Senator Ibikunle Amosun yesterday celebrated his 63rd birthday.
Indeed, the day was glorious and memorable not only for the distinguished senator and his family but also for millions of his followers and admirers across the length and breadth of Ogun State, South -West and Nigeria as a whole. He is astute and reputed for his political sagacity and excellent competence of a ‘financial engineer’.
Indeed the iconic and quintessential Senator Amosun deserves all the accolades and encomiums as a political enigma of this generation.
Ibikunle Amosun is an extremely likeable personality with a ‘near cult followership’ in Ogun State and indeed South-West Nigeria. Even after almost two years outside office as governor of Ogun State, he still remains consistently the most discussed politician in the state unlike his predecessors.
He has become a political institution, personifying good governance and a reference point of organised governance never witnessed in the history of Ogun State.
Amosun represents the face of a purposeful and forward looking political class of this generation. He is an accomplished political general. Millions of people all over Ogun State and indeed Nigeria have rolled out the drums to celebrate an icon, Mr. Phenomenal, a colossus.
The journey of Ibikunle Amosun to this high pedestal was tortuous but highly remarkable. A transition from a topmost accountant to a populist politician whose self proclaimed political mandates are ‘making a remarkable positive difference in political governance’ and ‘establishing a political apparati that endures and is sustainable. This political attitude has led to the SIA political latitude and a formation of SIA movement in every part of Ogun State and beyond. Ibikunle Amosun has redefined politics in Ogun State and indeed Nigeria with friends across the length and breadth of the nation.
Amosun is a phenomenon whose political shoes he vacated as the immediate past governor of Ogun State have been found too large for his associate politicians. Many people also call Amosun Mr Capacity. Yes he is!
Amosun met a troubled state economy in 2011 with a paltry N700 million as monthly Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and within a year increased it by over 800 per cent to N7 billion naira monthly. An incredible achievement only possible by someone with a clear knowledge of financial engineering.
A major achievement of Senator Ibikunle Amosun in his political career was the massive turnaround of Ogun State infrastructure. Amosun turned the state from a glorified ‘village state’ to a city. This feat has earned him the title, ‘Father of modern Ogun State’.
In fact the foundation for a new Ogun was laid by Senator Ibikunle Amosun with over 150 Foreign Direct Investments in Ogun State within five years.
This is one of the reasons for the current financial sustainability of the succeeding government in Ogun State. During the Amosun era as helmsman of the state, Ogun became the destination of first choice by investors in Nigeria. The magic he used to woo investors still remains a ‘trade secret’.
And to his followers, Senator Ibikunle remains a great and uncommon leader, highly passionate and compassionate. He is welfarist and populist in his political relationship with his followers and constituents.
Ibikunle Amosun has remained an enigma and the ‘heart’ of politics of Ogun State.
Many admirers of Amosun see him as an exceptional leader, the hope and the political pillar of Ogun State. He is being described as a political elephant that is a beauty to behold. Indeed Ibikunle Amosun is perceived as the political master of this generation. He is a man that has become a political idol to millions of politicians in Ogun State in particular and Nigeria in general.
- Lordbanjoue writes from Ogun State.
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