By Segun Olatunji
Grab your seats, good people of Ogun State, because Ladi Adebutu and his People’s Democratic Party (PDP) remnants are back with another comedy routine. Hiding behind a fictional WhatsApp group called the Ogun Good Governance Forum (OGGF), the opposition, days ago, dropped a caps-lock-heavy, seven-day “ultimatum” accusing Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, popularly called Yayi, of stealing N1.27 billion for “fake” hospital projects.
It is a terrifying script—if you suffer from a severe allergy to facts, basic geography, and how federal budgets actually work.
Driven by pure, unadulterated panic over Yayi’s massive, undeniable development footprint in Ogun West, the PDP has abandoned actual politics to become full-time fiction writers. Let us dissect this latest “expose,” which smells less like accountability and more like the frantic sweating of an opposition party that realises concrete beats propaganda every single time.
The Magic of the Moving Geography
First, let us admire the sheer mathematical and geographical genius of the OGGF. In their frantic rush to copy and paste project lines from the Appropriation Act to manufacture a scandal, they managed to trip over their own feet.
Take a look at the scandalous Itori Primary Healthcare Centre duplication that gave the authors such a severe migraine. They scream about N420 million being padded for a “small PHC building” in Itori, which they confidently claim is in “Abeokuta South Federal Constituency.”
For the geographically challenged members of the PDP hiding behind this petition, here is a free civic lesson: Itori is the headquarters of Ewekoro Local Government Area. It is firmly rooted in Ogun Central Senatorial District. Senator Yayi represents Ogun West. Last time we checked the constitution, senators do not magically swallow neighbouring senatorial districts into their constituency allowance just for fun. If you are going to accuse a man of stealing money for a project, at least find a project in his actual zone. But wait a moment, why let basic geography get in the way of a perfectly good smear campaign?
The “Ongoing” Panic Attack
Then comes the hilarious misunderstanding of how the Nigerian federal budget works. The OGGF claims their “field team”, likely a guy on an Okada with a smartphone and an axe to grind, visited Itele, Wasimi and Imasayi and found no brand-new diagnostic centres. They scream: “The funds have already been released because they are marked ‘ongoing’!”
Someone needs to buy the OGGF leadership a dictionary and a basic manual on federal procurement. In Abuja parlance, a project marked “ongoing” in a budget cycle simply means it is an active line item capturing phased funding, procurement or administrative processing through the executing agencies—in this case, University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan and Aro Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Abeokuta. It does not mean the equipment has magically materialised through teleportation.
But of course, the PDP strategy under Adebutu has never been about waiting for facts. Why wait for UCH to conclude procurement when you can shout, “Thief!” and hope no one checks the calendar?
The Contrast: Fictional Scandals vs. Tangible Tarmac
While the opposition occupies itself with drawing imaginary maps and reading budgets upside down, the real tragedy for them is that the people of Ogun West can actually use their eyes. The PDP wants us to look at paper; Yayi has forced everyone to look at concrete.
For a political opposition that thrives on the poverty and neglect of the rural masses, Yayi’s aggressive developmental strides are an existential threat. How do you campaign against a man who is actively working? Simple: you invent phantom billions, claim he stole them on paper and write long letters to the EFCC
If the OGGF genuinely wants to find out where Senator Yayi’s constituency interventions are going, their field team doesn’t need to look very far. They could start by driving down the newly transformed infrastructure pathways of Ogun West. Let them take a trip to the Ilaro-Owode road, or navigate the Asoga-Ilashe-Ikoga road, or perhaps check out the paved intra-city networks in Aiyetoro and Ota. These aren’t line items in a secret binder—these are actual, motorable roads saving businesses and commuters daily.
If they are so deeply passionate about healthcare delivery, maybe they should look at the ultra-modern intensive care unit (ICU) built and equipped at the General Hospital, Ilaro. Or the fully functional, newly built primary healthcare centres scattered across towns like Ajilete, Imeko, and Ota that are actually treating real human beings—not fictional political grievances.
Let them ask the thousands of students utilising the brand-new, modern blocks of classrooms and ICT centres built across Yewa and Awori lands. Or better still, let them interview the over 15,000 constituents who benefited from massive mega-empowerment schemes, walking away with millions in direct financial grants, deep freezers, sewing machines, vulcanising tools and agricultural inputs to boost the local economy. Yayi’s brand of politics leaves a physical address. The PDP’s brand leaves a WhatsApp broadcast.
Why the Panic, Ladi?
Let’s cut through the smoke and mirrors. This sudden interest in Ogun West’s healthcare system by the PDP and their front organisations isn’t born out of love for the people of Yewa-Awori. It is born out of pure, unadulterated panic.
For decades, the opposition treated Ogun West as a political footnote—a place to visit during elections, distribute a few bags of rice, make lofty promises, and vanish. Then Yayi stepped in. In a few short years, the narrative flipped. From massive school rehabilitations and aggressive road grading to unprecedented youth empowerment schemes and actual, verifiable community interventions, the standard of representation went from zero to a hundred.
For a political opposition that thrives on the poverty and neglect of the rural masses, Yayi’s aggressive developmental strides are an existential threat. How do you campaign against a man who is actively working? Simple: you invent phantom billions, claim he stole them on paper and write long letters to the EFCC.
See You in Court (Or Not)
The OGGF ends its manifesto with a dramatic flourish, threatening Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, petitions to anti-graft agencies, and a grand march to the Federal High Court in Abeokuta for an Order of Mandamus.
To that, we say: please, proceed! Drag the EFCC into it. Write to UCH Ibadan. Fill the courts with your paperwork. Senator Yayi’s track record of transparency isn’t written on the fictional pages of a PDP press release; it is written in the concrete and steel of the projects already standing across Ogun West.
If the opposition spent half the energy they use in fabricating budget scandals on actually touching the lives of Ogun citizens, maybe they wouldn’t have to hide behind anonymous “forums” to remain relevant. Until then, keep the ultimatums coming. They provide excellent comedy for the dry season.
. Olatunji, a Journalist, Political/Crisis Communication Strategist, writes from Ilaro, Ogun State
