Daniel’s Criticisms Driven by bitterness to revenge past disagreement

Former Ogun State Governor and current Senator representing Ogun East Senatorial District, Otunba Gbenga Daniel (aka OGD), continues to intrigue the reading public.

Driven by a quest for political attention, he has lately emerged as a vocal critic of Governor Dapo Abiodun, questioning the commensurability of infrastructure development with the revenue allocations received from the Federation Account. And he is pursuing it with zest and gusto.

In a manner that is unbecoming of his adversarial politics, Senator Daniel recently charged the people of his constituency in an incisive tone to demand accountability from the Abiodun administration, declaring that allocation to states and local governments had increased substantially over the last two years.

While lamenting what he described as “the state underdevelopment”, he told his audience that the government was under obligation to justify the humongous funds from the federal allocation by showing the things they had done with the funds.

He threw the charge while addressing a crowd of political stakeholders, supporters and constituents at Idokunnusi Ijebu Imushin in continuation of his Midterm Community Assessment and Review Tour in Ijebu East Local Government.

His words: “For our people here in Ijebu East, I share in some of your pains on the current state of underdevelopment, especially because I am aware that this whole community should be thriving in wealth and prosperity, especially with the abundance of natural resources which God Almighty has endowed us which has the capacity to sustain an entire nation.

“During my time as Governor of Ogun State, we discovered that Ogun East has the largest deposit of Bitumen anywhere in Nigeria. Our vision then was very clear: to create a whole new city for Bitumen mining and exploration which we believe would increase the economic prosperity and impact positively on the lives of the people living in the area.

We envisioned this area bubbling with multinational investments, industries, jobs, and infrastructure, all driven by Bitumen exploration and processing.

“Unfortunately, that vision stalled due to neglect after our administration. That is why I started by sympathizing with you because I understand your frustration and share in your hope for a new dawn”.

On another occasion, he decried the poor state of road network infrastructure in the state, questioning what the government had done with the humongous money received from the Federal government.

In an unrestraint outburst at the Midterm Community Assessment and Review Tour of the BATOGD Movement in Ijebu North East, Daniel lamented that many roads had been abandoned for decades despite their importance to the socio-economic life of the people.

“The condition of our road infrastructure is dire, and rehabilitation can no longer be delayed. We therefore implore the government to immediately commence the rehabilitation of eleven (11) key road networks that are central to the economic and social wellbeing of this local government,” he declared,
And he gave a long list of the roads crying for attention.

These include Atan–Odo Eran–Etiobu–Ododeyo–Ilumerin–Atan Circular Road (15km), Ogidi Junction–Odoregbe–Odosenlu–Imomo (7km), Odosenbora–Ibido–Okeaye–Omu (8km),Ogbogbo–Iworo–Odogogo–Odosiwonade (10km), as well as the Ilese Toll Gate–Ilefon stretch, Post Office Junction–Erunwon (10km), and others.

Done with objectivity, criticism itself is not a bad thing. Criticism, when directed at specific policies or actions of government, forces those in power to justify their decisions and spending. Such constant scrutiny is the bedrock of accountability and it helps prevent corruption and misuse of public resources.

As no government is perfect, constructive engagement acts as an early warning system, highlighting unintended negative consequences of a policy before the damage becomes irreversible.

It provides a feedback loop for necessary adjustments. By engaging with criticism, the government is often forced to consider a broader range of perspectives, leading to more inclusive and representative governance.

Constructive criticism can challenge the status quo and propose alternative, more efficient solutions. A government that openly accepts, considers, and responds to criticism demonstrates maturity and respect for its citizens.

In all his dealings, Governor Abiodun’s transparent policy endures public scrutiny. He has shown no aversion to constructive engagement since he assumed office with the “Building our future together” mantra of the administration, meeting stakeholders in Town Hall meetings to seek their inputs into decision-making that directly touches their lives.

No one else had done that before him. However, when a man suddenly develops a penchant for attention-seeking, he may either make unfounded claims or launch personal attacks just to maintain the spotlight.

That is what is widely understood as psychological dynamic, particularly in the realm of politics. In politics, visibility is equivalent to relevance. If a politician’s popularity is waning, the temptation to resort to sensational, aggressive or obsessive criticism becomes very high.

And once a pattern of sensational criticism begins, he has to continually escalate his rhetoric to keep drawing headlines.

In an attention-seeking scenario, the goal is no longer to offer constructive solutions but simply to generate noise. And so, the content of the criticism becomes secondary to the spectacle of the conflict itself.

Once criticism becomes an obsession, it raises legitimate questions about the underlying motive. In all his public comments directly at the Abiodun administration, OGD’s motives have shifted from public service to personal political gains. And the reason is simple.

He needs Governor Abiodun to remain in the political limelight. His incessant, dramatic criticism is a guaranteed way to dominate headlines and secure airtime. It is the reason the intensity and consistency of his criticisms are driven more by bitterness and a desire for revenge over past disagreements or potential election battles.

What makes this scenario particularly more intriguing is that the criticism is coming from a past governor whose performance record remains a subject of controversy years after his exit from office.

By constantly shining a negative light on the incumbent, he hopes to avoid scrutiny of his past. But the public is naturally inclined to look past the policy claims and focus on the political theatre—asking whether the critique is driven by a genuine concern for public funds or by a focused effort to reclaim political influence in the state ahead of future polls.

Every discerning members of the public knows that Daniel’s incessant outburst is pure political grandstanding to position himself as the voice of the masses to score cheap political point.

The motive is to divert public and media attention away from his dismal performance as a former governor or controversies he might be facing as the nation prepares for another cycle of election.

The public is not unaware of some of the myths surrounding his election into the Senate.

Now, realising that the time has come for his stewardship, he has chosen the blame-game tactic to deal with issues that could ordinarily be resolved behind closed doors or normal official channel such as he did in his reaction to the stop-work order recently placed by the Ogun State Ministry of Works on the construction of Paddy Arikawe Oye Igbimo road, in Sagamu GRA, to divert attention away from public scrutiny.

The road project is one of his constituency projects. But the Ministry of Works, in a letter written on behalf of the commissioner, Ade Akinsanya, noted that the contractor’s action “negates the normal due process that is to be followed before commencing work on a State Government road.”

However, his media aide, Steve Oliyide, twisted the matter, describing the stop-work order as a “sinister motive.” It is interesting to note that the same Daniel who accused the state government of hindering development of his constituents is now the one craving for cooperation.

Listen to what he had to say during his Midterm Community Assessment and Review Tour of the BATOGD Movement in Ijebu North East Local Government: “The primary responsibility for that road lies with the local and state government.

The plank of my message to our state government is simple: we need encouragement, not discouragement, to bring more development home. What we expect and indeed require from the state government is cooperation.”

Oddity; putting the last thing first. Dialogue and conflict, which one comes first? This, of course, speaks to the futility of undue political grandstanding and petty power politics which have become OGD’S regular past time in recent times.

His recent activities and unwarranted outbursts have shown that his criticism of the Abiodun administration is motivated by attention-seeking rather than public good. His public conducts are designed for spectacle rather than constructive substance. His critique is political posturing.

And it is not a one-off thing but a consistent recurring habit. By constantly raising the issue of bad roads, Gbenga Daniel is not engaging in good governance but is simply playing on public sentiment-exploiting a common, easily understandable pain point for political gain.

The current administration under Governor Abiodun sees road infrastructure as a catalyst for industrial transformation and has consistently highlighted the completion of over 1,200 kilometres of roads and signature projects like the Gateway International Airport as evidence of its development focus.

The impact of this achievement is evident in the attraction of investments into the state, leading to a rapidly growing number of industries that have transformed its economy from dependency syndrome to a self- sustaining entity.

The core of the administration’s pride is that its infrastructure projects are not just for transportation but are a catalyst for economic growth. This has made the state a preferred destination for investors. Ogun State currently tops the chart in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) attraction.

Apart from the big industries already operating in the state, the government has consistently announced new investment pledges and the establishment of new factories and businesses. For instance, the administration recently announced a major investment pledge for a Disneyland-style resort, which is a testament to the state’s growing reputation as a top investment destination.

This is in addition to the long list of other potential investors seeking for a space to berth in the state, including the Taiwanese multinational conglomerate and global tech giant, Foxconn, which has expressed interest in setting up its manufacturing plant in Ogun State.

These investments are a direct result of the improved infrastructure and the administration’s investor-friendly policies. It therefore implies that Daniel’s criticism is not only biased, unfair, but also misplaced.

Road construction is one of the most visible and successful aspects of the Abiodun administration’s tenure, making his criticism of it politically motivated rather than sincerely developmental.

Ogbonnikan is a Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to Ogun State Governor on Media