For the Records! Being Text of a Speech Delivered by His Excellency, The Senator Otunba Engr Gbenga Daniel FNSE, FAEng at the Stakeholders Meeting on the Creation of a New State of the Ijebu Province out of the Present Ogun State, at the Palace of the Akarigbo of Sagamu and Paramount Ruler of Remoland

Being the Text of a Speech Delivered by His
Excellency, The Senator, Otunba Engr. Gbenga
Daniel, FNSE, FAEng at the Stakeholders
Meeting on the Creation of a New State of the
Ijebu Province out of the Present Ogun State,
at the Palace of the Akarigbo of Sagamu and
Paramount Ruler of Remoland

‘TOGETHER WE SUCCEED’

Let me thank His Royal Majesty, Oba Adewale
Ajayi, CFR, the Akarigbo and Paramount Ruler
of Remoland, and all the Royal Highnesses
from Remoland present here today for the
opportunity given me to be part of the
process of creating a new State from the
old Ijebu Province out of the Present Ogun
State successfully, agreeable to, and to the
satisfaction of all parties concerned. Your trust,
believe and the confidence reposed in me will
never be taken for granted.

I will also like to appreciate and recognize
the encouragement, unflinching support and
the trust of His Royal Majesty, the Awujale of
Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, GCON
who is ably represented here today by other
Royal Highness sses from Ijebuland. Likewise, I
wish to also recognize and appreciate His Royal
Majesty Oba Babatunde Ajayi CFR, the Akarigbo
and Paramount Ruler of Remoland for his
unflinching support and understanding.
I also appreciate my other colleagues at the
National Assembly; as well as all members
of the Ogun State House of Assembly from
the Ogun East Senatorial District, and other
members whose concurrence will also be
required going forward.

As a little digression, I want to congratulate
all of us at the National Assembly and all the
people of South-West extraction especially our
President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR for
the passage of the South-West Development
Commission bill at the National Assembly which
by the grace of God will be accented to by the
President. This was midwifed by your Son.
I recognize all the Nine (9) Chairmen of
our Local Government Council Areas in the
senatorial district and their Councillors.
With your unflinching support and active
participation, there is no doubt that your
endorsement of this time-tested project is
sacrosanct.

Let me crave the indulgence of this gathering,
and for the purpose of appreciating where
we are coming from, begin with a brief
reintroduction of myself.

I am Justus Olugbenga Daniel! The Senator
representing all of you in the Upper Chamber at
The National Assembly. My great Grandfather
was Chief Daniel Abamba Otesile, Apena of
Makun, Sagamu. My late grandfather was Daniel
Banjo of the famous Abamba Oteshile dynasty
with a very strong root to Agbele in Simawa,
which is part of what is referred to as the Makun
Kingdom. My late father, His Grace most Rev
Abraham Adebola Daniel (formerly Banjo),
was the Olori Ebi of the Otesile Dynasty. He was until his death, the Baba Oba of Makun kingdom. I also
belong to the Ijagba clan from where I derived
my chieftaincy title as the Otunba Rojugbuwa
of ljagba. It is instructive to say that up until
1963, when my father adopted the first name
Daniel of his own father in my early primary
school years, I was Olugbenga Banjo. I am also
very proud of my Remo root as the Arole of
Remoland.

On the maternal side, my late mother, Princess
Olaitan (Nee Mabadeje) of Degorishen and
Ago quarters was a Princess daughter of Erelu
Ebiroye of The Adeoti Royal lineage in Omu.
I am Otunba Adeoti and the Olori Omooba of
Omu. It is also from this family lineage in ljebu
Ode through the Jadiara Royal lineage that
I derived the title of Otunba Obalofin of the
Ijebuland.

This brief introduction has become necessary,
so that without any doubt we can appreciate
where I am coming from. Especially becauseit is by the Grace and the will of God that I am
considered the Bridge between Ijebuland and
Remoland and among the people from the
length and breadth of the Ogun East Senatorial
District.

I believe that there must be a divine reason why
God put me at The National Assembly at this
point in history and why Asiwaju Bola Ahmed
Tinubu GCFR is our President at the time.
Let me also reiterate that in this matter of a
new state, I cannot and do not want to be a
Governor neither do I desire to be a Senator.
All efforts are for the sake of our children and
the younger ones to which the future rightly
belong.

As your Senator during this period, getting
involved in this process and at this time, is
an inevitable duty as a man cannot be bigger
than the constituency he represents. I am not
under any illusion that securing a new State,
especially under a civilian government, is
going to be an easy task. But having studied
Section 8 and 9 of the Constitution of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria, I am persuaded that
creating a new state from the old Ijebu Province
from the present Ogun State is long overdue
and it is doable.

The easiest path to thread in a controversial circumstance such that we are in at the moment
from me might be to fold my arms and do
nothing, but I remain convinced that doing
nothing is out of the question and it is not part
of the qualities that great and futuristic leaders
are known for.

If we go into our recent history, we will
appreciate that courage, however difficult
remains a virtue that usually pays off in the long
run. Our late Sage, Chief Jeremiah Obafemi
Awolowo had his own fair share of experience
while at the crossroads of choosing between
what he considered right and doing nothing.
The path of honour he chose was to follow
his convictions without minding the mundane
sentiments and criticisms. Pa Awolowo we were
told, thought the people of Ikenne drinking
from Uren River was unhealthy and he decided
to bring pipe borne water to the community but
the people, we gathered, refused to drink the
tap water because some people tried to exploit
their ignorance to say there were too many
chemicals in the water.

We also read about his Free Education Policy
in the Western Region, with several attempts
made to shoot down this lofty development
goal through vile propaganda, maliciously
claiming the Policy was targeted at the people’s
economic survival. They reasoned that the
Free Education policy was driven towards
taking the children who have hitherto assisted
their parents away from their farm. Decades
later however, this great initiative has proven
to be the most futuristic development policy
ever embarked upon by any political leader or
administration, not only in Nigeria, but arguably
in the whole of Africa, if not in the entire world.
This has given the people of the South-West
the competitive edge in civilization that we
have today.

Our current president, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed
Tinubu has been despised and wilfully criticized
for having the courage to confront and take
some very difficult decisions which initially
can be painful, but the courage which he
exhibited in leadership especially in taking
the difficult decisions has not gone unnoticed
even by some of his greatest adversaries and
critics. He deservedly earned the “Man of the
Year” recognition by a media organization
believed to be one of the most Critical of his
administration, and he is being listed among the
World’s 10 best leaders in the Year 2024. I think
he deserves a round of applause.

The accident of my birth has put me ina
position to become a unifying factor in Ogun
East Senatorial District, and I am convinced
that history will judge us right if we rise to the
Occasion. Otto Van Bismarck, a German once
said, “If we succeed, History will never forget
us, but if we fail, History will never forgive us
and Posterity will judge us”.

As Governor of Ogun State, I did all that I
consider necessary to unify our various people
by spreading development throughout the
length and breadth of the State which also
includes spreading development among the
Pillars of the Ogun East Senatorial District in
Ijebu and in Remo lands. For instance, while
I established the Gateway stadium in ljebu
Ode, I also established the one in Sagamu,l
also created the Tai Solarin University of
Education (TASUED) in Ijagun in Ijebu as well
as the Gateway ICT Polytechnic in Saapade
in Remo. Our administration constructed the
NYSC secretariat in Sagamu, which ranks as one
of the best in the country today the biggest
economic attraction to Remoland today, is
the Gateway Agro-Cargo Airport which was
conceived, conceptualized, designed, all
required lands acquired, all compensations paid,
all Federal Government statutory approvals
secured, all Surveys conducted under our administration, falling short of just awarding
the contracts for the construction. We thank
our current Governor for taking it to a logical
conclusion.

While all of these were going on skeptics
as usual labelled most of this turn around
initiatives as white elephants that will never see
the light of the day, some even called it OGD
scam at that time. Not forgetting the Deep-Sea
Port, the Laogo Island project etc etc. The story
of how we lost the Dangote Refinery due to
politics is still very fresh in our memories.
We thank God for the power of visioning that a
day like this will come.

It is also to be noted that as of the time I was
elected the Governor of Ogun State in 2003,
there was only one company of repute in
Sagamu, which is WAPCO/ Lafarge cement
company. But we established the Flower- gate
Industrial Estate at the Interchange between
and I must report to you that, that Industrial
corridor remains the fastest growing industrial
estate in Nigeria today, extending towards
Abeokuta, ljebu Ode, Ibadan. It is here in
Remoland and if there is anything that qualifies
Sagamu as our Commercial Capital even for the
present Ogun State, they are those projects and
things that I either did or initiated to the glory of GOD without being immodest.

I remain a very proud and committed son of you
all.

It is a known fact that creating a state out of
the Ijebu Province could have happened 28
years ago, but for various factors we lost that
opportunity. We lost that opportunity largely
because we could not agree on certain things.
Our people of Yoruba stock are considered
one of the most sophisticated in Nigeria today,
and arguably, our people of Ijebu and Remo fit
in as one of the most educated, industrious,
enterprising of the sub- ethnic division and we
are proud of our heritage.

It is incumbent on us to call the attention of
the various stakeholders of this country to the
fact that the colonial administration created
24 Provinces in 1923, OVER 100 YEARS
AGO!!! and of these, it is only the Ijebu and
Abeokuta Provinces that have not been created
as separate States. The two Provinces have
remained in one state Post Independence,
whereas some other Provinces in some cases,
have even been divided into two or even
three states. You can imagine how much we
have shortchanged ourselves in terms of
development that others have made in the last
45 years because we have not been able to
aggregate our opinions.

It would have been better if we seized this
opportunity to aggregate a collective conviction
to have our own state. We need to begin to
look at the bigger picture in terms of benefits and freedom for the up-and-coming generation
and resolve matters amicably with love and
unity.

In the course of my Research, and trust me,
I have consulted widely and still consulting, I
have seen various records and documentation,
with signatures of our various leaders past and
present, dead and alive who have signed for the
creation of the State at various times, and I am
persuaded that what Unites us and the bond
that we share is much bigger than the few areas
of disagreement. As a matter of fact, it appears
that we are the only people seeing ourselves
differently, the perception of the people looking
at us from the outside is that we are just one
and the same people. A unique set of Homo
sapiens.

Section 8 and 9 of the Nigerian constitution
clearly stipulates the requirement for State
creation, the various stages are herewith
presented;

1. Proposal submission: A request for state
   creation must be initiated through a
   Referendum supported by at least two thirds of
   the local govt areas in the proposed new state.
   This proposal must be endorsed by at least two
   thirds of the state house of assembly in the
   affected state. MY COMMENTS: THIS IS
   DOABLE, PROCESS ONGOING
2. Submission to the National Assembly: The
   proposal is then submitted to the National
   Assembly for further consideration. MY
   COMMENTS: PROCESS COMMENCED
3. Constitutional Requirements: The National
   Assembly must review the proposal to ensure it
   meets constitutional requirements. The area
   seeking statehood must demonstrate its ability
   to sustain itself economically and it must have a
   clear geographical delineation. MY COMMENT,
   DOABLE
4. National Referendum: If the National
   Assembly approves the proposal, a national
   referendum is conducted. This must be approved by at least two thirds of the voters in
   the area concerned. COMMENT; NOT A
   PROBLEM, IT CAN BE ACHIEVED.
5. Further Approval: After a successful
   referendum, the National Assembly must
   approve the creation of the state by at least
   two thirds majority vote in both the Senate and
   the House of Representatives. COMMENT;
   DOABLE.
6. Presidential Assent. Once the National
   Assembly approves, The President of Nigeria
   must sign the bill into law. What is your
   comment? – DOABLE.
7. Implementation. After the presidential
   assent, necessary administrative and legislative
   frameworks are put in place for the operation of
   the new state.

Whereas we can all see from the above that it
is not a tea party and not yet Uhuru, but I am
yet to see any one of the above that cannot
be achieved if we are all determined and
united in this quest. In fact, if we come out
strong and united in this room, half of the job
is done. I remain persuaded that we have all
the resources human resources and others and
the capabilities to achieve it. Our parents have
taught us that nothing good comes easy and nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Let me also again draw our attention to
certain facts of history. It is given that our
own late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo had
more supporters in Ijebu than in Remo. In
recent history also, we are aware that Kabiyesi
Awujale had made efforts to shoot down at
some point in time what was referred to as
the “ljebu Agenda” in favour of the present
Governor of Ogun State who is from Remo. It
is indisputable that some political actors trying
to play the divisive card of promoting the Ijebu
Agenda have been told by the Awujale to bury
their ambition in favour of a Remo candidate,
ostensibly to advance the fine lines of our unity
as a people.

The 2006 experiment

I remember in 2006, even as a sitting governor,
when it was not particularly easy to preside
over efforts aimed at balkanization of the State
where one was the head, I still held firm to my
conviction of the grave historical and economic
injustice done to the two Provinces which have
been shortchanged in the Nigeria Project. To
actualise this, I set up a committee and made
the late Pa Olanihun Ajayi from Remo the
chairman of that committee. This underscores
my strong belief that we need to find common
ground. Unfortunately, I do not want to be
recounting what we have lost as a people. We
pray that there should not be a repeat of history
that will truncate this current effort because our
people refuse to agree.

The Current Efforts

A few months ago, renewed agitation for state
creation started at the National Assembly. A
member of the House of Representatives,
Hon Wole Oke who is not even from Ogun
State submitted a Bill for the creation of three
new states, and which includes one from the
present Ogun State. What this means is that
even people who are not from here appreciate
the need for the creation of a new State out of
the existing Ogun State to correct the historical
imbalance. How can we as a people and as
the major beneficiary not see through this dire
need.

That was the Genesis of my research and
without trying to reinvent the wheel we pushed
the first document which has gone past the
first reading as we run against time. The next
stage is to reach a consensus before going
further. Hence, the need for these stakeholders’
meetings and discussions

I thank His Royal Majesty the Akarigbo of
Remoland for providing this platform for
continuous interaction with a view to reaching
a consensus. My prayer is that when this is
actualized both our paramount rulers, and
all our Royal highnesses will be witnesses to
history.

In conclusion

Let me re-emphasize, that the efforts towards
the creation of this new State is not for the
benefit of only the Ijebu Province, but rather
to correct the historical, economic, social and
political injustices on both our people from
the old Abeokuta and Ijebu Provinces. It was
to write the wrongs of History which tend to
shortchange both our people on the divides. It
was an effort to increase our joint and collective
participation in the affairs of our country, to
take our fair share and also benefit from our
Commonwealth fairly, equitably individually and
collectively as a people.

It is our hope that the Joint Committees being
set up will give us a consensus to enable
progress, and hopefully Issues of anticipated
Local Governments and others will be resolved.
I therefore call on our brothers in Egbaland
and Yewaland to see this effort as shared
opportunities for mutual benefits for both
states and our people, we therefore plead with
them to join us in this quest as it increases our
prosperity together and expands the frontiers
of opportunities for our people to thrive
together. As an illustration, our participation
in National discourse becomes more robust
as Instead of three senators we will have
six, amongst other advantages, while also
increasing opportunities for many aspirations
to flourish in the number of representations
that we will have in both chambers at the
National Assembly. The accrual revenue for our
commonwealth will also go further round to
meet the needs of our collective developments.
Of course, we as human beings have
differences in opinion, that is the way it should
be because we are educated and enlightened,
the idea of the joint stakeholders committee is
to consult ourselves and find common grounds,
create consensus and let us make progress.

Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria, long
live our Ogun State as we await the birth of a
new state after a long-awaited pregnancy.
I thank you all for reading and wish you all a
happy and successful new year ahead.

His Exc, The Senator,
Otunba Engr Gbenga Daniel, FNSE FAEng
Ogun East Senatorial District
17th Jan 2025.