April 27, (THEWILL) — The fight for the Senatorial ticket for Ogun – East constituency on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC, took a dramatic turn on Monday, April 20, 2026 when the incumbent, Gbenga Daniel and Governor Dapo Abiodun had a showdown that may lead to a fight to finish ahead of the 2027 general election.
It is no longer news that Governor Abiodun is interested in his predecessor’s Senatorial seat. But he had been trying to mask his ambition under controversial legal attacks dating back to August 2025, when the Ogun State Government reportedly sealed Senator Daniel’s private residence and luxury hotel, Asoludero Court, the Conference Hotels and its annex in the Sagamu Government Reservation Area, respectively.
According to the government’s notice, the buildings contravened the Ogun State Urban and Regional Planning and Development Law No. 61 of 2022 and its subsidiary regulations. The notice ordered the owners or occupants to produce all relevant planning permits within 24 hours or face demolition. Senator Daniel claimed that he was being victimised because only his property among over 2,000 others were targeted, vowing to take legal action. Since then, the relationship between the governor and the senator became heated.
On Monday, things came to a head. Supporters of the former governor Gbenga Daniel clashed with the supporters of the governor, Abiodun. On that day, the APC caucus was holding a meeting of the zone at Adeola Odutola Hall, Ijebu-Ode. In attendance, according to the letter of invitation, signed by the APC Public Relations Officer, Ijebu Ode Local Government Area, all the members of the Governor Advisory Council, past and present Council Chairmen, past and present members of the Ogun House of Assembly, past and present Members of the National Assembly, former Deputy Governor, Councillors, LG 5 Pillars.
Yet on arrival at the venue of the meeting, Senator Daniel, who is a present member of the National Assembly was reportedly blocked from gaining access to the caucus meeting of the zone. As it turned out, the APC leaders reportedly endorsed Governor Dapo Abiodun as a consensus candidate for the senatorial district ahead of the next election.
A statement from the government indicated that Abiodun was adopted by all the APC leaders present at the caucus meeting. Both party and government officials justified the action to block Daniels from the meeting. The governor’s media aide, Kayode Akinmade said Daniel was not barred from the meeting. Rather he said the former governor refused to conform with security protocol at the venue of the meeting.
He said that since it was a caucus meeting only those that were invited were allowed into the venue. He said this message was passed to Daniels by security operatives who asked him to either step out of the bus and walk along into the venue or take a car in which the occupants would be clearly seen. Daniel, however, insisted on going into the venue of the meeting with the bus, a development that led to the stalemate, Akinmade said.
According to him, a similar scenario played out in Ogun State the previous week. An aspirant for Ogun West Senatorial District seat was prevented from attending a similar meeting in the state capital, Abeokuta, after insisting on going in with some uninvited people. Nobody could have stopped the former governor if he had complied with the security protocol, Akinmade insisted.
He said, “All he needed to have done was either come out of the bus or use a car the security people can see through to be sure he is the only one or with invited people. He would then just have signed the invited members register and go in for the meeting.”
But Daniels has continued to insist that he was prevented from entering the venue of the caucus meeting of the APC for the district. A video of him addressing his supporters from the door of a Coaster bus at the venue of the meeting, has since gone viral.
According to the video, Daniel was addressing party supporters from his white campaign bus, branded with the OGD/PBAT Movement. Daniel said, “We are here for our Ogun East APC caucus meeting, but surprisingly, we have been barred; we are told that we can’t enter.”
Reacting to the development, Daniel said any decision taken in his absence would be null and void. Speaking about the governor’s endorsement, Senator Daniel’s media aide, Steve Oliyide, described it as a jamboree and self-endorsement. He also noted that Abiodun, who was reportedly endorsed, was not on the ground to “receive the endorsement.”
Oliyide told reporters, “When we endorsed Senator Yayi on Monday last week, Yayi was present. Do you name a child in his absence? And if you look at the gathering, this is a gathering of people on his payroll.
“So, are we saying that Dapo Abiodun ran away from his own endorsement ceremony? When we did that one for Yayi, was he not there to receive it? So, as far as we are concerned, it was a jamboree.
Ex- Ogun East senator, Lekan Mustapha, disagrees with Daniel. Speaking on behalf of stakeholders, he said the decision was driven by a shared conviction that Governor Abiodun possesses the capacity to represent the district effectively at the Senate.
Another stakeholder, who is the President of the Centre for Convention on Democratic Integrity (CCDI), Olufemi Aduwo, has told Senator Daniel to respect party decisions within observable discipline.
Aduwo said that APC in Ogun State, like any major political party, accommodates internal competition and disagreement, which do not amount to institutional breakdown but are inherent features of democratic politics.
He reminded the Senator that his senatorial candidacy in 2023 emerged from internal party arrangements and political accommodation, including the decision of a sitting senator to step aside.
“This underscores the primacy of collective decision-making over individual entitlement.” He emphasised that a caucus meeting is not a platform for personal assertion but a regulated forum governed by rules binding on all members. Recasting the enforcement of such procedures as exclusion, he said, is disingenuous.
Commenting on leadership within the state, Aduwo stated that Governor Abiodun has demonstrated political responsibility by maintaining cohesion amid internal tensions through a balance of firmness and restraint.
He further advised that at this stage, it would be more constructive for Daniel to embrace a reflective posture consistent with elder statesmanship, noting that figures such as Chief Olusegun Osoba and Senator Ibikunle Amosun have transitioned into roles where influence is exercised through counsel rather than electoral contest.
He said political parties are sustained by discipline, not sentiment, cautioning against elevating routine procedural enforcement into narratives of persecution. Senator Daniel is unyielding. “ Let it be said that whatever they do here today is null and void,” he swore. The fight has just begun.
Felix Ifijeh is a journalist with years of professional reporting experience. Known for his keen news sense, compelling storytelling and commitment to accurate, impactful reporting, he has built a reputation for turning leads into clear, engaging, and well-structured reports that resonate with readers. His work reflects deep newsroom experience and a commitment to accurate, impactful journalism.
