WHERE IS FEMI PEDRO, IS HE COMING TO TAKE OVER GOVERNMENT FROM BABATUNDE RAJI FASHOLA SAN WHEN HIS TENURE EXPIRES?

His story is just like a rising sun in the morning and going setting in the evening but is this true? Where exactly is Femi Pedro now? A man known for an eximinous contributor during his days in the public office and was just sidelined by the cammallocracy in the government of Lagos state chaired and run by Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Who is Femi Pedro sef?

Olufemi Pedro (born 29 January 1955 in Lagos) was the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Nigeria from 2003 until 2007. Prior to his election alongside Bola Tinubu, he was a part-owner and the Chief Executive Officer of First Atlantic Bank, now FinBank.

A scion of the renowned Sanusi Adeyinka Pedro family of Bambose Street Lagos Island fame, Femi Pedro was born to late Pa Olajide Pedro- a retired officer of the defunct Western Nigeria Marketing Board, Ikeja- and late Mrs. Modupe Pedro (née Abayomi) on January 29, 1955. Pa Olajide Pedro was widely regarded as a disciplinarian who understood the importance of education, and made it a core value to ensure that attendance of school was a family policy. Consequently, Femi Pedro was enrolled at St. Stephen Primary School, Adeniji Adele in Lagos Island. This brought an end to Femi’s penchant for following Egungun and Igunnu Masquerades around the streets of Lagos with a major determination to graduate into an Eyo masquerade as he and his other childhood friends had the flair for participating in the famous Lagos heritage festival- an event which he loves to watch till this very day.

Educated at St.Stephens primary school, Adeniji Adele Road from 1960 to 1967 where he obtained the First School Leaving Certificate, Femi Pedro subsequently attended Ahmadiyya College (now Anwar-U1-Islam College), Agege between 1968 and 1974 where he earned the Higher School Certificate (HSC) after having successfully completed the West African School Certificate in 1972.

Pedro received a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from University of Wisconsin–Superior (1976–1978) and a Master's degree in Economics from Wichita State University (1979–1981). He is married to Justice Jumoke Pedro, a High Court Judge in Lagos; they have 4 children.

In September 2006, Femi Pedro declared his intention to run for office as the Governor of Lagos State in 2007. Tinubu was initially in support of Pedro's candidacy, but allegedly began to gravitate towards Babatunde Raji Fashola as the campaign season drew closer.
On 13 December 2006, Pedro dumped the Action Congress to declare under the Labour Party. He became the first ever Nigerian to contest for a gubernatorial election under the Labour Party platform. On 30 January 2007, Femi Pedro named a University lecturer, Oluranti Adebule, as his running mate for the April 19 elections. Adebule, who teaches Islamic studies at the Lagos State University (LASU), is from the Badagry Division of the state. Solidarity and goodwill messages also poured in for Pedro from the various stakeholders in the party, including the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), teachers, pensioners, Hausa and Igbo communities, women's groups, students and youth bodies. He endeared himself to Lagosians with his comprehensive manifesto and various policies, many of which are currently being implemented by the sitting Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola.

In May 2007, Pedro resigned his position as Deputy Governor a few days after citing electoral malpractices in the Gubernatorial elections in which he participated and lost. Today, he continues to champion the fight against wasteful spending in Government, and has preached on the need for transparency and accountability by elected officials in Nigeria.

In September, 2010, whispers began spreading around Lagos State that Femi Pedro may contest the 2011 gubernatorial elections under the PDP platform. Scores of groups reportedly urged Pedro to declare, including prominent South West leaders and at least one sitting Governor from a prominent Yoruba state. He was rumored to have had widespread support and goodwill amongst the PDP hierarchy and party faithful in Abuja. Pedro remained silent about his ambitions, but sources close to his camp claimed that Femi Pedro was very reluctant to throw his hat in the race. He however committed to having an open, honest and transparent debate with stakeholders about "how to move the state forward in the coming years".

On September 24, 2010, Femi Pedro finally declared his intention to run for the 2011 governorship election in Lagos state on the platform of Peoples Democratic Party.
He made his declaration at the PDP secretariat in Ikeja amidst fanfare and jubilation by his supporters and party members, explaining that his administration would be committed to improving the living conditions of at least 100 Lagosians a day.

Pedro, who hails from Epetedo, said he had been to every nook and cranny of the state and had since realised that “through clever and constant application of excellent propaganda our people have been made to see Lagos as paradise. Today, Lagos has become a tale of multiple stories. I see people driving on pothole-infested roads and sleeping in flooded homes. I see poorly paid teachers, doctors going on indefinite strike and market women forced to pay excessive stall rates.“

He urged the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) led government to do more to reduce the suffering of the people and encouraged them to reduce the penchant to celebrate days in office when there continued to remain an uphill struggle towards attaining sustainable achievements. According to Pedro, "The Government, notwithstanding its many achievements, does a great-disservice if its primary focus is to give people a false sense of comfort - home and abroad - that Lagosians are living in utopian paradise when there is still a lot more work to be done.”
He continued: “I was part and parcel of the administration during the Bola Tinubu era and I know where some of the problems of the state lie. God-willing, If I am chosen to run in the 2011 polls, I would do everything within my power to help Lagosians right the wrongs."

“This government has performed excellently well, but there is room for vast improvement. We desperately need the government to sow the seeds that will grow successful and vibrant Lagosians by creating a better enabling environment for all Lagosians to realise their dreams,” he said.
To the surprise of pundits and political experts, Femi Pedro lost the PDP primaries to Ade Dosunmu. This was due in large part to the efforts of Dosunmu's political godfather: Chief Olabode George.
Today, Femi Pedro continues to remain a well-respected member of the Nigerian political hierarchy.