberal nature gave some of us the courage to do what we believe in. He gave all of us Muslim names. His father was a Muslim but he converted to Christianity. My Muslim name is Momodu.

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I remember when my father followed me to school to sign an undertaking to be of good behaviour because I led a struggle for improved feeding system. I was asked if such a thing happened again I will still protest and I said yes. Instantly, my father slapped me for saying so. I left secondary school to start playing football. I didn’t go straight to university. I grew up in Kaduna but after I left secondary school, my father sent me home. There was a day somebody invited us to Akure where he said they were looking for footballers. I was one of those who were picked for a youth tournament holding in Ekpoma. I was picked alongside Yakubu Ayegbeni and others. I ended up in Water Corporation Football Club of Akure after which I followed the coach to Abuja to play for the Federal Ministry of Works, Foreign Affairs and Nigeria Prisons Service. I later got admission into University of Jos.

Abacha must go

While in school I was the coordinator of ‘Abacha Must Go’ group of the National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, Zone B and we joined Gani Fawehimi in protesting against the military junta then. I held a lot of rallies at Jos township stadium and the one I cannot forget was the one I joined Gani in Yaba where we were all arrested and we ended up in Gashua Prison in Zamfara State. Our military captors tortured me to the extent that a surgery was performed on me after the torture. I was released because a journalist who visited the prison saw me and wrote about it. I was arrested severally and was taken to the Jos Headquarters of the Department of State Services, DSS. I was kept with Lt. General Oladipo Diya (ret.), and others who allegedly planned a coup against Abacha. As President of NANS, I joined Comrade Oshiomhole to stage the first strike that crippled this country when President Olusegun Obasanjo announced an increase in pump price of petroleum products. It was NANS that actually started the protest because, at that time, then-NLC President, Oshiomhole, was in Geneva. I led NANS to the Yaba office of the NLC. Interestingly, Oshiomhole came out and spoke. I also led students in different struggles like when we led students against financial autonomy for universities and the increment of Youth Corps members’ allowance from N3, 500 to N7, 000. I also led the struggle to reinstate over 965 students during the military era.

Joining Oshiomhole

I delved into politics because the struggle must continue. We joined Comrade Oshiomhole to struggle for the emancipation of our people from the hands of the godfather, the late Chief Tony Anenih. Oshiomhole led us in that struggle and we succeeded. We had several struggles including the House of Assembly crisis. I won all my elections apart from the first one in 2003 where I was announced the winner but my name was changed four days later. In 2007, I won an election into the House of Assembly. I also won an election into the House of Representatives where I didn’t conclude my term. I spent 18 months and was called home to become the Deputy Governor. The struggle is still on for me even as Deputy Governor. The struggle to free Edo State from the hands of godfathers which was started by Comrade Oshiomhole is still on. He started the struggle to secure Edo so that our resources will be available for our people.

How is your current relationship with Oshiomhole?

He is one person I will continue to respect. He is my father and nothing has changed. What has changed now is that people are now able to read my role as a son and my role as a politician. We have political differences, no doubt about that but it has not changed our relationship. Even when he made some statements that suggested what I am not, I refused to reply because when the chips are down, I will be the one to still apologise not minding whether he is right or wrong. He is the one talking and I am not talking. I am comfortable with him talking. That shows I was properly brought up by my father and by him not to elders. I am not the first to disagree with his father politically and I will not be the last. The good news is that it has not changed our relationship.

How do you describe your relationship with Governor Obaseki?

I have learnt from Comrade’s style of leadership. I am learning another style of leadership from Obaseki. One part of governance I learnt from Comrade is the communist aspect of governance. I am learning the capitalist aspect from Obaseki. You can imagine if I have to combine both how effective I will be. Obaseki is like an elder brother to me.

What does it feel like living a life of struggle?

I thought the struggle was over when I became Deputy Governor. Each time I think it has stopped, something else comes up. At 50, I am concluding that maybe God created me to fight oppression. I have submitted to the will of God. He placed me in leadership positions to fight oppression. The 18 months I spent in the House of Representatives, I created a movement called the House of Commons. I created it to fight oppression. Those of us that were not given committees decided to form a union. As Deputy Governor, I thought I was just to hide behind the governor but I found out that the struggle for the emancipation of Edo people from the godfather is continuing. The joy I have is that godfatherism has not come to stay in Edo. We thank Oshiomhole for leading that struggle. We are helping him to sustain it. Like he said you need to fight these people to a standstill for you to be able to free the resources for the state to deliver dividends of democracy to the people.

Were you at any time scared for your life?

If what I know about government now I knew it then, maybe I would not have taken those risks. I once told President Obasanjo, “you are the President of Nigeria and I am the President of 40 million Nigerian students”. The men of DSS were looking at me. I said he must listen to me and that we could cripple the economy and the country. I did it when I said then-US President Clinton could not come to Nigeria. That was how powerful we were at the time.

We learnt your wife was also an activist…

I met my wife while in the struggle. My wife was the Vice President, Students Union Government, SUG, of Auchi Polytechnic when I went there to seek their votes as an aspirant for NANS presidency. I went to the 36 states of Nigeria and I came to Edo to campaign and I visited all the higher institutions in Edo State. When I got to Auchi Polytechnic, the SUG President was not around. The Vice President received us and, after the campaign, I left and they formed an alliance to support me when they discovered that I am from Edo. They had thought I was a northerner having come from Jos. They only knew me as Shaibu, they did not know that my name is also Philip. When I came, I asked her where she hails from and she said Etsako. I greeted her in our dialect and she was surprised. I told her I am from Jattu. That was how we met. Eventually, she was in Bauchi where the election held and she gave me all the support and I became President of NANS. On her invitation, I came to attend Auchi Poly Student Union Government, SUG, Week which is normally organised by the office of the Vice President. That was where I started recognising her as wife material and, subsequently, I started visiting. It was during my fifth visit that I told her I wanted to marry her and she was surprised. She thought I was joking but I was already convinced and the next time I came I said I wanted to visit her family.

Do you see yourself as romantic?

My wife used to say I am not romantic. I think it was the way I grew up. I don’t like to share that aspect of my life. I didn’t grow up with much affection. That part is not there. Maybe that is why I grew up to fight oppression. That aspect of my life was not a pleasant one. I was a victim of a stepmother. It created that strong mind in me. I am learning to be romantic.

How do you cope with work and family life?

I am blessed with my wife. She is an activist and understands what activism is all about. She gave me that freedom. She knows how to tolerate me. The reason I succeeded during Oshiomhole’s administration when we were fighting the godfather was that she was always awake to provide not only prayers but also the logistics to face the struggle.

Vanguard