Tokunbo Wahab: Right Peg in Right Hole
It is the easiest thing in the world for the man who has reached the mountaintop to look down on those who deserve to survey the world and its bounty alongside him and instead throw down the climbing ropes only for those whose only claim to fame lies in accidental ties of friendship and kinship rather than any discernible accomplishment of their own.
Yet, Lagos governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu knows too well that his reign will succeed or fail on the strength of the personnel that he co-opts into his administration. Hence, the search for cultivated and brilliant intellectuals to man the fort at the respective ministries of the state government, whose remit would be to fashion progressive and people-oriented policies that would continue the proud traditions of the centre of excellence.
Doubtless, the recent list of supplementary commissioners and special advisers nominees sent to the state house of assembly is an eclectic mixture of the brave and the bold, the brilliant and the resourceful. And few are braver and bolder, more brilliant and more resourceful than Tokunbo Wahab.
Sometimes, popularity is indeed inversely proportional to impact. There are some like the city attorney Tokunbo who prefer that their impactful deeds be kept under wraps, yet some of the birds will inevitably escape the roost, spreading his good name to an unaware public. Tokunbo is one of those quiet folks whose relentless deeds of benevolence is all the noise they ever want to make.
Which is not to say that kind hearts necessarily make good administrators. In this, Tokunbo is not found wanting either. From an early age he had always wanted to make a difference. He knew that distinguishing himself would come at a price, and it was a price he gladly paid to elevate himself from muck to a level of professional and personal excellence and pride that remains unblemished, unstained with any of those controversies that dog celebrities like their shadows.
Instead of treading the well-beaten path of mediocrity, Tokunbo craved and followed the narrow path of seriousness, dedication and diligence. Little wonder the governor of Lagos wouldn’t take no for an answer, speedily forwarding his name to the state’s legislature for approval, despite Tokunbo’s humility and preference to keep making waves behind the scenes.
The astute and experienced lawyer made his name wrestling legal conundrums into submission. He’s always on the wanted list of the prominent and the poor alike, a glowing testament to his character which doesn’t discriminate between men of means. He can Millionaires, and does not mind traversing the four corners of the country just to take up the legal defence for the wretched peasant of the poorest soil. With such a magnanimous character, he will fit squarely into the governor’s vision for a people-oriented government.
Tokunbo is an alumnus of the prestigious Kennedy School of Government and Wharton University of Pennsylvania. He is a top partner at Walls and Ace Legal Practitioners and has taken up numerous high profile cases on the outfit’s behalf. He cut his teeth at Paul Usoro (SAN) & Co where he spent several practice years and Aluko & Oyebode, Lagos Nigeria.