Love him or loathe him, nothing can take away the hugely visible footprints of one of the finest sons of Ogun State, Rt. Hon. Abiodun Isiaq Akinlade, in the sands of time.

Since he came into political consciousness in 2003 at the national level, Akinlade’s brand of politics, which is essentially people-centric, has made him a grassroots maestro of repute.

To say he is a man of immense and fascinating abilities, and a political genius of sorts, especially when it comes to his contribution to Ogun West and Ogun State, won’t be an exaggeration.

Of course, his people in his zone recognize his commitment, compassion, and quality, hence, their decision to return Akinlade, whom they fondly call, Baba Omo Keekee (father of young ones), to the House of Representatives this Saturday on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Across the two local governments that made up his federal constituencies, Yewa South/Ipokia, the consensus is that he is the district’s best foot and he should be put forward to advance the cause of a society that is in a dire need of a tangible developmental upgrade.

Talk about his massive human and infrastructure development to the people and the zone, one can only scrape the surface because his interventions are too numerous to dig up in a short piece as this.

Coming into the national consciousness in 2003 when he was first elected as a member of the Green Chambers, he has since carved a niche for himself by wielding influence in many forms, chief of which is leading the line as a trendsetter in human capital development.

In and out of office, he has proved supportive and formidable for Ogun West. For instance, many of the federal agencies he facilitated while serving as the chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology to Ogun State are still booming with activities and generating income for the people and areas they are sited.

One of his very high points over the last 20 years has been productive entrepreneurship skills acquisition programmes and capacity building for folks in different stages of life.

Little wonder, he earned the sobriquet, ‘ Mr. Job Portal’, owing to his massive recruitment drive for the sons and daughters of Ogun State into different federal government agencies and parastatals.

On the political front, he has been a constant factor in the affairs of the Gateway State. His relevance and input have made people label him, THE MAN…THE BRIDGE…THE GAME CHANGER!

Akinlade, who is a close ally of the State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, served as the Deputy Director General of the Governor’s campaign in 2019.

The ever-smiling Baba Adinni of Yewaland has the youths and women stoutly behind him, and that, perhaps, reinforced the double-header victory he got from the Appeal and Supreme Courts over the post-primary election suit filed against him by those angry at his consistent popularity and influence.

From Ilaro, Owode, Oke Odan, Maun, Ipokia, Ilashe, Agada, Agosasa, Ihunbo, Idiroko, Idogo, to Tube, among others, the singsong is Akinlade for House of Representatives. Even his fellow candidates know and defer to his cult-like followership and acceptance, hence, their low-key campaigns across the constituency. He has promised to stand by his people when elected. As a man on a mission, he doesn’t cut corners with his words.

Coming with a handy experience as a third-term lawmaker, when elected, on Saturday, the people of Yewa South/Ipokia, can then sit back and relax to see a bigger federal presence in their constituency as Akinlade will statutorily become a ranking principal officer for returning to the Green Chamber for a record fourth time.

Clearly, the people must see the bigger picture ahead of Saturday and ensure that Akinlade and other APC candidates in Ogun West come out victorious. This is the only path for progress for a zone that is still lagging behind the two other zones in the state.

As the day draws closer, it is expected that Akinlade, after his anticipated victory on Saturday, would bring his unique legislative and representative knowledge to bear for the people of the Yewa South/Ipokia federal constituency.

Wale Elegbede wrote from Agada, Ipokia Local Government, Ogun State. [email protected]
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