Daniel ignores APC consensus move, picks senate nomination form

Former Ogun State Governor and serving senator, Gbenga Daniel, has picked up his nomination and expression of interest forms to seek re-election into the Nigerian Senate, under the platform of the All Progressives Congress, ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Daniel announced the development in a post on his X handle on Tuesday, insisting that his decision was driven by a desire to continue what he described as effective and responsive representation for the people of Ogun East Senatorial District.

“Today, I picked up my nomination and expression of interest forms as I seek to return to the Nigerian Senate, continuing my efforts to provide effective and responsive representation for the people of Ogun East Senatorial District under the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 general elections,” he wrote.

The move comes amid growing tension within the APC in Ogun East following reports that party leaders and stakeholders had endorsed Governor Dapo Abiodun as a consensus candidate for the senatorial ticket.

PUNCH Online had earlier reported that the endorsement was reached at a stakeholders’ meeting held at Adeola Odutola Hall, Ijebu-Ode, where party leaders, grassroots representatives, lawmakers, councillors, and youth and women leaders were present.

According to a statement issued by the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Lekan Adeniran, the gathering was described as a unanimous decision by APC stakeholders across the district.

However, the meeting was overshadowed by controversy after Daniel was reportedly denied access to the venue, a development his supporters described as deliberate exclusion.

In a viral video at the time, Daniel said he and his supporters were barred from entering the hall despite arriving for the meeting.

“We have been here for our Ogun East APC caucus meeting since 10am, but surprisingly, we have been barred. We are told that we can’t enter,” he said in the video.

The emergence of the consensus arrangement was further reinforced by a communiqué where former Senator Lekan Mustapha and other stakeholders reportedly endorsed Abiodun as the party’s preferred candidate, citing collective agreement within the district.

But loyalists of Daniel, under the BATOGD Movement, rejected the process, alleging that it was engineered to exclude their principal and manipulate the outcome in favour of the governor’s camp.

They described the meeting as “a carefully orchestrated exclusion,” insisting that the process did not reflect genuine party consensus.

Addressing journalists in Sagamu, spokesperson for the group, retired General Olumuyiwa Okunowo, maintained that the process violated APC guidelines on consensus candidacy and disenfranchised legitimate stakeholders.

The latest development signals an early showdown within the Ogun East APC structure as both camps harden positions ahead of the 2027 political cycle.