*Sitting governor crushes opposition from predecessors Gbenga Daniel, Ibikunle Amosun
* Why Ogun people reelected him
If Governor Dapo Abiodun starts a school on leadership and governance, many a politician would definitely be his most ardent students. Governor Abiodun rocks.
Indeed, if Governor Dapo Abiodun’s story reads like a super legend, it’s probably because he has always been an enterprise stylist. Adept at combining grit with desire, his life espouses crucial entrepreneurial anecdotes by its metaphor-rich manifestations of his hard work.
At work, he shifts gear seamlessly between the whimsical and the earnest, demonstrating time and over again his ability to tame challenges and ride out storms – without falling prey to Scylla and Charybdis of cynicism and failure. All in pursuit of glory.
And Dapo Abiodun’s divine strut stilled his detractors’ earthly thunder. On Saturday, March 18, a dazzling interplay of heavenly hand boosted his mortal strides to gift him a second term as Executive Governor, Ogun State.
It was no doubt, an honour well deserved; even as the odds stacked against him, menacingly, within and outside his own party, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Ogun people eloquently spoke with their votes, choosing Abiodun.
The huge artillery of his remarkable deeds borne through humane and people-centered governance, plowed through his enemies’ ranks, breaking their formations, and pulling them under.
Following a fierce contest, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) formally declared Governor Abiodun the winner of the governorship election in Ogun State.
The INEC State Returning Officer in the state, Kayode Adebowale, who announced the result on Sunday, said Abiodun scored 276,298 votes to emerge the winner of the keenly contested election. The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Ladi Adebutu, polled 262,383 votes to come second, thus trailing the winner with 13,915 votes.
En route to the 2023 polls, not a few pundits pondered his chances of re-election, claiming the dire was cast against him.
And the reasons were not far-fetched. Abiodun faced formidable adversaries in the persons of his party men and former associates: ex-governors Ibikunle Amosun and Gbenga Daniel of Ogun State.
Both Amosun and Daniel allegedly plotted against Abiodun in a move to cut down the Governor’s political structure because of the 2027 senatorial ambition of the duo.”
Daniel worked against Abiodun’s bid for a second term by throwing his political machinery behind Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial flagbearer, Ladi Adebutu, who eventually gave Abiodun a tough run for the State House, scoring 262,383 votes against Governor Abiodun’s 276,298 votes.
Against the run of the intent of Governor Abiodun, mischief makers alleged that Gbenga Daniel, who has just been elected as Senator on the platform of the APC, began to nurse deep-seated animosity against the former thinking he (Abiodun) was against his emergence as the APC’s senatorial candidate for the Ogun East constituency.
But sources close to Governor Abiodun revealed that he was never against Daniel becoming the APC Senatorial candidate for Ogun East. They dismissed rumour that Abiodun was eyeing the Ogun East senatorial post after his exit as governor, as a figment of the imagination of its purveyors.
The latter alleged that Abiodun, knowing Daniel would be hard to dislodge as Ogun East senator by the time he (Abiodun) ends his second tenure, decided to thwart Daniel’s ambition.
But this “was simply another lie from the pit of hell,” remarked a very close associate of the governor.
While Abiodun contended with Daniel, he faced more macabre plots from his immediate past predecessor in the State House, Senator Ibikunle Amosun.
The immediate past Governor of Ogun State and Senator representing Ogun Central unlocked his political machinery across the three senatorial districts of Ogun State to scuttle Governor Abiodun’s re-election bid.
Although a senator on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Amosun did not support Abiodun’s second-term bid. It would be recalled that he also did not support Abiodun en route to his election and first term in office, in 2019, despite being in the same political party as him.
En route to this year’s election, Amosun in flagrant disregard for party rules openly campaigned for the candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Biyi Otegbeye.
Amosun, who governed Ogun State from 2011 to 2019, was dissatisfied with the choice of the APC National Working Committee (NWC) to recognise Abiodun against his choice of Adekunle Akinlade; he supported the latter on the platform of the Allied Progressives Movement (APM) against Abiodun in 2019.
After losing the 2019 election, Akinlade rejoined the APC and later dumped the party for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and was announced as the deputy governorship candidate to Adebutu.
Despite endorsing Otegbeye of the ADC publicly, Amosun had informed his political associates and trusted aides to mobilise and canvass support for Oladipo Adebutu of the PDP.
An aide to Amosun revealed that the ex-governor’s preferred candidate for the Saturday governorship election in Ogun State was not Biyi Otegbeye of the ADC whom he had openly endorsed, but Oladipo Adebutu of the PDP.
Amosun reportedly told his close associates that Otegbeye doesn’t have the structure to defeat Dapo Abiodun, so it’s better to support the PDP which already has a structure through the state.
Findings revealed that Amosun was instrumental in the nomination of Akinlade as the running mate of the PDP candidate. Akinlade was the preferred candidate of Amosun who flagged the ticket of APM in 2019.
Recall that Amosun had recently accused his successor, Governor Abiodun of rigging his way into power during the 2019 governorship election in the state, claiming that the APM candidate he supported won the election but was rigged out. He then declared that all efforts must be made to vote the government out of power in 2023.
But how could the APC let Amosun get away with such anti-party activities? Top members of the ruling party have expressed their disapproval of the former governor hinting at his possible expulsion from the party following a comprehensive probe of his disloyalty.
Why Dapo Abiodun won…
Most leaders are average, neither dazzling nor excellent. But Governor Abiodun is remarkably different; more of a visionary in a beneficent, all-values-connected sort of context.
Through his work, the Ogun State governor gave succour to the voiceless. He heard their cries and responded with compassion – the hallmark of humane leadership.
But he didn’t just listen to the citizenry, he treated every citizen and constituent of his domain as their own planet, rather than simply one of his moons.
To date, Abiodun approaches people and communities with curiosity, compassion, grace, and excitement while encouraging a huge community of followers to do the same. It’s a gift to be alive at the same time as this admirable leader.
Since he assumed office, Abiodun has been tackling tough projects and issues with passion and very evident love. His governance style is all about triggering genuine progress and constructive exchanges between state actors, irrespective of class and social boundaries.
He’s always in search of the truthful moment that will give the masses real practical solutions to difficult issues. He’s a visionary in that way.
Governor Abiodun is undoubtedly doing everything right to attract the good graces of corporate organizations and the international community in alignment with his vision to create an enabling environment for Public Private Partnership (PPP) to thrive in Ogun State while leveraging on very strong previous relationships to attract support for the state in all sectors.
Actual governing could be difficult. And through his first term, Abiodun had to deal with problems inherited from his predecessor, Amosun, in the statehouse; from infrastructure lapses, paucity of funds, and administrative shortcomings, he got his work cut out for him but Governor Abiodun was never one to back down from a fight or a daunting challenge.
The real vision was to form an all-inclusive government marking the first time an Ogun State governor would unite seemingly irreconcilable factions in the state on the strength of his charisma, maturity, and political sagacity. Baring recalcitrant elements like Amosun and Daniel, Abiodun has surely succeeded at his task.
What he has managed to create is a sacred space of governance, where everyone is respected and aligned with the vision of his administration and the narrative of his progress.
He promised Ogun citizenry freedom, growth, and prosperity. And so far, he has exerted himself convincingly. Now, he has another four years to deliver on all counts.
