I am writing this dangerous political observation from Adeoyo, Ring Road, Ibadan, where I am presently doing justice to a plate of amala. Yes! Amala! Not from a political campaign office. Not from the comfort of an air-conditioned hotel room. Not from some distant Ekiti village where critics may conveniently accuse me of meddling in Oyo State affairs. I am right here in Ibadan, eating amala, swallowing history, and contemplating the political danger posed by Senator Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli, a figure whose ambitions for the Governor of Oyo State seat continue to shape local conversations.
Before anybody asks what an Ekiti man is doing in Oyo State politics, let me issue a warning. Don’t try me! I have been politically, professionally, and emotionally domiciled in Oyo State since 1991. Thirty-five solid years! I have eaten the amala, inhaled the political dust, witnessed the intrigues, celebrated the victories, and endured the disappointments of this great state. Indeed, I can legitimately nurse the ambition of contesting an election in this region, subject, of course, to the constitutional requirements.
Governor of Oyo State: Examining the Credentials of Sharafadeen Alli
I was a journalist with the Nigerian Tribune, that formidable institution of political journalism. I served as Secretary and Chairman of its NUJ chapel and later became a two-term Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Oyo State Council. I was not a spectator in the political emergence of Senator Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja, now His Imperial Majesty, the Olubadan of Ibadanland. I was part of his core campaign team, alongside Barrister Adekanmbi, Engineer Adigun, Lloyd, and other committed political associates. We knew the terrain. We understood the intrigues. We experienced the battles. And I have watched the evolution of Nigerian governance from the era of political godfathers to the age of political godsons.
Now, to the dangerous matter at hand. Why must Senator Sharafadeen Alli not become Governor of Oyo State? I have examined his antecedents, scrutinised his political trajectory, and interrogated his credentials. My conclusion is frightening. This man is dangerously experienced! And that is precisely the problem. In a political environment where public office is sometimes treated as an apprenticeship in governance, why should Oyo State entertain a man who has already served as Local Government Chairman, Secretary to the State Government, Chief of Staff, Chairman of Odu’a Investment Company, and Senator of the Federal Republic? Haba! What kind of greed for experience is this? Must one man know everything about government?
Navigating Decades of Public Service
Consider his first political transgression. In 1991, when many of today’s political commentators were still struggling with the spelling of democracy, Alli had become the elected Chairman of Ibadan North Local Government. 1991! The same year I arrived at the Nigerian Tribune to begin my professional journey in Ibadan. While I was learning the intricacies of journalism, Alli was already confronting the practical challenges of local administration. Thirty-five years later, he is still politically relevant. Is that normal? In a country where politicians frequently disappear after losing an election, this man has demonstrated an irritating capacity for political survival. He has refused to become yesterday’s newspaper. That alone should disqualify him!
But his greatest offence was yet to come. He became Secretary to the Oyo State Government under Governor Rashidi Ladoja. Later, Chief of Staff. Now, this is where my concern becomes personal. I knew the Ladoja political environment. I was part of the movement that helped bring that administration into existence. I understood the temperament of the man who is today the Olubadan of Ibadanland. Ladoja was not a political leader one could easily confuse with empty grammar or decorative loyalty. Therefore, anybody who operated within that administration at such senior levels must have acquired considerable exposure to the machinery, tensions, and responsibilities of government.
The Threat of Institutional Memory
And Sharafadeen Alli occupied two strategic offices: Secretary to the State Government and Chief of Staff. Imagine the danger of electing a governor who already understands how government files travel, how executive decisions are coordinated, how ministries function, and how bureaucratic excuses are manufactured. How will anybody deceive such a man? How will an official confidently present an inflated project estimate to someone who has spent years navigating public administration? How will a contractor explain that a simple project requires an astronomical amount without expecting uncomfortable questions? This is a serious threat to the traditional entertainment value of governance.
And as though that were not enough, Alli went into corporate governance as Chairman of Odu’a Investment Company Limited, an institution associated with the economic inheritance of the Southwest. So, apart from understanding grassroots politics and executive administration, the man has also been exposed to investment management and regional economic development. What exactly does he want? To turn the Government House into a place where people discuss returns on investment, fiscal responsibility, and institutional performance? God forbid! We prefer political grammar! We enjoy beautiful promises, elaborate ceremonies, and magnificent declarations. But this Alli appears determined to arrive with institutional memory. And institutional memory is a dangerous weapon against administrative amnesia.
Then came his most recent offence. In 2023, he entered the Senate. Not content with his experience in local and state government, he decided to acquire federal legislative experience. Today, he has participated in Senate committee leadership, including responsibilities relating to electoral matters and agricultural institutions. A lawyer with an LL.B., an LL.M., and a doctorate! A grassroots administrator! A former senior executive official! A corporate board chairman! A senator! Ah! Senator Sharafadeen Alli, what have the people of Oyo State done to deserve this accumulation of qualifications? Why should one candidate arrive with a résumé that looks like the curriculum of a school of governance? And what becomes of our cherished culture of trial and error?
Even more disturbing is his association with His Imperial Majesty, Oba Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja. The man who once governed Oyo State now occupies the revered throne of the Olubadan. Alli served him in government. I participated in the political struggle that brought Ladoja to power. We belong, in different capacities, to a generation that witnessed some of the defining political episodes of modern Oyo State. So, when I examine Alli, I do not merely see a governorship candidate. I see a man whose political history intersects with events I personally witnessed. That is why my assessment cannot be dismissed as the uninformed enthusiasm of a distant admirer.
Interrogating the Record
But let nobody misunderstand me. Experience is not automatic evidence of excellence. A doctorate is not a certificate of infallibility. Holding public office does not confer a divine right to another. Sharafadeen Alli must still be interrogated on his record, his plans, his leadership capacity, and his promises. Oyo State deserves nothing less. Nevertheless, the irony remains irresistible. At a time when citizens demand competence, administrative familiarity, and a working knowledge of government, here comes a man whose career has traversed the three tiers of government. And I am expected to welcome this dangerous development without raising an alarm? Never!
Let the political elders assemble. Let the strategists hold an emergency meeting. Let the professional manufacturers of political propaganda sharpen their instruments. A man who knows the difference between campaigning for power and administering power is approaching the Government House! And that is the danger. But now, as I approach the last morsel of my amala here in Adeoyo, Ring Road, Ibadan, I must confess something. Perhaps I have been unfair to Sharafadeen Alli. Perhaps his offence is not that he has acquired too much experience. Perhaps the real offence is that he has made experience difficult to ignore.
Perhaps what Oyo State needs is a serious public conversation about competence, character, courage, accountability, and the capacity to translate political experience into measurable development. And perhaps the question is not whether Sharafadeen Alli should become governor. The question is whether his long years in public service have prepared him to deliver the quality of governance that Oyo State deserves. That question must be answered by his record, his programme, and ultimately the electorate. For now, I withdraw my imaginary petition against his ambition. But I retain my warning.
Beware of Sharafadeen Alli! Beware of a politician who has spent decades learning the language of government. Beware of a lawyer who has moved from local administration to executive authority, corporate governance, and national legislation. Beware, above all, of the temptation to mistake experience for mere political longevity, or to dismiss it as irrelevant. For in the final analysis, Oyo State does not need a governor who merely knows how to win an election. It needs one who knows what to do after winning. And that, my dear readers, is the dangerous academic gymnastics that a plate of amala has provoked in me today.
Sharafadeen Alli must not become Governor of Oyo State merely because he is experienced. He must earn that office by demonstrating that his experience can become progress, prosperity, and purposeful leadership. Now, can somebody please bring me another wrap of amala? This political analysis has exhausted my first serving! Please where is Pastor Bisi Oladele, Adekannmbi, Alakime, they should pay for my Amala oo!
*Ojo-Lanre writes from Adeoyo, Ring Road, Ibadan.
