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By Sam Otti
I left home with my dancing shoes, determined to meet the dancing Governor of Osun State, Senator Ademola Jackson Nurudeen Adeleke- the political bulldozer known for his dazzling dance steps. He is the uncle of Nigeria’s global Afrobeats superstar, Davido.
But getting to Osun State was anything but a dance. I could not fly to Osun, so I opted for the cheaper alternative. That decision earned me a gruelling 10-hour crawl through the mentally exhausting gridlock on the Benin-Ore highway before I finally arrived Ila-Orangun, a serene community in Osun State. By then, my dancing shoes were almost asking for mercy.
My visit to the dancing Governor was part of the programmes lined up for the 29th Conference and Annual General Meeting of the Committee of Public Relations Executives and Information Officers in Colleges of Education in Nigeria (COPRECOEN), held at the Osun State College of Education, Ila-Orangun. Members of the association from federal and state-owned Colleges of Education across the country began arriving in Ila-Orangun on Sunday, October 4, 2026.
This year’s conference had the theme, “The Public Relations Officer as a Strategic Partner in Institutional Transformation: Driving the Dual Mandate Framework through Apt Communication, Advocacy and Robust Stakeholder Relations.”
The chief host, the Provost of Osun State College of Education, Ila-Orangun, Dr Jimoh Lasisi Ademola, rolled out the red carpet for us.
The College’s amiable Public Relations Officer, Ajala Babatunde Samuel, was also determined to ensure that nobody left Ila-Orangun with anything less than a memorable experience.
And he succeeded.
Fresh palm wine and yam sauce prepared with a generous dose of pepper welcomed us. The meal was so delicious that, after eating, I found myself whistling in frenetic excitement. Perhaps that was the first indication that the journey was going to be worth the trouble.
Despite the agonising traffic, the journey to Osun was filled with laughter, jokes and professional camaraderie. In the vehicle were the National Chairman of COPRECOEN and ebullient Public Relations Officer of Federal College of Education, Ehamufu, Enugu State, Dr Chukwuebuka Obi; the association’s Legal Adviser and PRO of Nwafor Orizu College of Education, Nsugbe, Anambra State, Benny Egbunonu; PRO of Federal College of Education, Ofeme Ohuhu, Umuahia, Abia State, Prince Obioma Oburuoga; PRO of Federal College of Education, Isu, Ebonyi State, Shango Msuega Matthew; and PRO of Federal College of Education (Technical), Asaba, Delta State, Ekwemuka Peter.
On our return journey, PRO of Federal College of Education, Obudu, Cross River State, Onwuoku Chukwuma Emmanuel, joined the travelling party.
As the National Assistant Secretary of the association, I was delighted to be part of the professional pilgrimage.
During a brief courtesy call on the host Provost, Dr Lasisi, I encountered something beyond the usual official welcome. I encountered a man who appeared to have given leadership a human face.
Staff members had heartwarming stories to tell about their Provost, while the physical environment of the College spoke loudly about his administration. The infrastructure could compete favourably with what is obtainable in some universities. The beautiful landscape and motorable internal road network were particularly impressive.
Soon, colleagues from other Colleges of Education across the country began arriving for the opening ceremony. One of those whose presence particularly gladdened my heart was my good friend, the vivacious and brilliant Danladi Mark Aduwu, Public Relations Officer of Kaduna State College of Education, Gidan Waya. Other colleagues came from Lagos, Kwara, Ogun, Kano, Enugu, Bauchi and several other states.
Then came the day I had been waiting for. I put on my dancing shoes
Tuesday, October 6, 2026, was the day scheduled for our meeting with the Osun State Governor. My mission was simple: meet the dancing Governor, exchange pleasantries and, if the opportunity presented itself, prove to Davido that his uncle was not the only man in the family with dancing credentials. Perhaps that could buy me a pockeful of notes from the generous Davido.
Unfortunately, the dancing Governor was not available. My heart sank. The Governor had left for Abuja for a trip abroad. Politicians are like birds. They fly the whole wide sky.
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But Osun State Government House surprised me in another way. Access to the Governor’s Office was remarkably easy. There were no intimidating bottlenecks or unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles. The officials we met were friendly and courteous. Within minutes, we were ushered into a beautiful hall where the Governor’s seal was conspicuously displayed.
Then came another pleasant surprise. We were taken to the office of the Deputy Governor, Prince Kola Adewusi, a handsome, refined, polite, humble and seemingly brilliant political leader.
I learnt that the Deputy Governor had celebrated his birthday the previous day without any fanfare. More strikingly, he had reportedly discouraged people from sending him gifts. I looked at him with admiration. In a political environment where birthdays can sometimes become elaborate occasions for political mobilisation and gift-giving, his modesty struck me.
The Deputy Governor apologised for the Governor’s absence. He knew why we were there. We had come to present an award of excellence in leadership in recognition of the giant strides of Governor Adeleke in the education sector of his state. He gladly received the award on behalf of the governor.
The Deputy Governor told us something I did not expect. According to him, Governor Adeleke is deeply devoted to God, and his famous dancing is, in part, his personal way of appreciating God for His goodness and blessings. In summary, the Governor dances for God.
That revelation hit me like a thunderbolt. Until then, I had viewed the dancing governor from a distance, as an entertainment-loving politician who had turned public occasions into stages for displaying his dancing prowess. I was wrong.
What I had dismissed as mere showmanship was actually an expression of gratitude. Nothing moves the heart of God like praise. When prayer fails, try praise. And Adeleke›s dance of gratitude is the secret of his success. I, too, will start dancing for God. When the storms of life billows, and fund becomes a scarce commodity, don›t groan in despair. Rather, dance like Governor Adeleke, the political bulldozer of Osun State. When the world turns you upside down, and you get stagnated by situations beyond your control, dance like David. Your dance of gratitude could be the last key to unlock the iron gate.
But it was not only the Deputy Governor’s explanation that made me reconsider my perception. The Governor’s office itself told another story.
I looked around at the furniture and the interior décor. There was no ostentatious display of wealth. Nothing screamed extravagance.
I saw simplicity and modesty. That observation made me pause. The Adelekes are not sewn in gold after all.
Sometimes, we form opinions about public figures from what we see on television or social media. We see a dance, a flamboyant gesture or a viral video and quickly construct an entire personality around it. But people are often more complex than the images we see.
As I left the Governor’s Office, I found myself thinking about the famous saying: never judge a book by its cover. I had arrived Osun State with a preconceived image of the dancing governor, casting my mind back to the Aregbesola administration.
I left with a different impression. I sat in the office of another dancing David? Perhaps there was another side to Senator Adeleke that many people, including myself, had failed to appreciate. The Bible tells the story of David, the king who danced before God with all his might that he was despised by his own wife. I left Osun State as a repentant critic. Governor Adeleke had won another heart. Mine.
And perhaps that is the beauty of travelling, meeting people and stepping outside the comfort zone of our assumptions. Sometimes, a journey does not merely take you to another state; it takes you into a different understanding of a person. So, I left Osun happier than I arrived.
The professional knowledge gained at the conference was rewarding. The friendships and camaraderie were priceless. And, of course, the pounded yam, goat meat and ewedu soup were more than adequate compensation for the distressing hours spent wrestling with traffic on the Benin-Ore highway.
My dancing shoes may not have found their way onto the dance floor with Governor Adeleke. But I returned home convinced that the journey was worth every kilometre.
•Otti is the Public Relations Officer, Federal College of Education (Technical), Umunze, Anambra State.
