The Bola Ahmed Tinubu-Otunba Gbenga Daniel (BATOGD) Movement in Ogun East Senatorial District has rejected the endorsement of Governor Dapo Abiodun as the consensus candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the district in the 2027 elections.
Endorsement Controversy
Recall that some APC leaders at a forum endorsed Abiodun as the party's candidate for the senatorial seat, effectively shutting out the current senator, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, from entering the venue. This development has triggered tension among supporters of both camps.
The situation escalated when the Nigerian Police Force stormed and laid siege to Daniel's residence in GRA, Ijebu-Ode, disrupting a scheduled BATOGD meeting and scaring away members with heavy Armoured Personnel Carriers.
Movement's Objection
Speaking at a press conference, the Director General of the movement, General Olumuyiwa Okunowo (rtd), described the endorsement as unacceptable and coordinated under a misrepresented stakeholders' caucus meeting of the APC in Ogun East.
Okunowo decried the governor's endorsement as foul play, especially since Daniel was not permitted to enter the venue of the Ogun East Senatorial District Stakeholders Forum meeting held in Ijebu-Ode. He insisted that as the serving senator and former governor, Daniel should have been among the attendees.
He expressed dissatisfaction, stressing that some leaders from the APC caucus aligned with the governor within the zone had already plotted to pick Abiodun as the consensus candidate before the senator's arrival, in order to edge him out of the 2027 senatorial race under the party's platform.
“Most of the leaders were baited into attending the event under the guise of a caucus meeting. It was only upon arrival that many discovered that more than half of the people in the hall were not even qualified to attend,” Okunowo said.
“We do not deny them their democratic right to hold their own show, but using the name of our great party to drag leaders into ratifying a premeditated event is what gives us concern,” he added.
Support for Tinubu and Adeola
The movement's DG also expressed solidarity and support for President Bola Tinubu's second term bid and the emergence of Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, representing Ogun West Senatorial District, as the consensus governorship candidate of the party in the state for the 2027 general elections.
“President Tinubu, in the last few years, has demonstrated unprecedented capacity to tackle all our country's challenges headlong, and the results have clearly shown that our country is on the path to total recovery. We are hopeful that what appears to be a jinx in the last few decades is finally being broken,” he said.
Police Siege Condemned
Okunowo slammed the presence of armed policemen at Daniel's residence, questioning what could warrant such deployment of security forces in a democratic era. He applauded the Acting Inspector General of Police, Tunji Disu, for intervening and restoring peace in the area.
He alleged that the incident occurred due to false narratives presented to the police, claiming that the movement was planning to hold a meeting at the senator's residence. He described the development as an alleged abuse of power by Abiodun's administration.
“Our preliminary investigations revealed that false narratives were presented to the police, leading to the cordoning off of the entire street. This reminds us of the unfortunate days of the military junta. We do not think this can happen in Ogun State,” the DG said.
