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Reveals His Plans
After several denials, Chairman, Ilaji Hotel and Sports Resort, Engr. Dotun Sanusi, has finally declared his intention to run for the governorship of Oyo State in 2027.
This development was confirmed by Sanusi with a poster he shared on his WhatsApp status last week. The poster read: OYODOTUN 2027, Governorahip Candidate, Vote Engr. Jubril Dotun Sanusi, Oyo State Governor 2027.
Also attached to the post was a prayer note. It stated: “Yah Allah, aid me and do not aid against me, and grant me victory and do not grant victory over me, plan for me and do not plan against me, guide me and facilitate guidance for me, grant me victory over those who transgress against me.” Of course, the turn of events is contrary to Sanusi’s earlier stand of not interested in running for political office.
Recall that City People, a few weeks ago, wrote a story about how there has been enormous pressure from different groups and associations in Ibadan for Engr. Sanusi to for Oyo guber race come 2027. The call for Sanusi to run, we wrote, was due to his immense contributions to the development of his immediate environment and Ibadanland generally through employments, multi million naira projects and his philanthropic gestures.
Sanusi was, however, quoted in the publication to have said that, his focus is not in running for political office but to concentrate on his business, and also to support the Governor Makinde-led administration to make sure it succeeds. That people must have probably mistaken his philanthropic gestures for political ambition. But now the game changed. Not only has Sanusi declared his interest in running for the Oyo guber race come 2027 but he seems to have also mapped out formidable strategies to achieve his ambition.
Already, there is a powerful movement on ground. The Jubril Dotun Sanusi Support Group (JDS). It consists of Sanusi’s friends, associates and several other volunteers who are ready to put in all in the course to make sure the ambition becomes reality. There has been a kind of subtle campaign for Sanusi across different media platforms, especially the social media. Campaign flyers, branded face caps, both online and physical, are already everywhere.
However, while Sanusi’s decision to run may be surprising to some people, there are those who have seen the message boldly written on the wall before now. The very first sign was the recent media bombardment by Sanusi. He’s always in the news lately. It’s either they are talking about his philanthropic gestures or community development projects or he’s addressing Ibadan issues as a Mogaji and a prominent son of the soil.
For those who have been paying deep attention to political happenings in the state, another noticable move from Sanusi’s camp is the sudden change in the arrangement of his names. Before now the business magnate was simply addressed as Engr. Dotun Sanusi. When there’s is no denying the fact that he’s a Muslim, not many people are familiar with the Jubril in his name however. But now there a special emphasy on the name ‘Jubril’, which is believed to be for political references.
Apart from this, Sanusi, in recent time, has delivered (philanthropy has been his trademark anyway) several projects too numerous to mention. The projects, focused on capacity building and community developments, have received commendation from across boards in the State. Example of such projects is the introduction of electric motorcycles and solar powered tricycles by Sanusi. The first batch of the innovations was launched a few weeks ago. This, according to Sanusi, is to pave ways for an era of eco-friendly transportation system for residents of Ona Ara local government, Ibadan and beyond.
Last year, Sanusi singlehandedly rehabilitated the road leading to Dagbolu, Araromi through Ijebu-Igbo in Ogun State. This is also coupled with several other projects that he has executed which include rural electrification for the people of Akanran in Ona-Ara Local Government and environs.
All these and other reasons are why many people want Sanusi to contest. Aside that, Sanusi is also eminently qualified to run for any political political office. He’s gotten the pedigree, the clout and above all the financial wherewithal to prosecute an election.
Sanusi is not just a businessman, he’s an accomplished entrepreneur who plays big in the upstream of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector. His investment also cut across hospitality, agriculture, sports and education. Though he has not specified under which political party he’s going to contest but there are strong indications that he may join PDP being a very good friend of Governor Seyi Makinde.
-Dare Adeniran
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