Hangout With Babatunde Fashola And MI On Google+, As Musicians Become Politicians

On September 27th 2013 at 6pm, the Lagos State ambassador for Energy, Jude Abaga popularly known as MI will be moderating,as the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN, talks about energy conservation in his first ever 'Google+' Hangout.

The 'Google+' hangout is designed to reach Lagosians through sensitization around a themed month,the 'Energy Conservation Month' (October)and would serve as the launch of the campaign.

Issues that would be addressed include:
• People's frustration with the existing power situation.
• Knowledge of energy conservation.
• Saving money on your bill.
• And conviction or not on the choice of MI as a good energy ambassador. This will be a chance to hear what he has to say, or what he knows about energy conservation.
The last point on the list of issues to be addressed is one which would surely generate a lot of conflicting opinions. The choice of the 'Chairman' rapper as the host of the hangout comes courtesy of his recent appointment as the Lagos State ambassador for energy.

As is the norm with political appointments, choices are picked as a result of the qualifications of the appointee in line with the tasks he/she would be responsible for carrying out in the role he is selected for. It would therefore be interesting to hear how the Lagos State Governor defends M.I's appointment as we all know that Mr. Abaga is NOT an energy conservation expert. The underlying implication therefore, is that the rap artist was appointed in a bid to reach out to the section of the populace which forms the core of MI's fan base – the youth.

This is not an entirely strange concept however, as music and politics have in recent memory, enjoyed a mutually beneficial relationship. First, it was the musicians who reached out to popular political figures to give an impression of relevance exemplified by the presence of Governors and other senior political figures at the album launch shows and other entertainment events associated withthem. Eventually, politicians too realized and acknowledged that the sometimes cult-like following which these superstars enjoyed amongst their fansespecially the young population could be used to their gain and began to make moves to woo that populace by using such musicians as election tools. A notableexample of this was the highly controversial interview ofPresident Goodluck Jonathan hosted by pop star D'Banj. Whether the ploy was successful or not, that the interview generated so much interest (negative and positive) only establishes the fact that music holds an ever so great political power. Another worthy example was the storm caused by what not-a-few people perceived to be the reckless spending on gifts as politicians fell over themselves to impress when another music heavyweight TufaceIdibiagot wed. Even internationally, President Barack Obama of the United States on both occasions he has stood for election has actively involved rap mogul Jay Z in his campaign program in a bid to woo young generation Americans. Just like when D'Banj re-worked one of his hit-songs 'Scapegoat' into a campaign song for Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, Jay Z re-worked an hit song of his '99 Problems' to take a shot at President Obama's 2012 election opponent,Mitt Romney. It is pertinent to note that both politicians won these elections. Even in instances where an election isn't contested, music has proved to be a strong political rallying force for people as was the case when musician Wyclef Jean used music to draw the attention of the world and raise funds for his native country - Haiti after the earthquake that devastated the island country in 2010.

Before Barrister BabatundeFashola, SAN utters one word to defend or justifyhis appointment of MI as the Lagos State ambassador for Energy, what must have been his major rationale behind the appointment and his choice of platform (Social Media) would have been successful, as an exponential number of people – youths mostly who wouldn't otherwise be bothered about an energy conservation 'blablabla' would hook up with the chat – if only to have the chance to chat with their idol plus the 'bonus' of the State Governor - and thus would be conscious of the 'more important' key issues in energy and its conservation, and how it affects the life of every Lagosian.
Kudos to Governor Fashola for recognizing and seizing the opportunity, congratulations to Mr. incredible on his appointment and participate in this Hangout.

Follow the conversation on social media #CESM:
Twitter:@lagosenergy
Facebook: Facebook.com/LagosStateElectricityBoard
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