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Not a few forces were are at work to ensure that their candidates won the governorship election that took place in Ogun State on March 9, 2019 just as governorship elections held in many other states in the country.
However, the battle was so tense in Ogun State that nobody could say for sure then that he knew where the pendulum would swing.
The man that later carried the day in person of Ijebu-born Prince Dapo Abiodun has God to thank for his victory and he would be eternally grateful to a powerful cabal that joined hands to ensure his victory at the polls despite all the shenanigans that took place in the state before the now historical election.
It was obvious at the initial stage that the incumbent Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State was not going to give his support to Prince Dapo Abiodun, and he did not hide this as he openly made it clear that he had his own candidate for the coveted office.
The starting point for the oil magnate-turned politician was the primary election of the All Progressives Congress (APC), where Governor Ibikunle Amosun of the state preferred Ogun West-born Hon. Abdulkadir Adekunle Akinlade, a serving member of the Federal House of Representatives.
But, the national body of the APC would not allow Amosun handpick candidates for the election and they insisted on a transparent primary “that would produce candidates that are acceptable to all and sundry for all the elective offices in the state.”
One of those, who believed in the ability of Prince Dapo Abiodun was the Ogun State-born Vice President of Nigeria, Professor Yemi Osinbajo.
Osinbajo had been seen around incoming Governor Dapo Abiodun and he was said to have worked assiduously to ensure his victory both at the primaries and the general elections under the APC.
Professor Osinbajo had been a long time pal of Dapo Abiodun, and he saw Abiodun as a future governor of the state long before he won the primary election of the party before he was later elected in March, 2019.
Those close to the duo revealed that Professor Osinbajo is the number one godfather of Dapo Abiodun and that he stood by him right from the beginning, and that he ensured that the leadership of the party prevented Governor Amosun from imposing his governorship candidate on the party.
Another notable politician, who stood by Prince Dapo Abiodun before his emergence at the primaries as the APC guber candidate in Ogun State and his subsequent election is a former governor of Ogun State, Chief Olusegun Osoba.
Osoba is a notable leader of the APC in Ogun State, but he had been having a running battle with Governor Ibikunle Amosun for some years though both of them hail from Ogun Central Senatorial District.
The former governor reportedly insisted that it was either Dapo Abiodun or nobody and we gathered that he vehemently opposed the candidate of Amosun for the coveted office under the APC.
Sources in the APC revealed that Osoba fought endlessly to ensure a free and fair primary in Ogun State APC, which was why Prince Abiodun emerged victorious both at the primary and general elections in the state.
Also mentioned as a member of the cabal that ensured the electoral victory of Prince Dapo Abiodun was another former governor of the state, Otunba Gbenga Daniel aka OGD.
It will be recalled that Gbenga Daniel directed his supporters in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to work for Prince Dapo Abiodun and vote for him in the March 9, 2019 general elections days before the general elections.
It was reliably gathered that it was this singular action that gave Dapo Abiodun the victory at the election as Governor Amosun was said to have spared no cost to ensure victory for his candidate for the election, who he fielded under the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Hon. Abdulkadir Adekunle Akinlade.
Followers of events revealed that OGD decided to support Prince Dapo Abiodun, when it was clear that the candidate recognized by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to contest the governorship election of the state under the PDP, Senator Kashamu Buruji was not recognized by the national leaders of the party.
One other prominent politician who joined hands with others to ensure victory for Prince Dapo Abiodun to emerge victorious at the governorship election in Ogun State is Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola aka Yayi.
Sources informed us that Dapo Abiodun belongs to the political camp of Yayi, who was elected into the senate for a second term in 2019 under the APC from Lagos West Senatorial District.
Yayi is Lagos-based, but he hails from Ogun West Senatorial District.
He had nursed an ambition to contest for the governorship of Ogun State under the APC in 2019, but he was allegedly frustrated by Governor Ibikunle Amosun.
This notwithstanding, Yayi reportedly decided to support Dapo Abiodun for the office and gave him both moral and financial support to achieve his aim as he reportedly gave his political structure in the state to Prince Dapo Abiodun, which we gathered did the magic that gave him victory both at the primary and general elections in the state.
We were reliably informed that Yayi gave his all to mobilize support for Prince Abiodun and ensured that he emerged victorious at the elections.
Indeed, these forces were said to be more than enough to push Governor Ibikunle Amosun to field his Governorship candidate, Hon. Abdulkadir Adekunle Akinlade from the APM.
The rest is now history as Akinlade was defeated by Prince Dapo Abiodun at the general elections bringing an end to the perceived political domination of Governor Ibikunle Amosun in the gateway state.
