BATTLE FOR OKE MOSAN GOVERNMENT HOUSE

The governorship race in Ogun State is already on, writes Chinwe Ugwu

As the count down to the 2019 general election begins, permutations on who takes what has heightened in the polity and the players are strategising and consulting to keep in touch with the trend. In Ogun State, the entry of a serving senator from Lagos State into the race to the Oke Mosan Government House, Abeokuta, is giving sleeplessness nights to a horde of aspirants. Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, better known as Yayi, and representing Lagos West Senatorial District, has changed the narrative in the competitive race to the Ogun Government House.

Although, Senator Adeola represents Lagos West Senatorial District and has served and represented Lagos at different levels in the past, he actually hails from Ogun West Senatorial Zone of Ogun State. A dynamic and colourful politician, Yayi is from Yewa in Ogun State but has lived almost all his life in Lagos. It is a known fact that in the run to the 2015 general election, the senator, then a member of the House of Representatives representing Alimosho federal constituency of Lagos State attempted to contest for the Ogun West Senatorial District seat but local intrigues frustrated the process, compelling him to return to Lagos and emerged as a senator.

The difference between 2015 and now is that, then, Yayi felt that he had garnered enough experience working for people outside and therefore he needed to replicate that at home for the benefit of his people. But some people were sceptical whether he was a Lagosian or a true Yewa man. Now, these questions have been fully addressed and conversely, the generality of the Ogun people are beckoning on the senator to come home and give the state a taste of the ‘Lagos touch’ that has made the Centre of Excellence a reference point in infrastructural and human capital development, at least in the last 10 years. He has been certified a true “son of the soil” and if ongoing consultations are anything to go by, Senator Adeola would soon let the cat out of the bag and “contenders” will be separated from the “pretenders”.

Most of Adeola’s opponents have laid claim to the fact that the Senator is coming from outside the state and should be treated as an outsider. But this does not hold water because particularly in the South West, many renowned politicians have gone to Lagos to horn their political skills before returning home to their states to serve. Chief Clement Awoyelu was a member of House of Assembly in Lagos before returning to Ekiti to become a senator. Ogbeni Rauf Aegbesola was Works and Infrastructure Commissioner in Lagos under the leadership of Bola Tinubu before coming home to contest for governorship in Osun State. Senator Jide Omoworare from Osun State was the Majority Leader of Lagos State House of Assembly and a host of other examples. So, this cannot be a stumbling block.

It is therefore not surprising that even without a formal declaration of his intention to vie for the coveted position in the state, endorsements from key stakeholders have begun flowing in torrents. Due to his widely acclaimed generosity and philanthropy, the acronym, Yayi has within a short time become a household name across the length and breadth of the state. This has indeed ruffled a lot of feathers in the political equation in the state and some of the stakeholders are already running helter-skelter trying to strategise and realign their alliances. The senator has floated a formidable political machinery that is grassroots’ inclined and is winning supporters.

Indeed facts have emerged that right now, he is in firm control of at least 12 out of the 20 local government chairmen in the state. Similarly, it has been confirmed that so far majority of the former commissioners who served under Senator Ibikunle Amosun in his first term have dissolved into the Yayi campaign train and are shoring up support for the Lagos groomed politician.

The latest addition to the Yayi gubernatorial project is the endorsement from the Ogun Central Senatorial Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC), Hon. Kunle Adesina, who has openly declared support for Senator Adeola as governor of Ogun State come 2019. In making his thoughts on Adeola’s gubernatorial interest known, Hon. Adesina had said it was only fair and just that Ogun West aspirant be given the ticket for governor since the position has over the years been monopolised by Egba (Central) and Ijebu (East).

The endorsement of Senator Adeola by the likes of Hon. Adesina is simply re-echoing the feelings of the elders of Yewa from Ogun West, who have agreed that it is their turn to produce the governor of the state having been marginalised for several years by other zones.

Of course, there is no battle without bruises and Senator Adeola may have to cross many rivers to get to the desired target. First, he has to manoeuvre his way through the understanding between the Yewa and Egbado people, who analysts believe must harmonise their positions to arrive at an acceptable agreement as to who takes a shot at the governorship. From all indications, the pendulum is pointing towards the side of the Yewa’s and if it eventually happens, Yayi may just but emerge as the preferred candidate because from the array of aspirants so far, no one appeals to the generality of the people of the state more than him.

Secondly, the huddle of the incumbent Govenor Ibukun Amosun is immense. Amosun has already shown that he is not disposed to the aspiration of Yayi and may likely endorse a different person. But Adeola’s personality and wide acceptability among the low and the high in the state will change the course of the game when the time comes. Of course, it is an open secret that in as much as the governor may not be in support of Yayi, two political juggernauts are equally routing for the man that may be governor come 2019. An evergreen politician and former governor of the state, Chief Segun Osoba and the indefatigable national leader of APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu are solidly behind Yayi. When leaders of this ilk, whose pedigree is beyond reproach are lining behind an aspirant, it means such a politician has something to offer.

Thirdly, if Adeola eventually emerges the candidate of the APC, he may have to contend with candidates of other parties especially the PDP, which has been wounded and is strategising to stage a comeback. Some of these aspirants include former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Dimeji Sabur Bankole; former governor, Mr. Gbenga Isiaka, who is said to be supported by former Governor Gbenga Daniel and Senator Buruji Kashamu, who represents Ogun East; Keshinton Adebutu and former Senator Akin Odunsi who are all angling for the governorship. These are indeed formidable opposition, but Yayi has over the time shown that he is a bulldozer and can take on any opposition.

So, what makes Senator Adeola thick? Yayi is a self-made man, who from a humble beginning braced the odds to become a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. A bold and audacious leader, he learnt his politicking the hard way and at a very youthful age was part of the struggle to actualise the June 12 Presidential mandate freely given to the late Chief M.K.O. Abiola by majority of Nigerians. His rich political career started to blossom when he contested for the House of Assembly seat into Lagos State House of Assembly in 2003 and won to represent Alimosho Constituency 02, for two consecutive terms, under the auspices of Alliance for Democracy (AD), Action Congress (AC), Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and now All Progressives Congress (APC). At the State Assembly, his impact was felt by the House and his constituents.

Due to his efficiency and competence, he moved up to the House of Representatives in 2011, where he again became a shining light star. As Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, Adeola left indelible imprints in the House and has become a reference point to effective oversight in the lower chamber. His exploits in the House propelled him to the Senate in 2015, where he has in the last two years proved that a golden fish has no hiding place. He is presently, the Vice Chairman of Senate Committee on Communications and is also a member of Senate Committees on Interior, Finance, Science and Technology, Marine and FERMA. Hon. Ugwu is the Executive Director, Centre for Reform Education Initiative