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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 LAGOS 000005 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/31/2029 
TAGS: PGOV KCOR KDEM PINR ELAB NI
SUBJECT: THE "PEOPLE'S GOVERNOR" SETS AN EXAMPLE IN 
NIGERIA'S EDO STATE 
 
REF: A. 08 LAGOS 477 
     ¶B. 08 LAGOS 514 
     ¶C. LAGOS 227 
     ¶D. LAGOS 285 
 
LAGOS 00000005  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
Classified By: Consul General Donna M. Blair for Reasons 1.4 (B,D) 
 
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SUMMARY 
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¶1.  (C) Governor Adams Oshiomhole (Action Congress - AC) of 
Edo State believes that because he was popularly elected he 
must govern differently from those who owe their positions to 
"Godfathers."  Oshiomhole stressed to PolOff in Benin City on 
December 7 that he remained free of the need to pay favors to 
power-brokers, yet obliged to deliver on promises and 
services because he was "hired" and can be "fired" by the 
electorate.  Oshiomhole has kept key election promises, 
maintains a lively dialogue with the electorate and remains 
popular.  If the former labor leaders continues to deliver 
responsive and responsible government in Edo, he could at a 
future date capitalize on his popularity and national 
following to become a credible opposition leader.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
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FREE FROM FINANCIAL STRINGS 
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¶2.  (C) Oshiomhole says that because he owes his election to 
the electorate he does not have to pay back sponsors, show 
favoritism to or bend the law for anyone.  This freedom 
enables him to increase revenues by enforcing the law 
uniformly and save money that otherwise would have been spent 
on patronage, for example, in the form of non-performing 
contracts.  He insisted that, unlike most of his 
counterparts, he dose not interfere in rigorous tax 
collection even from elites and adhers to a transparent 
procurement process. Likewise, Oshiomhole stressed, no one is 
exempt from environmental laws; so, properties owned by 
powerful citizens and institutions, such as the Central Bank, 
were impacted along with the shanties of the poor when his 
government removed illegal structures that blocked roads and 
drains.  The governor also noted that he had redeployed 
teachers impartially from superfluous administrative posts in 
urban areas to rural schools lacking staff despite the 
protests of many teachers. 
 
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FULFILLING RISKY PROMISES 
------------------------- 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Oshiomhole is focused on fulfilling his promises to 
the electorate.  Oshiomhole promised to eliminate illegal 
levies and extortion, to create 10,000 jobs, to fight 
corruption, cut costs of the bureaucracy and invest in needed 
infrastructure.  Upon taking power, he instructed the police 
to stop "area boys" from extracting illegal levies at 
markets, parking lots, schools, and hospitals.  Police 
action, combined with widespread popular refusal to pay, 
effectively ended this pernicious practice, at least in the 
capital.  More recently, Oshiomhole declared the examination 
fee paid by students to sit for state exams illegal and 
refunded 15 million naira (USD 100,000) already collected. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) To date, Oshiomhole's administration has created 
nearly 7,000 public sector jobs, including 1,150 new teaching 
positions, 1,700 sanitation jobs, 3,300 jobs in "rapid 
response" road crews (to fill potholes, etc.), 437 biometric 
and point-of-sales technicians, and 250 additional jobs in 
the Board of Internal Revenue to bolster tax collection and 
enforcement.   In addition, an estimated 500 jobs have been 
created in the private sector through contracts to waste 
management firms and an as yet unquantified number of jobs 
will be created in construction as contracts for 
infrastructure projects are awarded.  The new public service 
jobs were filled predominantly from the ranks of the 
unemployed, including 3,000 graduates; some of the new 
employees had been unemployed for as long as twelve years. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Despite increasing the payroll dramatically, 
Oshiomhole has cut overall recurring state expenditures 45 
 
LAGOS 00000005  002 OF 003 
 
 
per cent by eliminating bureaucratic duplication, rigorously 
reducing bureaucratic waste such as unnecessary travel and 
expensive perks, improving efficiency, and impeding graft 
with automation.  Oshiomhole claims that his aim was "not to 
spend two naira if one naira would achieve the same purpose." 
 The state was able to not only operate at lower cost but to 
save 20 percent of its operating budget and release that 
money for capital expenditure.  (NOTE: We will report on 
Oshiomhole's anti-corruption efforts and major fiscal 
policies in septels.  END NOTE.) 
 
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GOOD GOVERNANCE MEANS GOOD SERVICE 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Oshiomhole describes himself as a "steward" of the 
people and calls it his duty to deliver good and transparent 
government. He hired a team of experts predominantly from the 
private sector (reftels) who have been tasked with 
"painstaking planning" and developing a "holistic approach" 
rather than "quick-fixes."  He has put emphasis on substance 
over show and quality over quantity.  Rather than embarking 
on mega-projects Oshiomhole has focused on stopping the 
hemorrhaging of funds caused by corruption, laying the 
groundwork for sustainable government by increasing 
internally generated revenues to reduce dependence on federal 
allocations, and sought creative solutions involving the 
private sector to reduce the public burden.  For example, 
state authorities have allowed participating banks to use 
taxes paid directly to the state's accounts for five working 
days as an incentive to support the introduction of cash-free 
tax payments and sold advertizing rights to finance the 
generators and diesel used to run street-lighting. 
 
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LEADING BY EXAMPLE 
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¶7.  (SBU) Key to Oshiomhole's success is his willingness to 
lead by example.  In contrast to his fellow governors, 
Oshiomhole does not charter aircraft but books commercial 
flights.  He does not surround himself with a large entourage 
and multiple cameramen but travels with only one or two 
aides.  He has not invested in his own Local Government Area 
but has religiously followed the economic priorities laid out 
by his economic advisory committee.  He has not interfered in 
the decisions taken by his commissioners to award contracts 
in order to reward friends nor has he moved to exempt friends 
or powerful elites from unpleasant legal or disciplinary 
action. 
 
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POPULAR BUT SHUNS CULT OF PERSONALITY 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU)  Oshiomhole remains immensely popular with the 
people of his state, as a spontaneous "bath in the masses" 
with PolOff on December 7 demonstrated.  Oshiomhole took 
PolOff to former dump cites in residential neighborhoods and 
to the areas in the city where street-stalls had been 
bulldozed to improve drainage, sanitation and traffic. 
Although the visit was unannounced, people soon surrounded 
the governor, calling out greetings, blessings and reaching 
out for hand-shakes.  Governor Oshiomhole approached market 
women and motorcycle taxis to draw attention to traffic 
violations, and spoke to residents at random.  Despite -- or 
because of -- his popularity, Oshiomhole does not run large 
ads in the media praising his accomplishments as does, for 
example, the governor of Akwa Ibom State, Godswill Akpabio 
(People's Democratic Party - PDP).  When Oshiomhole's face 
does appear on billboards, it is to admonish citizens to pay 
their taxes. 
 
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COMMENT 
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¶9.  (C) Even if Oshiomhole's supporters might exaggerate his 
accomplishments or bend some statistics, there is no doubt 
that he is a true star and represents the best of the 
so-called new generation of Nigerian politicians.  He has 
implemented a commonsense agenda that should be a model for 
other states, and as a former labor leader, he has a strong 
 
LAGOS 00000005  003 OF 003 
 
 
connection to the poor.  Probably more than any other 
southern governor, he is poised  - especially as a member of 
the opposition - to play a key role in national politics, 
perhaps as early as 2015.   END COMMENT. 
 
¶10.  (U) ConGen Lagos coordinated this cable with Embassy 
Abuja. 
BLAIR