Opinion
Ogun 2027: Kings Have Spoken, Yayi Belongs, Let the Campaign Begin
For nearly half a century, Ogun State has stood as a federation of Yoruba subgroups – Egba, Ijebu, Remo and Yewa. Yet one fact remains: since 1976, Yewa has never produced a governor. Equity – affirmed by the Nigerian Constitution and Yoruba custom – demands that no part of a polity be permanently excluded from its highest offices. The late Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, foresaw this imbalance and urged that Yewa should produce the next governor of Ogun State. His prognosis carries truth to its destination. Democracy without fairness descends into exclusion by another name.
Against this backdrop, Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola (Yayi) emerges not as a mere aspirant but as a corrective to historical imbalance – a moral and democratic necessity. Attempts to weaponise genealogy – casting him as an outsider – have now met their answer. Yoruba wisdom cautions: Àlejò kì í mọ ìtàn ilé – a stranger cannot know the full story of the house. That story has been affirmed by those who keep it, and by the institutions that preserve lineage and belonging. As a Yoruba saying reminds us, ìrò lè rìn pẹ́, òtítọ́ ní í dé l’ẹ́yìn – falsehood may travel far, but truth arrives all the same.
In Yewaland, Oba Kehinde Olugbenle, the Olu of Ilaro and paramount ruler, publicly affirmed Adeola as a son of Yewa. Indeed, Adeola holds the traditional title of Aremo (prime son) of Yewaland, underscoring a lineage rooted in place and custom. The maternal seal followed. At Kemta Day the previous Sunday, Adeola declared: “Ilu iya mi ni mo wa yi. Emi omo Abibat Olasumbo, omo Akinola Baba Pupa from Kemta Odutolu.” The Alake and paramount ruler of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo, then added a defining pronouncement: “Kemta ti fun wa ni Governor!” In Yoruba cosmology, kings are custodians of heritage; their declarations carry authority. Agbà kì í wà l’ọjà, kí orí ọmọdé tuntun wó – elders do not stand by while a child’s head is misshapen. To question Adeola’s indigeneity now is, effectively, to challenge the crowns.
Constitutionally, a governorship candidate must be an indigene. Nigerian courts often consider attestations by traditional rulers when questions of lineage arise, recognising that in matters of ancestry, custodians of custom provide important context. With these royal affirmations, the central question – indigeneship – can reasonably be regarded as resolved. Eligibility is clear. Whether Yewa or Egba, count Senator Adeola a bona fide candidate. A kì í fi ẹ̀tẹ̀ sílẹ̀ pa lápálápá – one does not abandon leprosy to treat ringworm. The debate must now shift from ancestry to governance.
On that score, Adeola’s record is measurable and visible across all three senatorial districts of Ogun State. He has facilitated over 270 infrastructure projects across Ogun West alone; empowered 15,000 market men and women with cash grants; trained thousands in entrepreneurship; and supported over 5,000 students through a Scholarship and Bursary Board. He helped reopen the Ikenne–Ilishan road, a corridor associated with the Awolowo era, long overdue for rehabilitation, and donated 102 transformers serving 435 communities. In Sagamu, youths point to empowerment schemes; in Ifo, traders speak of solar-lit markets; in Abeokuta, students recall scholarships; in Yewa, elders reference roads linking their villages. These are not promises; they are monuments. The works that touch daily life are the truest testimonials across the three senatorial districts.
Politically, the Egba Lokan sentiment has broadened into a wider call for justice, grounded in the ethos of balance and inclusion. This call aligns with the current profile of the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, a son of Yewa with an Egba mother. High Chief Bode Mustapha, the Osi of Egbaland, has publicly commended Adeola’s service and described him as highly qualified among the field of contenders in terms of public service records. One voter captured governance’s essence in practical terms: the road he built reduced her car repair costs. Adeola’s dual heritage – paternally Yewa, maternally Egba – is a bridge, not a burden. Tí kì í ṣe ti bàbá ẹni, ó lè ṣe ti ìyá ẹni – what is not of one’s father may be of one’s mother. For advocates of the Egba Lokan agenda, this is a conundrum that requires wisdom. Agbájọ ọwọ́ la fi n s’ọ̀yà; ọwọ́ kan kì í gb’ẹrù d’órí – it takes joined hands to lift a load. In a state sometimes strained by sub-ethnic rivalry, such a bridge can steady the polity.
Legitimacy, philosophers remind us, is earned. Aristotle wrote: “The good ruler is not he who is born to rule, but he who rules well.” Yoruba thought echoes this in omolúàbí – honour, responsibility and service. Ìwà l’ẹwà – character is beauty. Adeola’s record is his manifesto; his projects are his pledges in brick and mortar, in kilowatts and scholarships. The question of origins is closed by law and custom. The campaign must now be fought on competence, character and outcomes.
History also counsels balance. Since 1976, Ogun’s leadership has passed from Olabisi Onabanjo (Ijebu), through periods of military rule, to Olusegun Osoba (Egba), Gbenga Daniel (Remo), Ibikunle Amosun (Egba) and now Dapo Abiodun (Remo). Yewa’s omission is glaring. The spirit of federal character – understood as an ethic of inclusion and fair representation – reminds us that cohesion is strengthened when all components see themselves in leadership. When law, custom and conscience converge, the argument is unassailable: justice demands that Yewa should have its turn.
Service-delivery indicators reinforce the case. In numerous town halls and community meetings, stakeholders point to reopened roads, restored power, improved market lighting, bursaries and training programmes that have equipped young people to start small enterprises. These are lived realities, not abstractions. As policy moves from spreadsheet to street, citizens measure leadership by the bridges they cross, the lights that stay on and the opportunities that open. The test of governance is not rhetoric but results – how many lives are tangibly improved through would‑be leaders’ interventions.
It is only fair to acknowledge that Yewa/Awori sons and daughters have every right to aspire to the governorship of Ogun State, even as I acknowledge Yayi’s edge. I do not consider any aspirant a footnote. Each is a chapter in this long‑drawn struggle that has marginalised people of Yewa/Awori origin. Over the years, names such as Gboyega Isiaka, Abiodun Akinlade, Noimot Salako-Oyedele, Biyi Otegbeye and others have surfaced – each carrying the hopes of their people. Many observers argue that the seat has eluded Yewa not for lack of talent or ambition, but for want of unity and a common front. Fragmentation, multiple candidacies and internal rivalries have, at times, diluted the collective claim. The lesson is clear: a house divided against itself cannot stand. The right to contend is sacrosanct, but it is best exercised with caution, dignity and a commitment to the larger cause of Yewa’s long‑awaited turn.
If Senator Adeola has been deemed worthy to sit in the hallowed chambers of the National Assembly, where he has distinguished himself with tangible service and verifiable delivery, then it follows by both logic and justice that he is equally qualified to occupy the Governor’s Office at Oke Mosan. The Constitution does not prescribe a lesser standard for the Senate than for the governorship; indeed, both demand competence, integrity and commitment to the people. Having facilitated infrastructure, empowered communities, and touched thousands of lives through scholarships and social programmes, he has already demonstrated the capacity to translate vision into dividends of democracy. To deny him the gubernatorial ticket after such a record would be to contradict both law and custom, and to deprive Ogun State of a tested hand whose service has spoken louder than rhetoric.
Within this context, the emergence of Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola should be seen not as a threat but as an opportunity. If he is qualified to be a senator and has delivered verifiable dividends of democracy – roads, scholarships, empowerment and infrastructure – what principle would justify denying him a fair contest for the gubernatorial ticket? The crowns have spoken, the Constitution is satisfied and his record is manifest. What remains is for all aspirants to embrace consensus where possible, coalition where necessary and civility at all times. Campaigns should elevate issues, not inflame identities; they should test plans, not impugn persons. A race anchored on programmes, capacity and probity will serve Ogun better than one framed by whispers of ancestry.
The road to 2027 will be defined by three questions that every contender must answer plainly. First, what is your plan to accelerate inclusive growth across Ogun’s three senatorial districts – industrial corridors, agribusiness value chains, urban renewal and rural connectivity alike? Second, how will you deliver reliable power, water, primary healthcare and basic education to communities that have waited too long? Third, what is your approach to youth employment – skills, finance and markets – so that entrepreneurship is not a slogan but a pathway? On these questions, Adeola’s portfolio of projects provides an opening bid. Others should place their records alongside his and let the people compare, line by line.
Good politics is, at heart, good governance. It listens, learns and builds. It makes room for difference without turning difference into division. It honours tradition without becoming captive to nostalgia. It remembers that in a republic, leadership is stewardship: those who seek the people’s mandate must show the people’s returns. As the saying goes, ohun tí a bá fi ọwọ́ ṣe, kì í bà ẹnìkan lórí – the work of one’s hands vindicates. In a competitive field, the voters will look for what is concrete and measurable.
The argument, then, is complete. Indigeneity has been addressed in law and affirmed by custom. The historical omission of Yewa has been acknowledged by monarchs and widely recognised in public discourse. The service record in question is tangible and verifiable. The Constitution demands fairness; Yoruba tradition demands balance; democracy demands justice. All three converge on a simple conclusion: it is Yewa’s turn. And if the race is to be run on competence, delivery and character, Adeola enters it with a record that can be examined without fear or favour.
For now, the crowns have spoken. History calls. Let the campaign begin. In that campaign, one name stands – not as a slogan, but as a standard; not as a whisper, but as a monument; not as a claimant, but as a custodian. Yayi.
- Somorin, former Chief Press Secretary to Governor Dapo Abiodun, writes from Crescent University, Abeokuta.
Nationwide tensions are on the rise as the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) sticks to its guns over the full enforcement of a ban on alcoholic beverages in sachets and small bottles (200ml and below). The prevailing narrative surrounding the enforcement has been framed as a moral battle: profiteers on one side and public health defenders on the other. It is a powerful headline. It is also a misleading one.
To suggest that industry stakeholders are prioritising profit over public health is to oversimplify a complex policy issue and to mischaracterise the motivations of thousands of Nigerians whose livelihoods are directly tied to the sector. This debate is not about corporate greed. It is about economic survival, regulatory balance, and the interconnectedness of health and livelihoods.
Public health does not exist in isolation from economic stability. When policies trigger large-scale job losses, destabilise value chains, and threaten billions in local investments, the consequences ripple far beyond factory gates. They reach homes, schools, hospitals, and communities. They affect the same families whose welfare regulators say they are protecting. It is therefore disingenuous to reduce legitimate economic concerns to “profit-seeking.” What is at stake extends beyond balance sheets.
The sector impacted by the ban supports a vast ecosystem: manufacturers, distributors, small-scale retailers, logistics providers, packaging suppliers, marketers, and informal traders. Estimates referenced by labour groups indicate that millions of livelihoods may be affected directly and indirectly. Whether the precise figure is debated or not, the scale of economic exposure is undeniable.
When factories scale down or shut production lines, it is not shareholders who suffer first. It is line workers, drivers, depot staff, retail shop owners, and their dependents. In an economy already grappling with inflation, currency volatility, and high unemployment, the social consequences of abrupt regulatory shocks must be carefully weighed.
Economic displacement carries health consequences of its own. Poverty correlates strongly with deteriorating health outcomes. Job loss leads to reduced access to healthcare, increased stress, poorer nutrition, and vulnerability to mental health challenges. A regulatory action that triggers economic shockwaves can indirectly undermine public health in ways that are less visible but no less severe.
What’s more, the Director-General of NAFDAC, Mojisola Adeyeye, has emphasised concerns about underage access to alcohol in small, concealable packaging. The protection of minors is unquestionably a legitimate policy objective. No responsible stakeholder disputes the need to prevent underage drinking or substance abuse.
However, the central question remains: “does banning a packaging format sufficiently address the root causes of alcohol abuse?”
Product size alone does not create consumption behaviour. Underage access is primarily an enforcement issue. Retail compliance, age verification, perimeter control around schools, parental supervision, and community-level enforcement mechanisms play decisive roles. If minors are able to purchase alcohol, regardless of packaging size, then the regulatory focus must interrogate points of sale and enforcement gaps.
Furthermore, alcohol in larger containers remains legally available. The removal of sachet and small PET formats does not eliminate alcohol from the market. It merely alters packaging dynamics. If consumption is driven by behavioural and socio-economic factors, the packaging shift may not produce the intended public health outcome.
There is also the matter of proportionality. Regulatory action should be measured, targeted, and responsive to evolving economic conditions. The 2018 agreement referenced by NAFDAC outlined a phased approach. Yet between 2018 and 2024, Nigeria experienced unprecedented economic turbulence — including pandemic disruptions, supply chain shocks, foreign exchange volatility, and inflationary pressures that strained manufacturing capacity.
Phased compliance assumes a relatively stable economic environment. When that stability collapses, regulators must evaluate whether timelines remain feasible without disproportionate harm. Flexibility in policy implementation is not weakness. It is responsible governance.
Another dimension that deserves serious reflection is the risk of unintended consequences. Sudden restrictions on regulated products can create market distortions. When legitimate supply chains contract abruptly, informal and unregulated alternatives often emerge. Counterfeit production, illicit distribution, and unsafe substitutes become attractive gaps to exploit.
Nigeria’s regulatory history across multiple sectors has demonstrated that prohibition-style measures, if not carefully calibrated, may push demand underground rather than eliminate it. An unregulated alternative market would pose far greater public health risks than a monitored, licensed production environment.
It is therefore imperative to interrogate whether the current approach optimally balances health protection with economic stability and enforcement realism.
Equally troubling is the language deployed in public discourse. Framing the debate as a binary moral question — “Do we want children to die or do we want money?” — may resonate emotionally, but it does not elevate policy analysis. Such rhetoric risks polarising stakeholders rather than fostering collaborative solutions.
No serious industry actor advocates harm to children. No responsible labour union is indifferent to public health. The argument advanced by stakeholders is not that economic interests trump health; it is that both must be protected simultaneously.
Public health and economic health are not adversaries. They are interdependent pillars of national stability.
The involvement of labour organisations such as the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria underscores that this debate transcends corporate interests. When labour unions raise alarms about job losses, they are fulfilling their mandate to defend workers, not to undermine health objectives.
In democratic governance, engagement with policymakers is neither subversive nor unethical. Consultation, advocacy, and dialogue are legitimate mechanisms for resolving complex policy conflicts. Casting stakeholder engagement as clandestine lobbying undermines the very participatory governance structures that sustain accountability.
The broader issue at hand is regulatory balance. Effective regulation should aim for outcomes that are sustainable, enforceable, and economically coherent. It should incorporate data transparency, measurable impact assessments, and periodic review mechanisms. It should also align with a comprehensive National Alcohol Policy framework to ensure consistency rather than fragmentation.
A policy that destabilises millions of livelihoods without conclusively addressing root behavioural drivers risks creating parallel crises: economic distress and public health strain.
Nigeria’s current socio-economic climate demands prudence. Youth unemployment remains high. Small and medium-scale enterprises are navigating a volatile operating environment. Manufacturing costs continue to rise. In this context, policy shocks reverberate intensely.
The country cannot afford solutions that inadvertently deepen economic fragility.
The question, therefore, should not be framed as “profit versus public health.” It should be reframed as “How do we protect public health while safeguarding livelihoods and economic resilience?”
That is the conversation worthy of a serious nation.
Protecting children from alcohol abuse requires comprehensive enforcement strategies, educational campaigns, community engagement, retailer accountability, and behavioural interventions. Packaging restrictions may form part of a broader toolkit, but they cannot substitute for systemic solutions.
Public health objectives are noble and necessary. Yet they must be pursued with economic intelligence and regulatory foresight.
In the final analysis, a nation’s strength lies in its ability to harmonise competing interests without sacrificing either. Health without livelihoods breeds poverty. Livelihoods without regulation breed disorder. The challenge is not choosing one over the other; it is integrating both responsibly.
According to key industry stakeholders, the economic disruption projected to arise from NAFDAC’s wholesale enforcement is in the region of 500,000 direct job losses, 5 million indirect job losses, and the loss of over N800 billion in investments. While NAFDAC is hell bent on the ban, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) and the National Security Adviser (NSA) had earlier directed a suspension, citing security and economic risks.
Some industry thought leaders also maintain that the ban may drive a radical and harmful shift with consumers gravitating toward dangerous, unregulated, or illicit alcohol alternatives.
Suffice it to say that reducing the debate to a morality play does not serve the Nigerian public. What is required is sober assessment, collaborative engagement, and a recalibration that ensures children are protected, workers are not abandoned, and economic stability is preserved.
Opinion
Edo State To Spend N1billion On Armoured Car For Speaker, N4.6billion On Vehicles For Lawmakers
The budget also reveals that N4.6 billion is planned for vehicles for the 25 members of the State House of Assembly.
Reporters’ review of the Edo State approved budget for 2026 shows that N1billion has been allocated to purchase an armoured vehicle for the Speaker of the State House of Assembly.
The budget also reveals that N4.6 billion is planned for vehicles for the 25 members of the State House of Assembly.
Also, N50million is planned for the purchase of refrigerators and other equipment for four directors. The House of Assembly Commission also plans to spend 200 million naira on roof and window replacement for its office building.
Earlier, a civic accountability group, MonITng, raised concerns over the execution of a multi-million-naira education project in Edo State, citing poor quality, procurement irregularities, and a recurring pattern of questionable contract awards.
“A project titled ‘Building of Blocks of Classrooms at Ojah Comprehensive High School, Akoko LGA, Edo State’ with project code ZIP20240448, valued at ₦222,000,000.00, and awarded under the Federal Polytechnic Auchi, Federal Ministry of Education, has raised serious concerns about the quality of execution, contract pricing, and procurement integrity.”
According to MonITng, its team tracked and inspected the project site. “Our team tracked and visited the project site and confirmed that although the classrooms were completed, they were poorly constructed.”
The group further noted: “The structure lacks basic finishing elements such as landscaping, proper drainage, and standard finishing works, all of which should have been included and adequately executed, given the huge sum budgeted for the project.”
It added that “the poor quality of work raises questions about project supervision, contract oversight, and how the allocated funds were spent.”
MonITng also linked the project to a contractor allegedly tied to multiple controversial contracts. “Even more troubling is the pattern we uncovered. The project was executed by Sam Sedi Nig. LTD, a company that has consistently received major contracts facilitated by Senator Adams Oshiomhole.”
The group claimed that “this same contractor handled the abandoned ERGP20245252 project, Construction of Warake to Ivbiaro Road in Owan East LGA, valued at ₦200,000,000.00, which remains incomplete despite significant disbursements.”
“Additionally, the same company implemented a controversial agricultural empowerment programme in Etsako communities, also facilitated by Senator Oshiomhole.”
MonITng alleged that “the recurring involvement of this contractor in multiple projects, combined with substandard delivery and abandoned works, suggests a pattern of procurement manipulation, inflated contracts, and possible diversion of public resources.”
It added that “the situation reflects how public projects, although completed on paper, often fail to deliver a meaningful impact due to corruption, poor supervision, and a lack of accountability.”
The Ogun State chapter of the Labour Party has accused the All Progressives Congress of using its ongoing electronic membership registration to allegedly manipulate figures ahead of the 2027 general elections.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the state chairman of the Labour Party, Chief Oluwabukola Soyoye, claimed that the APC’s e-registration exercise was designed to digitally inflate its membership strength and project a false image of popularity in the state.
Soyoye alleged that the ruling party had resorted to electronic registration because it could no longer mobilise people openly, insisting that the administration of Governor Dapo Abiodun had suffered widespread rejection due to what he described as underperformance.
According to him, the APC’s e-registration, presented as a routine membership drive, was in reality “a political referendum that exposes the deep rejection of Governor Dapo Abiodun and his black-market style of governance by the people of Ogun State.
“The people of Ogun are now wiser. They have deliberately refused to participate in any open, physical APC registration because they know the ruling party has failed them,” Soyoye said.
“That is why the APC has resorted to this so-called electronic registration — a system that allows figures to be fabricated behind closed doors without the presence of real members.”
The LP further alleged that the electronic platform could be used to manipulate membership data, inflate figures and create a misleading narrative of political dominance ahead of 2027
“What we are witnessing is not a genuine political exercise but a fraudulent digital operation designed to manufacture legitimacy for a government that has lost the confidence of the people,” Soyoye added.
Abuja Elections: APC Drags PDP To Courts
2027 Shocker: Popular Nigerian Cleric Predicts Total Collapse of Three Major Parties
BREAKING: Sultan Receives Moon Sighting Report, Announces Date of Eid-ul-Fitr in Nigeria
Former Super Eagles Star Loses Life Savings, Duped By A Pastor of ₦1.2 Billion
These ’90s fashion trends are making a comeback in 2017
