Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun said he was instrumental in Gbenga Daniel’s 2003 gubernatorial victory and in Daniel’s recent election as senator for Ogun East on the All Progressives Congress (APC) platform. Speaking at an APC stakeholders meeting at his Iperu Remo residence on Tuesday, Abiodun also announced his intention to run for the Ogun East Senate seat in the 2027 elections.
Abiodun recounted that after losing the 2003 governorship primary to Daniel, who was then the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, he “handed over my structure” to the former governor to strengthen Daniel’s campaign. He said he intervened with then‑deputy governor Segun Adesegun and incumbent senator Lekan Mustapha, persuading them to withdraw their Senate ambitions so that Daniel could become the APC candidate. “I was the first to congratulate him when he emerged from the primaries and I supported his rise to the Senate,” the governor told the gathering.
The governor’s remarks came after Daniel purchased the APC nomination form for the Ogun East senatorial district, despite a recent party caucus in Ijebu‑Ode that had reportedly adopted Abiodun as the consensus candidate for the 2027 race. In response, Abiodun said Daniel’s “negative publicity and media attacks” were a personal choice. “If Senator Daniel now feels the only way he wants to repay my years of support is to sponsor negative publicity and media attacks against me, I leave him to his conscience,” he declared.
Abiodun also used the platform to assure Ogun East voters of his commitment to effective representation in the National Assembly. “When you gave me the mandate of Ogun State, I never disappointed you. I will offer Ogun East the best representation ever in the history of the Red Chamber. I will not be a backbencher; I will work hard for the people of Ogun East,” he affirmed, invoking divine guidance at the close of his address.
The exchange highlights a fraught relationship within the Ogun APC, with two senior figures now vying for the same Senate seat. The party’s internal dynamics, combined with Abiodun’s public claims of past support for Daniel, suggest a potentially contentious primary ahead of the 2027 elections. Stakeholders will be watching how the party reconciles these competing ambitions and whether the gubernatorial endorsement will translate into decisive support at the polls.
