MASS EXIT HITS OYO PDP AMID LEADERSHIP CRISIS
Read Time:3 Minute, 48 Second
A lot of people left the Tanimu Turaki (SAN)-led group in the Oyo State branch of the Peoples Democratic Party on Thursday. Several candidates who were competing for positions in the upcoming 2027 general elections decided to leave the party.
This happens as supporters of Governor Seyi Makinde are waiting for his instructions on how to move forward with the 2027 election campaign.
The governor had planned to announce his chosen candidate on May 8, in order to meet the May 10 deadline for submitting digital party registration records.
This is part of the process for holding primaries and preparing for the 2027 general election.
It was reported on Thursday that Bimbo Adekanmbi, a former finance commissioner under the late Governor Abiola Ajimobi, might be named as the governor‘s preferred candidate.
This comes as sources close to the governor said he may order his loyalists to move en masse to the Allied Peoples Movement to pursue their ambition for 2027, due to the protracted crisis in the PDP.
Though the members who announced their resignations on Thursday did not announce their preferred political parties, sources close to the party secretariat told the press in Ibadan, the state capital, that some were planning to join either APM or Nigeria Democratic Congress.
As of press time, those who had tendered their resignations included the lawmaker representing Ibadan North-East/South-East, Abass Adigun, popularly called Agboworin; Executive Adviser to Governor Seyi Makinde on Security, Fatai Owoseni; lawmaker representing Ibarapa Central federal constituency, Adebayo Adepoju; member representing Ibadan North-West/Ibadan South-West federal constituency, Stanley Olajide a.k.a Odidiomo; aspirant for Egbeda/Ona-Ara Federal Constituency, Temitope Oladimeji popularly called O’tope; the only federal lawmaker from Oke-Ogun, Shina Oyedeji; Chairman, Oluyole Local Government, Akeem Olatunji, governorship aspirant, Olufemi Ajadi, among others.
They submitted that their decisions were based on the internal wrangling in the party, which may likely deprive them of the opportunity to vie for elective positions come 2027.
Adebayo, popularly known as Ibarapakan, said, “I am leaving the party because of the leadership crisis rocking it.”
Also, the Chairman of Oluyole LG, Olatunji, in a resignation letter dated 5 May 2026 and submitted to the Chairman, Ward 5, Oluyole Local Government PDP, Mojeed Raji, attributed his decision to the disagreement among the leadership of the party at the national level.
Olatunji thanked the leadership of the party at all levels for what he described as a rare privilege to serve the people in different capacities on the platform of the PDP.
He specifically thanked the state chairman and vice chairman, Dayo Ogungbenro and Wasiu Adeleke, for their support and guidance at all times. He also expressed his thanks to Seye Famojuro, whom he called his political benefactor, for being committed to helping him progress in his political career.
The governorship candidate, Ajadi, said he resigned from the party because he wanted to pursue his goals on a different political platform.
He explained that this was due to ongoing problems within the PDP at the national level.
In a resignation letter dated May 6, 2026, addressed to the state chairman at the party’s Secretariat in Molete, Ajadi said his decision was the result of “extensive consultations and careful reflection” on his political future and beliefs.
The letter, which went through the PDP Ward Chairman of Ward 8, Osengere in Egbeda Local Government Area, is a major event in the party‘s politics in the state.
He wrote, “I am writing to officially let you know I’m resigning from the PDP membership, effective immediately.
This decision was made after thinking carefully about my political direction, especially regarding the wider vision for the state and the nation, which I’m still deeply committed to.“
None of them mentioned where they plan to go next in politics.
Sources close to the politician said, “Discussions are still happening with people from different political groups.”
Other sources said, “This move is likely to cause reactions in the political scene of Oyo State, especially among PDP supporters and opposition groups trying to form new alliances for future elections.”
The PDP is divided between those who support the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and those who back the Turaki-led Interim National Working Committee, which supports Makinde.
Both groups are fighting for control of the party’s leadership structure.
Wike claims the Abdulrahman Mohammed-led National Working Committee is the real one, after the November 15 and 16 party convention in Ibadan, Oyo State, was canceled.
HOTJIST NEWS
Happy
0 %
Sad
0 %
Excited
0 %
Sleepy
0 %
Angry
0 %
Surprise
0 %
0
0