By Citizen Bolaji O. Akinyemi
The greatest political burden confronting Southern Nigeria today is not merely bad leadership. It is the dangerous culture of godfatherism and money bag politics that increasingly determines who gets what, who emerges where, and who represents the people.
Politics in the South West was not originally designed around the worship of money. It was built around values, character, intellectual depth, community trust, and the moral concept of Omoluabi.
Sadly, we are gradually departing from that heritage.
Today, political value is increasingly measured not by integrity, competence, sacrifice, or service, but by the capacity to fund structures, sponsor influence, compromise delegates, and dominate the financial ecosystem of politics.
This drift is dangerous for the future of Southern Nigeria.
In Ondo South Senatorial District, where the seat has become vacant following the movement of Jimoh Ibrahim to the United Nations assignment, one of the names in contention is Dayo Faduyile, a Professor of Forensic Medicine and a man who has remained loyal to the party from its days as the Action Congress.
Beyond political loyalty lies something even more important: professional pedigree, intellectual credibility, and moral perception.
Public information suggests that Senator Jimoh Ibrahim himself prefers Prof. Faduyile because of the image such a personality would project to Nigerian youths. That alone is worthy of reflection.
A Professor as Senator is not merely a political calculation. It is a message.
It is a statement by leadership that politics can still reward intellectualism, competence, and integrity.
The Governor of Ondo State must understand the symbolic implication of such a decision, not only to his biological children, but also to the millions of young people over whom providence has made him a political father.
South of Oyo State, particularly within Ibadan and the adjoining communities that make up Oyo South Senatorial District, another political test is unfolding through the aspiration of Ambassador Akinremi Alade Bolaji.
A diplomat of distinction with over three decades of public service without scandal, he represents a different political culture from what Nigerians have increasingly become used to.
Yet, he finds himself in contest within a political environment populated by entrenched dynasty names, political families surviving on inherited relevance, individuals associated with failed institutional legacies, and career political jobbers who move endlessly from contracts to appointments and from one representation to another with little measurable impact on the people.
This is precisely where the crisis of Southern Nigerian politics now lies.
The politics of Nigeria is increasingly being structured against the original cultural values of the South West.
Not “Omolabi.”
Omoluabi.
That was the standard.
Character.
Discipline.
Honour.
Public morality.
Stewardship.
Those were the values that determined who led the Yoruba people during the First and Second Republics under the visionary leadership of Obafemi Awolowo.
That era produced teachers, journalists, academics, technocrats, and disciplined civil servants as governors, ministers, and senators.
Political parties were largely funded through membership dues and grassroots participation. Market women, artisans, community leaders, and ordinary citizens shaped the political direction of society.
Politics belonged to the people.
The strategic understanding of party structure and political control demonstrated today by Bola Ahmed Tinubu may very well have roots in his observations of the political influence of his foster mother, Alhaja Abibatu Mogaji, within the market and grassroots political system.
Her principle was simple:
“Ṣe Omoluabi ni?”
Is he a person of character?
That was the first test before support.
Today, unfortunately, the first question has increasingly become:
“How much can he spend?”
That is not the political culture of the Yoruba people.
We are now dangerously drifting toward a political culture more reflective of oligarchic dominance, where power is determined almost entirely by financial muscle and entrenched structures.
Yet, even in Northern Nigeria, the political reality is more complex than many Southerners admit. Before our eyes, Muhammadu Buhari consistently commanded millions of loyal supporters for years, not because he distributed money massively, but because many believed in his personal image, discipline, and identity.
The shift away from values based politics is what Southern Nigeria is now paying for.
Leadership is not a commodity to be bought.
Neither is representation a stock market for political investors.
This is why the leadership of the All Progressives Congress must pay close attention to the emerging political undercurrents shaping the nation.
Many politicians dismiss Peter Obi because of his movement across political parties and his refusal to build traditional political structures in the old style.
But perhaps many are refusing to understand the deeper message behind the Obi phenomenon.
Could it be that he recognises the financial recklessness and moral compromises often associated with maintaining conventional political empires?
Could it be that the younger generation is increasingly tired of political structures hijacked through money inducement and transactional loyalty?
The global democratic environment no longer favours the total capture of political systems through financial manipulation.
Without governors, without entrenched structures, and despite the repeated “no structure” narrative, Obi became one of the greatest political threats to the Nigerian establishment in 2023.
And whether he wins or loses in 2027, he will remain a major political factor because a pattern has already been established.
A movement has begun.
An ideological shift is taking place quietly among the youths. They funded Obi in billions locally and from the diaspora during the last election.
The culture is changing.
What may happen in 2027 could become the foundation for what will fully mature by 2031.
The burial of money politics in Nigeria may not happen suddenly, but the funeral procession has already started.
This is why the leadership of the APC in the South West must place character, competence, credibility, and professional achievement above deep pockets in determining who leads and who represents the people.
Because if care is not taken, Nigeria may soon witness a dangerous political marriage between the money driven entrepreneurial culture of the South East and the hegemonic political structure of the North within the emerging OK Movement political calculations.
That combination, if properly organised, may fundamentally alter Nigeria’s political equation for decades.
The South West must therefore return to its philosophical roots before it loses its political soul.
The future of Yoruba politics must not be built merely on financial influence. It must once again be rooted in the values of Omoluabi, intellectual depth, public accountability, and people centred leadership.
And perhaps the youths are already saying it in their own language and rhythm:
“…we will spend the billions
…till we shift the culture
…transform nations
…till we hear, ‘Well done.’”
Citizen Bolaji O Akinyemi
Apostle and Nation Builder,
Author of the book Global Leadership Code
Donald J Trump As A Case Study.
bolajiakinyemi66@gmail.com