Oke: We’ll Back Electable Candidate for Ogun 2027 Gubernatorial Poll

As the 2027 governorship poll in Ogun state draws near, a group, Ogun West Professionals, is ready to tackle the impediments of lack of cohesion and unity of purpose among major political players in the senatorial district. In this interview, Coordinator of Ogun West Professionals, Ajiroba Oladapo Oke, speaks on the group’s core programmes and other topical issues. Folalumi Alaran brings excerpts.

What is your group all about?

Ogun West Professionals comprises professionals of Ogun West origin, both within Nigeria and in the Diaspora, who are committed to regional development and political equity. It is a coalition of accomplished individuals from diverse sectors committed to the advancement and development of Ogun west Senatorial District.

The group, which is newly created, is focusing on promoting the interests, development, and political representation of the Ogun West Senatorial District in Ogun State, Nigeria and to play a key role in mobilizing professionals and stakeholders from the region. Our main objective is to push for equity, especially in state leadership to correct historical marginalization of the region.

Are your members concerned about the levels of development in the Ogun West Senatorial District?

Our members are deeply concerned about the levels of development in the Ogun West Senatorial District. Our advocacy is, therefore, rooted in a shared frustration over what we perceive as decades of neglect and underdevelopment compared to other zones in Ogun State.

Members in our meetings frequently highlight the poor state of roads, inadequate healthcare facilities, and limited access to human capital development. Despite Ogun West hosting major industrial hubs like Agbara and Ota, members argued that the economic benefits are not equitably reinvested in the local communities.

We are deeply concerned about the lack of job opportunities and youth empowerment programs, which leads to migration of talent to other regions or abroad.

Members believe that government institutions and services are disproportionately concentrated in other regions leaving Ogun West underserved.

Many of our members are professionals who grew up in Ogun West, some even retired from state public service  and have seen first hand the disparity in development. We believe that political marginalization has contributed to economic stagnation, and that producing a governor from Ogun West could help redirect attention and resources to the regions equitably.

What is your organisation’s agenda in Ogun?

Our goal is not just political power, but sustainable development and inclusive governance that benefits all parts of the state. Development is not just a side issue, it is central to our mission.

The agenda of the group is to present a common front before 2027. But the senatorial district is known for divisions. Do you think the professionals can break the jinx and unite the people?

In politics, certain things are normal, this includes multiple aspirations by interested contenders. This is because politics is a game of interest apart from being game of numbers, but all aspirants are not equally endowed hence, among many contestants,  there will always be one among others who will clearly tower above the others as the best among equals. There will also be pretenders who are in the race for mere recognition and perhaps on the believe that they could be settled for other offices. 

It is always the responsibility of the leaders to look at each contestants and bring out the best candidate who can win the election.

Another reason for multiple candidacy might be because elections are contested on party platforms and no district or division will say because there is a candidate contesting in Party A therefore, other political parties should not pick their flag bearers from their region.  That tells you that non political actors’ leadership has limited control on the choice and fielding of candidates.

However, while we don’t need to burn the bridges over nothing, permit me to state that in our Yoruba agelong tradition, which has also become embedded in our contemporary culture, you can only aspire to be a king, the processes and procedures only allow the kingmakers after due consultations to decide who will eventually wear the crown, hence the general belief that it’s only God through His appointed leadership caucus who put people on the seat of power.

For the avoidance of doubts, all the past leaders up to the incumbent Governor of Ogun State were products of party leadership consensus arrangements with open affirmation after party leadership’s caucus endorsement. To do otherwise is like shooting the breeze or finding the needle in a haystack.

Governor Olabisi Onabanjo was endorsed by Papa Awolowo before the orchestrated electoral college stories. Aremo Olusegun Osoba was produced from Ijebu Igbo and Ayepe leadership caucus of Afenifere controlled SDP and AD parties’ leadership, Otunba Gbenga Daniel was endorsed from the Villa when the sitting President was the biding authority for Ogun PDP party nomination, Ibikunle Amosun (SIA) was also endorsed by the powers in Bourdillion cum ACN leadership caucus meeting at Ibadan. Let’s not also forget that the incumbent governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun’s candidacy, was cooked and served from Abuja power center when the home seemed settled with the anointed candidate of the incumbent.

We may also need to cast our minds back to the events of 2011 and 2019 when OGD and SIA attempted to undermine the influence of the same party leadership caucuses  to anoint their preferred candidates in their transition processes. We saw how things fell apart and how the centres refused to hold and the effects of their actions on their political camps to date.  Of course, the rest are stories for our reflections on the likelihood of the same strategies by any politician in the ongoing political dispensation. No matter how sharpened the knife is, it can never make its own handle.

It suffices, therefore, to note that the issue of party’s consensus arrangements had been part of our electoral history. It is a process whereby candidates are endorsed by the leadership caucus before being presented to the party for open affirmation in the primary elections. The rule of the game is clear, you either align your political interests along the party lines of thought, or you get consumed with your ambition.

Let me also reflect that despite the endorsements, some recalcitrant candidates with their supporters usually still go ahead to challenge party decisions at the open primary without success. However, it must be noted that history has not recorded a singular event where the party’s consensus candidate lost at the primary since it is usually the voice of the oracle.

People should, therefore, note that the issue of consensus candidates is not a new creation in our party system and in the electoral history of our state, Ogun.

Ogun west Professionals is among the stakeholders who will decide who our consensus candidate should be hence the need for the group to endorse and promote its preferred candidate before the general public and  party leadership. I assure you ,this will be done soonest.

How do you want to make sure you bring out your best candidates?

In Ogun west, the coast is very clear as regard who our consensus candidate should be . We have seen all the contenders in our region and we know which particular candidate is having the overwhelming popularity and acceptance across the state. Everybody in the region knows who the candidate is and the we in the Professionals group have unanimously resolved to throw our support behind that particular candidate.  We have held the referendum during our meeting and our cast has selected the candidate. This would be disclosed and unveiled at the upcoming media chat program coming up on February 1st.

The upcoming Media Engagement Program, scheduled to hold on Sunday 1st, February 2026 at Yewa Frontier Hotel, Ilaro  is an important event designed to foster constructive dialogue with the Senator representing the  good people of Ogun west, Senator Olamilekan Adeola. The event is intended to have a feedback from our Senator and to make the general public have a feel of his landmark achievements in quality representation and in the unprecedented infrastructure development he has brought to our district

Members of the professionals are aware of his numerous monumental developmental strides and his roles in promoting good governance, transparency, and regional development as a respected voice in the Nigerian Senate. The program therefore, will be invaluable in inspiring meaningful discourse and galvanizing support for initiatives that will further uplift our district and enhance our chances of being victorious in the 2027 Governorship election.

We want to as well use the occasion to appreciate Senator Adeola for attracting so much development to our region and to present him a special award as mark of our appreciation for his good and quality representation.

Can you tell us about your voter sensitisation for 2027 election?

The entire Ogun West district has been fully energized to massively register and obtain their voters card in preparation for the unprecedented votes that would be delivered for our President, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu’s second term and for the election of our candidate in the 2027 governorship poll.

We want to use our votes to make a clear statement that the region is fully prepared to end the historical marginalization of the zone in leadership position in the state.