Some negative reactions that trailed his emergence were inspired by the notion that his five-year rule in Ogun State has been an absolute disaster and should not be rewarded with a position that ideally should be reserved for hardworking leaders with a proven track record of performance.

But this sentiment might be wrong, especially if you look at the composition of the current crop of governors in the region — the Ogun helmsman seems the only governor with so much free time on his hands.

The SGF comprises governors from the three regions making up the southern part of the country namely: South-West, South-East, and South-South.

While a large percentage of the forum members are first-timers, Abiodun is among the four second-term governors in the group. Others are Godwin Obaseki of Edo, Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos, and Seyi Makinde of Oyo.

As a South-West governor, Abiodun was ostensibly elected to complete the tenure of the late former governor of Ondo State, Rotimi Akeredolu, who died in December 2023.

But that’s probably not the main reason for his emergence because one of Sanwo-Olu or Makinde could have taken the position but developments in their states suggest they may be too busy to handle such a task.

That left Abiodun in a pole position to fill the void while Makinde and Sanwo-Olu face the business that matters.

One quality Governor Abiodun has over other governors qualified for the position is his judicious use of his time and ability to multi-task. Having these qualities implies the Remo prince would have no issues juggling his responsibilities as a governor and leader of his fellow governors.

You can bear witness that Governor Abiodun’s ability to multi-task was recently demonstrated at the glamourous Ojude-Oba Festival, where he spent quality time with the rich and the masses. The governor spent “10 hours” at the colourful event, serving steeze and the people simultaneously.

Even as his elegant and majestic appearance took centre stage, Abiodun was not distracted by excitement as he maintained a solid balance between the euphoria of the festival and purported official meetings online.

Impressed by the governor’s juggling skills, one of the famous photographers who graced the events hysterically ran to social media to commend him for his never-seen-before multi-tasking and time management skills.

“Kudos to Gov @DapoAbiodunCON tho, he sat for over 10 hours yesterday while standing & greeting over 40 families & egbes. And yet he was so busy on his iPad attending to crucial governmental issues,” the photographer tweeted.

By birth, Governor Abiodun is a prince, but in his own right, he is a king. A political leader who commits more time to his fashion taste and looks than the appearance of the people he leads is a worthy king of steeze.

Besides his ability to multi-task, which is a requirement for his SGF chairmanship role, the governor’s sense of time management deserves some sort of appreciation from his people.

Where else in the world will a state governor sit in one spot for 10 hours enjoying a cultural display and attending to governmental issues simultaneously? If that is not bringing the government closer to the people, being in the same event venue with an award-winning governor should be considered a dividend of democracy, especially for citizens who easily get star-struck.

Another advantage the SGF would derive from Governor Abiodun’s leadership is his altruistic disposition to be happy for others’ successes. Being a genuine “abonireyo” will help him effectively deliver some “eye-services” that’ll have absolutely nothing to do with the people he’s elected to serve.

You saw him at the inauguration of the Lagos Red Rail Line and recently at Chioma and Davido’s wedding, beaming with happiness. This is exactly one of the things he’ll need to keep up to excel in his new leadership position. Attending events like CHIVIDO is one way to deliver good governance and bring investments to his state.

Abiodun will also be expected to generously support other southern governors in commissioning people-oriented projects in their states while Ogun residents drown in their admiration of fine photographs of him cutting ribbons in other states.

In any case, the point of this piece is to congratulate him on his election as the chairman of the Southern Governors’ Forum. His counterparts in Lagos and Oyo would have been more qualified if they had not been busy with governance.

Governor Abiodun has enough free time to discharge the responsibility expected of anyone occupying the position and all indigenes of Ogun State, regardless of their views about his performance, should commend him for winning the seat.