Father Of the Gateway Renaissance At 70: OGD, The Titan Who Redefined Ogun State

By A.R. Olanrewaju 

April is almost here, and I can already feel the energy building across Ogun State and beyond. On the 6th, His Excellency Senator Otunba Gbenga Daniel, engineer, entrepreneur, former governor, and now the senator representing Ogun East, turns 70. But let’s be honest: this isn’t just another birthday. This is a moment to pause and celebrate a true titan, an illustrious son of the soil whose fingerprints are everywhere you look in modern Ogun. The father of the state as we know it today. A man whose achievements don’t just impress, they inspire, they challenge, and they make you believe that one determined person can actually rewrite a whole region’s story.

Think about it. Before OGD (as we all fondly call him) took the reins as governor in 2003, Ogun was often seen as Lagos’ quiet neighbour's, full of potential but somehow stuck in the shadows. He walked in with a simple but powerful promise: “A Contract with the People.” And brother, did he deliver. Over eight straight years, he didn’t tinker around the edges, he rebuilt the foundation. Thousands of kilometres of roads snaked across the state, linking forgotten villages to booming markets and turning dusty paths into arteries of commerce. He didn’t just talk education; he founded Nigeria’s very first University of Education, set up four brand-new ICT polytechnics, and upgraded schools left and right. Sports? Three world-class stadiums plus one brought to FIFA standard. Healthcare, youth empowerment, industrial clusters, the investments poured in from home and abroad because people saw a leader who actually meant business.

Even his old boss, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, couldn’t hold back the praise. Back in the day, Baba Obasanjo openly called Daniel’s administration “the best thing to happen in Ogun State.” Later, reflecting on the transformation, he said Daniel had “made our dreams become a reality” and that he was “proud to be a Nigerian born in Ogun State” because of how this man changed lives through real projects and smart policies. That’s not ordinary praise, that’s a heavyweight acknowledging a heavyweight. Obasanjo even singled out the groundbreaking University of Education as a stroke of genius. When Nigeria’s most no-nonsense leader says your work turned the state into a player on the national stage, you know you’ve done something historic.

But here’s what makes OGD even more special, he didn’t start in politics. This is a man who built empires with his own hands first. As a sharp engineer fresh out of the University of Lagos (with an MBA to boot), he founded Kresta Laurel Limited and turned it into West Africa’s go-to name for elevators, escalators, and serious electro-mechanical systems. Headquartered in Lagos with branches everywhere from Abuja to Port Harcourt and Ibadan, the company became Nigeria’s first ISO 9001-certified lift firm, setting standards that others still chase. No wonder President Bola Ahmed Tinubu himself picked up the phone to congratulate Senator Daniel and the entire Kresta Laurel team on their 35th anniversary just last year. Tinubu hailed their “enterprise discipline, resilience, effective management, and sound business practices” and thanked them for believing in the Nigerian market. That’s presidential recognition for a homegrown success story that employs people, moves technology forward, and literally lifts buildings (and ambitions) higher every single day.

Fast-forward to today. Since 2023, OGD has been in the Senate, representing Ogun East with the same fire. As Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Navy, he’s deep in national security and maritime matters. But he’s not just warming a seat, he sponsored the South West Development Commission Bill, which President Tinubu signed into law to turbo-charge infrastructure and growth across the region. Zero-interest micro-credit schemes for traders, free eye-care programmes that have restored sight to thousands (especially the elderly), boreholes in thirsty communities, renovated schools, rice value-chain training for farmers, fertiliser support, the list of direct, people-touching projects goes on. No surprise he’s been named Best Performing Senator of the Year multiple times lately, with awards piling up for legislative impact. The man is still building, still delivering, still showing the younger ones how it’s done.

What hits me hardest, though, is the way he does it all with quiet grace and genuine heart. Through his Gateway Front Foundation and the Political Leadership Academy (POLA), he’s pouring into people, healthcare, education, youth empowerment, agriculture, long after the cameras leave. This isn’t a politician chasing headlines; this is a statesman who sees every citizen as family. An engineer who became governor, a businessman who became senator, a titan who never forgot where he came from. Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, holder of the MKO Abiola Leadership Prize, Zik Award, Africa’s Best Performed Governor honour, the accolades are endless, but the real trophy is the transformed lives and the state he helped birth.

At 70, Otunba Gbenga Daniel isn’t slowing down; he’s still lifting Ogun (and Nigeria) higher, just like those elevators his company installs so perfectly. He’s the living proof that vision plus hard work plus integrity can turn a region around. Young leaders, take notes. This is how you serve, not with noise, but with results that outlive you.

So here’s to you, sir, the illustrious titan, the father of modern Ogun State, the great man whose unparalleled standard of achievement keeps raising the bar for all of us. Happy 70th birthday, Your Excellency. The celebrations will be loud, the tributes well-deserved, and the legacy? Absolutely eternal. Ogun and Nigeria is better because you walked this way. Keep shining, keep building. We’re all the richer for it.