The first impression you get from Group Captain Salaudeen Latinwo, former military governor of Kwara State, is of a capable individual. At home, he works physically side by side with his domestic staff- answering the door, serving guests and even working the generator.

Having had an early retirement (at 43), Chief Latinwo, has devoted himself to his communities in Lagos as well as his home state of Kwara; and to his family, consisting of his beautiful wife Mercy (nee Aganga), and their four children. In this chat with Morenike Taire, Chief Latinwo emerges from his retreat to speak about the Boko Haram phenomenon, the Salami/Katsina Alu scuffle and the Festac community.

ARE there things you are doing now that you could not do while in service?

The good thing about retirement is that time is yours. When I have meetings downtown I get up, hold up on the way, I just pick up my phone and say sorry Mr. President or Mr. Chairman, I am not coming any more.

Quite a few of us retired at fairly young age because of the circumstances surrounding the building up of the country at the particular time. It was like a sacrifice. I have a farm and we try to help with building structures. The longer you stay away from position of power, the less your influence. The tendency in our society is everybody thinks they are the masters of everything.

Latinwo

Agriculture is one of the main focuses of the present administration. As a farmer, do you have any advice?

We have settled down on oil, gas, but these things will dry up. Everybody is interested. My father was a farmer and later on, he became a trader. We have the land, the facilities but it is the determination and commitment that is lacking. Government has a responsibility. In my village when they see a farmer they think you belong to the lower echelons of society. So, in real terms government has to create incentives, to get the people to accept it is an area with which you can develop society

You say farming is seen as being for lower echelons of society, but the lower echelons have no land. Furthermore, there is the problem of the Land Use Act.

The Land Use Act, with due respect, has its advantages and disadvantages. It’s like government says it wants to put an airport here for whatever reason.

If the land belongs to individuals, they appeal to them, some will come up with all kinds of stories. But if ordinarily the land belongs to the Federal Government, it will ask you to go because it wants to use its land for something more beneficiary to the people, but it will pay you compensation.

On the other hand, somebody must have been on that land before the government. For a developing country like our own, I would rather say let’s leave the status quo in the interim so that government can come in.

What are your thoughts on the BokoHaram phenomenon

The primary responsibility of government is security, the welfare of the people and then the identity of the political programme. The government has to come with a stronger hand to make sure these things are put in perspective. We’ve had all kinds of things in the past shortly after independence. Somehow the government in place then was able to squash it.

The situation we have in place now whether it’s religious or political, nobody can say. How do you negotiate with somebody you cannot even identify? So the best thing to do is, whatever it’s going to cost, shift other programmes to the back burner. If you don’t know how to do it, borrow it. If you can’t borrow it, steal it. But it has to be done.

We have been under the civilians now for more than a decade. What are your thoughts on how well the civilians have done?

There’s no alternative to civilian government because the military’s responsibility is actually to protect the country and I say that to everybody. He could be Jack-of-all-trade but that is his basic responsibility. Civilians have democracy, human rights.

All these arrangements are beautiful but I think the management is where we need to perfect with time; the interpretation of the law. People talk about corruption but that is by the wayside. We are making progress. There is no alternative to democracy.

Is there any chance you will go into politics?

I am getting older and older. Some of us find it difficult to swim in waters that perhaps are not so pure and you will sit down with some of these people, they say one thing today, another thing tomorrow. We were brought up to say the truth and live by the truth. Discipline involves doing things right and some of us find it difficult to adjust otherwise, calling black, white and what not. If not for that problem, yes.

You are close to both parties in the Katsina Alu/ Salami saga

They should allow the system to evolve itself and by the time we are through with it, we will know we are doing the correct thing.

Things cannot continue as usual. So when this kind of crisis comes up, we should just see how it will end and then of course we will learn from it. We should allow everybody to examine and analyze it and then come out with something that is tangible; that is able to sustain the system and pull us forward.

So it is not so much a personality war

I don’t think so. What is he looking for? Countries go through such problems- it may be in the judiciary, university, agricultural sector but when they come, they come with value therein.