Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
Tension erupted in Ijebu Ode on Monday when Senator Otunba Gbenga Daniel, the serving representative of Ogun East Senatorial District, was prevented from entering a crucial stakeholders’ meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at Adeola Odutola Hall, sparking a dramatic standoff that has laid bare the deepening cracks within the party in Ogun State. The former governor, who arrived at the venue in a white campaign bus branded with the OGD/PBAT Movement, was blocked at the entrance by the Chairman of Odogbolu Local Government, Babatunde Diya, and one of Governor Dapo Abiodun's aides, Honourable Niyi Adeleye. In a video that quickly went viral across social media, Daniel was seen addressing his supporters from the doorway of his bus as party faithful chanted “OGD! OGD! OGD!” while security personnel attempted to negotiate access to the premises.
Speaking from his vehicle after being locked out, Daniel declared that the meeting’s proceedings would be illegitimate in his absence. “We are here for our Ogun East APC caucus meeting, but surprisingly, we have been barred; we are told that we can’t enter. Let it be said that whatever they do here today is null and void,” the senator stated. He noted that he had arrived at the venue by 10 a.m., well ahead of the scheduled 11 a.m. start time, and that his exclusion amounted to a calculated attempt to sideline him from critical political decisions affecting the district. His media aide, Steve Oliyide, confirmed that the notice for the emergency meeting had been circulated at midnight and that all National Assembly members, including Daniel, were invited, but that upon arrival, the senator and several other non-loyalists were turned away. “It is not only OGD they bounced. As long as you are not Dapo Abiodun’s loyalist, you were denied entry. They threatened Otunba Onayemi, a former local government chairman, and other former chairmen who were expected to be part of the caucus meeting,” Oliyide said.
The organisers of the meeting, however, offered a different account. Honourable Adeleye, the governor’s aide, denied that Daniel was barred from attending the meeting, explaining that the senator was merely instructed to leave his bus outside due to security concerns. “We didn’t prevent him. This venue is highly restricted because of security concerns. What we have said is that people should park their vehicles outside,” Adeleye said. He added that the senator was told to “get down from the vehicle and come inside as an individual who was invited to the meeting,” but that Daniel refused, insisting on bringing his entire entourage into the restricted premises.
The meeting, which was convened as an emergency session of the APC Ogun East Senatorial District, proceeded without the incumbent senator and quickly took a decisive turn that confirmed the fears of Daniel’s camp. Former Senator Lekan Mustapha announced that the caucus had adopted Governor Dapo Abiodun as the consensus candidate for the Ogun East senatorial ticket ahead of the 2027 elections. The announcement was met with voice votes of approval from attendees. The caucus also declared that it would pay the nomination fee for Abiodun. This development effectively signals that Governor Abiodun intends to vacate his position as state governor to run for the Senate, a seat currently held by his long-time rival, Gbenga Daniel.
The blocking of Daniel from the meeting and the subsequent adoption of Abiodun as the consensus candidate are the latest and most dramatic episodes in a bitter political rivalry that has been simmering for months. The two men, once political allies, have become fierce competitors for control of the party structure in Ogun East. The tension escalated late last year when Daniel was suspended by the APC in his ward over allegations of anti-party activities during the 2023 elections. Daniel has repeatedly described the suspension as “illogical” and politically motivated, alleging that it was orchestrated by the governor’s camp to edge him out of the 2027 senatorial race. Speaking on the matter in November 2025, Daniel stated that the governor’s political ambition was behind the persecution he had faced under the Abiodun administration over the past two years, an allegation that the state government has denied.
With the senator locked out and the meeting having gone ahead without him, the legitimacy of the caucus’s decisions is now in serious question. Political observers in the state note that Daniel remains the statutory representative of the district until the expiration of his term, and that excluding him from a party meeting convened to decide the district’s ticket could invite legal challenges. As of the time of the meeting, Daniel remained outside the venue, and the APC state publicity secretary, Femi Nuberu, had not responded to requests for comment. For now, the crisis in Ogun East is far from resolved, and the party’s national leadership may soon be called upon to intervene before the internal feud spirals further out of control.
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