By Chris Paul Otaigbe
January 5, this new year, was the first month anniversary of the passing on of one of Nigeria’s greatest women, Chief (Mrs) Titilayo Ajanaku.
Throughout her life on earth, one experience that never left Mrs Ajanaku’s heart was her detention and subsequent trial for her alleged participation in the 1995 phantom coup against the then General Sani Abacha regime.
Although, five months later, she was discharged and acquitted and freed from jail, the scars were deeply etched within inner recesses of her soul.
Her late father was just over 100 years when her travails in the hands of the Abacha junta began and she prayed to return to bury the centenarian and not be shown his grave.
She was alleged to have joined the likes of Late Shehu Yar’Adua, Olusegun Obasanjo, Bello Fadile to plot a coup against the dictator in March 1995.
It was her most trying period, recounting her experience in which she spent more than five months, of her life, in the prison, she said “I was in my house when armed men came around 3 a.m., and I was taken away, to be detained. I was moved around various detention centers, later arraigned along with General Obasanjo, the late Shehu Musa Yar’ Adua, Col Bello Fadile and many others and tried before General Patrick Aziza. I was exonerated, discharged and freed of all the charges; likewise, the late Chief Adisa Akinloye.
While in detention, she became worried for several reasons. One, she tried to examine herself if she had unwittingly been fraternizing ignorantly with people who had sinister motives against the government. Convinced her conscience was clear on this, she became less worried, because she knew nothing of sort ever happened. Again, what if they found her culpable, in their own judgment and did the worst?
The major issue that got her more worried was her aged father who was still alive at the time and one she had promised and prayed to God to give a befitting burial. Her son was also in Hungary, studying Medicine. Her father also prayed that she would bury him “that I would not be shown his grave and at that time, he was 100 years old. That was my most trying period.” She said.
As a popular activist who was always in the limelight during her time in politics, it was not too difficult getting into trouble with the military government, particularly under Sani Abacha, who held sway from 1993 till 1998.
After a failed attempt to topple the regime of Abacha in March, 1995, his administration embarked on a widespread arrest of about 300 military personnel and civilians, including Ajanaku and the likes of Olusegun Obasanjo and Shehu Musa Yar’Adua, both retired generals, who at one time had ruled Nigeria together as Head of State and deputy. They were all accused of having a hand in the failed coup and arraigned before a tribunal.
Ajanaku joined politics in 1977 with the aim of improving the lot of the people of her community and Nigeria at large and to also serve as a catalyst to Nigerian women who were interested in politics; who could learn from her experience and not go through what she passed through.
Her objective in politics was about service. She had contested some elective posts and won while she lost others. But she was not deterred because she had a vision. She advocated for the government of Ogun State in particular and Nigeria in general to encourage women who have the wherewithal and the vision to participate so that they can be mentored.
She had joined politics not just to contest election, after all she had retired as a nurse.
In active service, she started a mobile clinic, from where she discovered the high mortality rate then in Ilesa, Osun State, a challenge that gave her grave cause for concern. She knew there was little she could do about it as an ordinary citizen and a practicing Nurse. She was confident getting into politics would empower her to solve that and many problems faced by women and children. So, she set about achieving the purpose.
During the Obasanjo’s transition programme preparatory to the return of the country to democracy in 1979, after the death of the late Head of State, General Murtala Mohammed, her interest in politics started growing. And having heard and read so much about one of Nigeria’s founding fathers and a political icon, the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, she decided to visit the late sage at his Ikenne residence, a visit that served as a turning point in her quest to serve her people.
She said to herself, “If this man, who wanted to contest, has the interest of the people at heart, then let us go and see him. That was how we went to Ikenne and after appreciating our effort, he said I give you this challenge that you should come on board as we are going to include the programme in our manifesto.” Ajanaku said in a newspaper interview.
And that was how this Amazon, affectionally by her first name Titi, found herself in politics. Politics have always been, traditionally, the terrain of the men and thus, it was bound to be challenging. Even for a determined heart as her’s, “it has not been easy though.” She admitted.
In the game of politics, as she would observe, most men are chauvinistic and according to her, if they see a woman rubbing shoulders with them, they become jittery.
“The first thing they would do, as they have done to some women, is that they begin to flirt with the women. They will say they will settle you. I have not gone through that because most of them are afraid to look me in the face.”
When that one fails, then they start harassment, a lot of women have fallen by the way side through that. When that fails again, they will resort to blackmail. They will send people to your husband to blackmail you that you did all manner of things at night meetings.” She said.
She advised aspiring female politicians about the need to stay away from nocturnal meetings politicians are known for in order to keep their homes. As she affirmed it is not all political meetings a married and responsible woman should hold in the nights. “Sometimes, you need to bring people home to sell your ideas. And once you are not intimidated, people see you as a leader they can follow.”
Politics gave Titi the opportunity to give her best at every opportunity. She believed women are better managers of resources than men. “The system is already corrupt, but before a woman could have the heart to steal like these men are doing, it will take the devil in her because I cannot do anything I cannot defend in the presence of my family.” Said Chief Ajanaku.
For Titi, one of the reasons why women are better managers than men is the fact that when the man has money or position they become distracted with women and other vanities of life and so, they end up squandering resources that would have better serve the family or community.
“What is in vogue is that when men get position, they begin to look for trouble. For instance, that is when they would realize that the woman at home is not good again. They now look at all these six-inch Stilettos ladies and spoil them with material things.
They go as far as selling their properties because they want to contest elections. Women cannot do that.” She said.
One of the features of a committed woman is her focus on the goal she sets for herself. That was why the late Abeokuta strong woman asserted that any woman who knows her mission in politics would not fall prey to the antics of her male counterparts. According to her, once they know the woman is the frivolous type, the men quickly lose respect for the female politician. “Again, you can be swayed, easily. Once they have something, they can always flaunt to blackmail you, you can’t stand on any principled position. Yes, on any issue you feel strongly against, you lose your voice in the crowd. Suddenly, your political career becomes a flash in the pan. You stand for nothing. In fact, I can tell you, one of the antics of our male counterpart: once they know you are the principled type, they try to lure you for sex. Once you start sleeping around, you have provided them the instrument they can use to break you on a platter of gold.” Said Ajanaku.
As many as women are in politics, their numerical strength over their male counterpart have been diminished to menial roles in the political arena. “Unfortunately, a larger part of them are clappers and dancers. Somehow, when you talk of women, we gossip; we are jealous and envious. Always, the question is, is it only her? But what we lack is the opportunity and unfortunately there is no (provision for)independent candidate in the constitution yet. When you offered yourself and the party says no, who are the party? To some of the members, it is the highest bidder. “She said.
The financial aspect of politics is one major area where the visions, dreams and aspirations of women for their communities or country die. Titi said some of them who want to stand, do not have the wherewithal like the men.
She demonstrated her strong principles during her career in politics as she would not lick any man’s boot just to get by in politics because she knows the men can be transactional and extortionist once they can facilitate the rise or success of any woman. “When you are given appointment, you are at the mercy of the person who appointed you. I am an incurable optimist; I know things will get better.” She said.
Although, she conceded to the old dictum that men being the head, but insisted that both genders are partners in progress. “You will realize out of selfishness; men don’t support women.
“From 2009 when former President Obasanjo appointed six women in his administration and gave them challenging opportunities, we told ourselves, that was a window that has been opened; don’t close it by your attitude. The window opened further, that is why the President gave women opportunities too. Things are changing and will continue to change.” She said.
In his condolence letter addressed to the head of Ajanaku family, former President Obasanjo attested to Titi’s loyalty and commitment to women affairs development, a virtue he said was exemplary and worthy of emulation.
In the letter, he said “I remember vividly one of my memorable encounters with Chief (Mrs) Titi Ajanaku, when she accompanied a group of politicians led by Chief S. M. Afolabi, of blessed memory, to my Abeokuta residence to persuade me to contest as the President of Nigeria.
He said it was partly her persuasion and that of other groups that later yielded his final submission to contest for the office of the President.
As a no-nonsense politician, she never hesitated to dump any political platform that went against her visionary and moral ethos. This was what informed her leaving the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to form the defunct Action Congress (AC)
“It was because of the circumstances between 2005 and 2007. When I am dealing with someone, I deal wholeheartedly, just because the party was afraid of somebody, they changed rule. How can a party say they should deregister someone? I left the party in protest. In fact, some people told me you formed the party together, how can you leave the house you built.
When they start carrying cudgels and guns, if you don’t excuse yourself, you may not be alive to tell the story.” Said the Abeokuta political titan.
She said initially, the stakeholders wanted amalgamation with other political parties, which led to the change of AC to Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN). “But again, there were so many intrigues. After that, reconciliation moves were made.” Said Ajanaku.
The veteran politician believed that lack of discipline and a deficit of internal democracy is the major problem with most of the political parties in the country today. The ‘winner takes all’ syndrome, where the politician who emerges in a political contest becomes autocratic and nepotistic once they grab power.
“Once you become the President, you automatically become the leader of the party. Then, what happens to the party structure? You are elected as the governor, maybe you just came in, after all the structures had been put in place, but because you are lucky or because you spent this and that amount of money, you become the governor of the state and then you automatically become the leader of the party in the state. So, where is the discipline? And you know power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. And when you are the governor and the leader of the party, you can tell anybody to go to blazes. And that was what happened that we were unable to manage the success that we had. And God in His infinite mercies have humbled everybody. And that itself is food for thought. It is only God that is ‘I am that I am.’ She said
Titi died after a long-time battle with an illness. Born on January 25, 1946 at Ago-Odo Quarters in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Ajanaku was the Otun Iyalode of Egbaland, a position she held till her death.
A trained nurse, administrator and women leader, Titi attended the Nawair-Ud-Deen Secondary School, Abeokuta; and trained in Nursing at Stobhill General Hospital, Nether-Edge City General Hospital, Sheffield, United Kingdom, between 1964 and 1965.
She was the chairman of old Abeokuta Local Government in Ogun State and the first woman to be elected as a local government chairperson in Nigeria.
She was also one of the top politicians arrested in 1995 over a phantom coup and later arraigned before the Patrick Aziza-led military panel.
In 2015, Ajanaku dumped the PDP and joined the People’s Democratic Movement ahead of that year’s election.
As a qualified Nurse, Titi’s passion to save lives and care for the living drew her to the plight of women whose challenges she knew all too well. Knowing that the men who are the ones with political power were not doing a good job of looking after the women she decided to go into politics so she could acquire the political power to fulfill her mission and accomplish the vision to empower women to take over the management of the resources of her community and country. She believed till her death that women, being better manager of resources are well able to commit to true and holistic development of any community or country.
This is a truth that she left behind for a nation in desperate search of good leaders and great women to rescue her from the precipice she has found herself today.
All told, Titi was able to rise to prominence in her political career, one can safely state that she made good for herself and drove the cause of women she passionately fought for, so they can be included and integrated in the political system of the country.
Even though she could not defeat the illness that eventually took her life, she triumphed in her cause to succeed as a true leader of Nigerian women and a driver of their cause in the nation’s political journey.
