News Investigators The Senator representing Ogun East at the National Assembly, Gbenga Daniel, says his efforts to attract federal projects to Ogun State ought to be complimented by the governor, Dapo Abiodun rather than being rivaled.
Mr. Daniel noted that each time he managed to lobby for projects into the federal budget, the next thing you see is the state government swiftly putting a signboard to claim the same project.
Mr. Daniel, a former governor of Ogun State was reacting to his purported suspension, from the All Progressive Party (APC), saying there was no reason for allegation of anti-party activities given his clear and open support for the party.
He attributed the development to part of plots by Mr. Abiodun to create disaffection against him as evident in the series of unprovoked attacks on him in recent times.
Speaking through his media aide, Steve Oliyide, the senator dismissed the purported suspension as baseless and politically orchestrated, describing Governor Dapo Abiodun as a “budding emperor”.
Mr. Oliyide who spoke on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese Ijebu, insisted that Mr. Daniel remains a bona fide member of the APC.
It would be recalled that the party’s Director of Publicity, Nuberu Olufemi, following a meeting of the State Working Committee (SWC) presided over by the state chairman, Yemi Sanusi, on Tuesday August 19, 2025, announced the confirmation of Mr. Daniel’s suspension.
According to the statement, Mr. Olufemi, the senator and one, Kunle Folarin, both APC members of Ward 4 and Ward 6 in Sagamu Local Government Area, respectively, were sanctioned after the SWC reviewed the findings of separate disciplinary committees set up at the ward level to investigate allegations of gross misconduct and anti-party activities.
But Mr. Oliyide countered the claim, saying: “There was no such office as the director of media and publicity. We know of the state publicity secretary, which the late Tunde Oladunjoye held. This office only exists in the office of the Secretary to the State Government of Ogun State. One individual just ascribed the title to himself and announced the suspension of Gbenga Daniel. Do you announce someone of the calibre of OGD on Facebook? Where are the letters to that effect? What are the allegations? Anti-party activities? Anything can be interpreted as anti-party. As I speak to you, there is no such letter.”
He said the action was part of a grand scheme to edge his boss out ahead of next election to pave way for Mr.Abiodun’s rumoured 2027 senatorial bid.
“Honestly, initially we were speculating, but as things unfold, we now see that everything points to the fact that they want to get this man out. It is the people that don’t want him and they want to frustrate him out of the party. All the scripts—demolition of houses, suspension—they are toward a singular end: get OGD out of the party, frustrate him out of the party. We are saying that it is not possible.”
He also reacted to claims that Daniel failed to participate in the recent Remo Federal Constituency by-election, placing the blame on the campaign committee set up by the governor. “The question should be put to the governor who constituted a committee for the campaign. They should be able to explain the rationale where they are conducting an election, a bye-election, within a senatorial district where a serving senator, two-time governor of Ogun State, was never considered part of it. What if he had gone to the rallies and he had been booed, stoned, attacked?”
Mr. Oliyide maintained that his principal supported the APC candidate, Adesola Ayoola-Elegbeji, during the poll. “He personally recorded with his own image where he endorsed the candidate of the party. He gave money to the campaign council and to the National Assembly caucus. What else do they expect from him? At what time did he ever tell anyone not to vote for our candidate?”
Highlighting Daniel’s record in the Senate, Mr. Oliyide said the former governor had sponsored “19 bills and 3 motions as a first-timer, achievements even those who have spent years in the NASS never recorded.”
He further listed interventions such as empowerment of over 4,464 constituents, eye-care services for 2,600 residents, the completion of a market in Igando, Sagamu, and TETFUND listing for Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic.
According to him, instead of supporting Daniel’s federal-level efforts, the Ogun State government had tried to downplay them.
“Each time OGD had gotten a project into the federal budget, the next thing you see is the state government swiftly putting a signboard to claim the same project. That Ayepe road was in the federal budget of 2025. Look at the Naval base OGD attracted to Ijebu Waterside, the next thing you know, the governor is talking about selling the land. Instead of complementing federal projects, the governor competes with them.”
Mr. Oliyide further accused Governor Abiodun of weaponising demolitions against political opponents. He referenced the 2023 demolition of the Datkem Plaza in Ijebu Ode, owned by Daniel’s wife, describing it as “a sore to the eyes.
“As I speak to you, in Ogun State High Court, there is already an injunction. Any other thing done outside that is… because we are going to take every legal step to challenge what we know as illegality. All these extensions are an afterthought to cover shame. I want them to come on air to quote the section of the constitution that speaks to demolition in the manner in which they are saying,” he said.
“In Abeokuta, Sen. Amosun’s house in Ibara was marked for demolition. Amosun simply went to court. He is also bleeding, but he is not saying much. Meanwhile, the governor’s own property, already marked for demolition, has never been touched. We have to resist a budding emperor,” he added.
The development has rekindled discussions about internal divisions within the Ogun APC. Political observers recall that in 2019, properties linked to former Governor Ibikunle Amosun were also marked for demolition under the Abiodun administration, fueling a bitter rift between the two leaders. Analysts say Daniel’s ordeal mirrors a pattern of political rivalries in the state that often spill over into governance.
According to Oliyede, Governor Dapo Abiodun was the unseen hand of the Ibikunle Amosun-led administration. What is the relationship between Amosun and Abiodun? How toxic is it? There is a constant factor in all these conflicts, that is the present governor of Ogun State. During the eight years of Amosun, the unseen hand is Dapo Abiodun. It is not like you are fighting A, B, C, it is just a singular hand. The hatred started since 2002 when OGD won the primaries with Dapo Abiodun coming second.” He revealed. He however opined that there might have been a series of issues leading to their fallout.
The aide tied the crisis to a longstanding rivalry, arguing that Abiodun had been at the centre of Ogun’s political battles since 2002, when Daniel defeated him at the PDP primaries. “All the scripts—demolition of houses, suspension—they are toward a singular end,” he insisted.
Despite the heated exchanges, Oliyide said Daniel had no plans to dump the APC. “The playbook to frustrate OGD is a failed project. APC will not break, and OGD will not leave the party. When we get to the river, we will cross it.”
On President Bola Tinubu’s knowledge of the crisis, he remarked: “The president is a very busy man. Obviously he is aware. He has intervened. It is his intervention that has birthed this desperation by the governor. The governor is chasing the president around, practically leaving governance in Ogun State to the SSG while playing politics.”
The development has once again raised concerns about the growing tension in Ogun APC, where accusations of demolition politics, authoritarianism, and succession battles threaten to ignite another round of intra-party war.
