Hon. Abegunde, popularly called “Abena” can best be described as a political Trojan horse. He is one politician who stays through to a cause one he has the courage of his conviction about the cause.
Ifedayo Abegunde in the hey days of Labour Party in Ondo state was a stakeholder who did not only identify with the ethos of the party, but leveraged on the party structure to win a ticket to the House of
Representatives, Abuja. In fact, as a member of the lower chamber of the National law making body, he did his party and his constituency proud by his quality contribution at the floor of the House as well as the constituency projects he helped to locate in his area.
However, as the cookies crumble sometimes in the political arena, things fell apart between Hon. Abegunde and the former Ondo state Governor, Olusegun Mimiko. Abegunde with the benefit of hindsight saw the Labour Party going under, having seen through the intent of the handlers of the party in the state to cross over to a more convenient platform for political survival. Abegunde dumped Labour party at the floor of the House of Representatives but it was not without dire consequences to his political career as he had to criss cross between the House of Representatives and the court to forestall his seat from being declared vacant by forces in his former party, who felt slighted and hurt by his defection.
As an Akure man, he believed and worked assiduously for the success of the “Aketi” gubernatorial project, which paid off eventually.
As he bounces back in the polity to occupy the plumb job of the state government scribe, a job with very huge political and administrative responsibility, congratulations are in order. It goes without saying that many eminent Akure sons and daughters battled to get this highly rated appointment and that it was Abegunde’s for the take reflects the trust the Governor reposes in his person. While he will need all his zeal to excel on his new beat as the job is slightly different from that of a mere political jobber, it is sweet victory for Ifedayo Abegunde ; between him and his political detractors who had dug his heels from the Labour party days, it is apparent that Abena is having the last laugh.
