- By Bolaji Adeniji
With the 2027electoral cycle beckoning, Ogun State will approach a pivotal moment in its political evolution as the politics of succession kicks in for the All Progressives Congress (APC) particularly.
The incumbent governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, is winding down his tenure and the conversation on who will succeed him continues to dominate public discuss in the gateway state.
For the ruling APC, the party inescapably faces a defining choice – to field a candidate who understands the pulse of the people and whom the people have a plausible impression of, someone who has consistently delivered results and who unquestionably possess the amalgam of requirements to ensure electoral conquest for the party.
The effort to ensure that the party steamrolls the opposition to a comfortable victory at the polls, has become a movement. It is a movement rooted in equity, performance and the undeniable will of the people to push meritocracy to the front burner of the inevitable dialogue that must guide the party in making the ultimate verdict of its flag-bearer.
Decisions have consequences; so do candidates have significant imports on success for any political party at the ballot.
The existential need for the APC in Ogun State to get it right stems from the hindsight of the 2023 elections, where the party won, but not a victory that was emphatic. The result could also have been otherwise if the numbers to ramp up the needed margins did not come in to give it the winning edge.
Looking ahead to 2027, the All Progressives Congress, notwithstanding the unapparent schism within it and the rambunctious contestation amongst the supporters of the prospective gubernatorial hopefuls, the party must make a choice that will define the future of Ogun State.
Spurred by its performance the last time out, the main opposition, just like a famished lion, is smelling blood, and without an incumbent standing for re-election, it will fancy the chances for an upset; and there comes the need for the ruling party to be pragmatic and forthright in its recruitment process.
Without equivocation or the figurative depiction of an attempt to ‘cut one’s nose in order to spite the face’, the rational choice before the APC is clear and that choice is the lawmaker currently representing Ogun West at the upper chamber of the national assembly, Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, fondly called YAYI.
YAYI is not just a name or political sobriquet; it has become a phenomenon, a legacy of service. With the unprecedented and progressive representation in Ogun West, he has demonstrated what people-focused leadership looks like.
For decades, Ogun West, being a part of a whole, waited with bated breath for a chance to lead; an opportunity to prove that something good can happen to Ogun State through the hands of a Westerner. With YAYI, that wait is ending and a new dawn of shinning possibilities is unraveling before our eyes.
Ogun West is not just the beneficiary of the doings of YAYI, many parts of Ogun State are smiling and giggling at the dividends of democracy practically being delivered to their doorsteps and complementing the laudable efforts of the state executive.
Instructively, YAYI’s inexorable march to the Okemosan seat of power is not just a political ambition — it is a moral correction, a statement that every region and citizen matter when it come to the dispensation of political power.
And let us be clear, YAYI is not only delivering as a proud son of Ogun State, he is the quintessential servant-leader and he is ready. Despite the noise and distractions, notwithstanding the freezing chill around the opposition at his ascendancy, regardless of the tantrums thrown at YAYI to slow him down, his support base continues to grow stronger across the state spontaneously.
In Ogun today, the people know the truth. They know that YAYI is the bridge between performance and promise, he is the link between grassroots and governance, he is the differential between fallacy and reality, and he epitomizes the virtues of vision, diligence, commitment and excellence in public service.
Essentially, he has evolved to become a signpost of the second generation of Nigeria’s transformational leaders, after the likes of the Awolowos, Azikiwes and Amadu-Bellos.
As Governor Dapo Abiodun tails his second term, the question echoes: Who will carry the torch forward? Who will build on the foundation laid by Abiodun? Who will unite the party and the people? Just like biblical David did, who will lead the battle against the political philistines in the opposition? Who combines a pedigree of service and the burning compassion for the welfare of the majority?
Who is that man that has become the fulcrum for progressive forces across state today? Who is that person who stands tall as a totem of everything good about democracy? Who is that one person that possesses the structure and entirety of utilities that makes for electoral victory? The answer is not farfetched; as the groundswell of opinion in Ogun APC today and the word on the street say it is Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola – YAYI.
Without prevarication and hiding under a mask, YAYI is incontestably the best bet to carry aloft the gubernatorial banner of Ogun APC come 2027.
Additionally, he is the best man to lead Ogun State to the next phase of its socioeconomic renaissance. Why is this writer saying so? YAYI’s political journey is a thesis in effective governance, combining stellar legislative credentials while simultaneously excelling in initiatives that are core executive prerogatives – an inspirational departure from the normative, one which sets the senator apart as a rare breed. In a fashion that is unmistaken in over 22 years of service, he has brought unprecedented development to Ogun West.
Landmark infrastructural projects now dot the district, humongous empowerment programmes targeted at youths, women and artisans, has created a ripple effect of economic growth for the people. His interventions in human capital development (education and healthcare) have restored the dignity of the citizenry.
The countless spectacles of YAYI again transcend the western district, permeating all over Ogun State and bringing succour to the deprived of the society. Be it be roads, markets, schools, hospitals, transformers, solar lights, empowerment tools for artisans, entrepreneurial support to MSMEs and scholarships to students, the effects of these provisions have spiralled a value-chain that is closing the developmental gap in Ogun West and contributively addressing the inequalities in the larger Ogun State context.
The good works of YAYI has made him become the topic of discussion around the state. Both his admirers and traducers have a common denominator – the name YAYI.
Undeniably, Senator Adeola’s shinning performance is at the vortex of the people’s yearnings and aspirations. Will the APC not rally round such a man whose humanity is daily weaving webs of succour and connecting dots of hope all over the state?
Another striking feature of YAYI is that he has emerged as the consummate symbol of equity and inclusion. Ogun West, despite its rich contributions to the state, has never produced a governor in almost 50 years of creation.
The agitation is perennial and the noise is loudest this time around. The aggregate of opinion in Ogun State today is already conceding – genuinely and more than ever before – to the impending reality of a governor of Ogun West origin. But wait for it, the evolving movement is beyond an ogun west agitation.
The current optimism and mutating pan-ogun movement is spurred by only one man, Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, who is paternally Yewa and maternally Egba.
Statistics obtained from the report of a recent survey done by the Forum for Governance, Leadership and Values (FGLV), indicate that 93% of the various publics in Ogun West (Traditional institution, youths, women, students, artisans, intellectuals, community leaders, CDAs and the political class) have built a consensus on YAYI as the man on whose shoulder, their cry for emancipation will become a reality.
Observers say that YAYI’s candidacy offers a chance to correct any historical imbalance and foster equity.
They say he is a unifying figure whose popularity cuts across all three senatorial districts and that he is leader whose rise to statewide prominence and support is rooted in gratitude – and not political coercion.
They cited, among other inferences, the recent birthday of the senator, when on 10th August 2023, the three senatorial districts of the state lavishly celebrated him simultaneously – a signal so profound and significant – that YAYI is a brand that has received ownership by every part of the state.
The prognosis herein is that, the APC and indeed Ogun people have been presented with the golden chance to resolve the knotty marginalization question while securing a transformational leader that will regenerate its fortunes to higher pedestals. Succinctly put, YAYI is the intersection of both the centrifugal and centripetal political interests in Ogun State today and the APC cannot afford to miss this blank cheque to electoral success in 2027!
Many have argued it; some deny the truth but many admit it that YAYI is APC’s best bet for continuity and growth. Political pundits believe that Governor Dapo Abiodun and Senator Solomon Adeola built a relationship that have been mutually beneficial and has worked well for the party since 2019 in terms of electoral success and delivery of democratic dividends to the people. In the school of strategy, it is commonplace saying that ‘you disrupt a winning system’.
YAYI embodies the blend of experience, vision and grassroots connection that Ogun State needs. For the APC, endorsing him is not just a strategic move – it is an ethical imperative to recognize capacity, promote equity and concede to the will of the majority within the party and the general public that have already decided on YAYI and are daily asking for his leadership with a defiant resolve.
Consequently, it must be in the enlightened self-interest of the governor to succeed where his predecessors failed, that is, to bequeath a successor; and in YAYI, that objective becomes assured and the pathway seamless.
What more, YAYI is fortuitously positioned to sustain the developmental strides of the current administration while expanding them to underserved regions as exemplified by the way he has gone about the siting of his projects and distribution of empowerments.
He is unarguably the only gubernatorial hopeful who commands respect across all party lines, can mobilize grassroots support in every ward of the state as at today and can reinforce the party’s dominance through displayable result and not just mouthed loyalty.
Additionally, YAYI is a man who God has helped to be self-sufficient by committing to his hands, five fundamental features that makes him an indispensable choice for 2027; and these are – Competence, Structure, Relationships, Resources and Electoral Recall.
All over Ogun State today, the song is: “YAYI we know and YAYI we want”. Thus, the APC only need to make its work lighter by leveraging on a man who has already done all the hard work of ingratiating himself and his party to the heart of the people.
Bolai Adeniji is a journalist and public affairs pundit
