Prince Dapo Abiodun, the Ogun State governor-elect, on Saturday held a closed-door meeting with Otunba Gbenga Daniel at the former Governor’s residence in Maryland, Lagos.
The meeting held hours after Daniel, who was Director-General of the Atiku Abubakar Campaign Organisation, announced his decision to quit the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and active politics.
In a letter dated March 14, 2019, and addressed to the National Chairman of the party, Daniel had said the decision is personal, as he had decided to take on “new challenges”.
He also said he had decided to “rejuvenate” his charity-based organisation, the Gateway Front Foundation (GFF), and that he had plans to resuscitate the “non-partisan Political Leadership Academy (POLA)”, which was “established some years ago as a platform of political education to our citizens”.
His most detailed explanation, though, is the series of internal crises that the PDP has grappled with since losing control of Ogun state in 2011, the peak of which was the 2019 governorship candidature tussle, which saw the court endorse Buruji Kashamu despite the party’s preference for Ladi Adebutu.
Before the March 9 governorship election in Ogun, Daniel directed PDP supporters in Remo, Ogun State, to vote for Abiodun, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) would later declare Abiodun winner, announcing he polled 241, 670 votes to leave Adekunle Akinlade of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) in second place with 222, 153 votes.
