All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain and former House of Representatives member Bimbo Daramola spoke with Deputy Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU and Correspondent CHINYERE OKOROAFOR on Ekiti State politics, the achievements of Governor Biodun Oyebanji and issues that would shape the governorship primary in the Fountain of Knowledge.
What are the factors and issues that will shape the next governorship election in Ekiti State?
Let me say this very clearly. Based on reflection, experience, and exposure, I believe several factors will shape the 2027 election.
First, our contemporary history, through a contextual evaluation, will play a major role. Politically, and by reason of the person currently in office, this history cannot be overlooked. Closely tied to this is the issue of performance, as well as how effectively we want to project the party moving forward.
Another important element is our institutionalised democratic culture, which, by extension, will influence the 2027 elections.
All these factors, the history, performance, party projection, and democratic culture, will collectively be very material and consequential in determining the outcome of the election in 2027. I could expand on each of these individually, but ultimately, it is the aggregate of all of them that will shape the direction of our election.
You mentioned performance. Can you shed light on that?
Performance will matter a lot in this election because governance is not only about brick-and-mortar projects. It is not just about “boots on the ground” in terms of infrastructure. There is also the softer side of governance. But let me begin with the tangible, brick-and-mortar side.
Looking at where we are coming from, the question is: has Governor Oyebanji been able to justify his mandate in terms of infrastructure? The answer is yes, and many people agree with that. For instance, the Ado-Ekiti to Ifaki federal road—which I call the “Abiku Road”—lingered since the days of former Governor Olusegun Oni. It passed through successive administrations: Fayemi, Fayose, then Fayemi to Fayose again. None could complete it. But Oyebanji has now delivered that road, spending over N20 billion to finish it after more than a decade. That is a very material project, a major artery that also links to the Isin-bode axis that had long been abandoned.
Within the state, Oyebanji has rehabilitated about 98 intra-town and intra-state roads. As we speak, he is also building an 80-bed multidisciplinary hospital—the first major addition to the Ekiti State Hospital (now Ekiti State Teaching Hospital) since 1971, when General Adeyinka Adebayo launched it. Nobody can deny that this is a landmark development.
On the softer side of governance, no administration in Ekiti has paid as much attention to senior citizens as Oyebanji. He has paid out pensions and gratuities amounting to more than N30 billion to retirees who had given up hope. He did not incur those liabilities, but he took responsibility for them.
Beyond that, he is also investing in the younger generation by building a major cultural and entertainment facility—second only to Lagos—that will draw youths into the booming creative industry and provide them with opportunities to earn a living.
Another critical area is peace and stability. Ekiti used to be a hotbed of crises—one day, one trouble. I was a victim of that myself, attacked twice because of elections. But today, the peace we enjoy is not the peace of the graveyard. Oyebanji has been pivotal in reconciling former enemies and bringing stakeholders together in determining the state’s future. Without this peace, development would have been crippled.
Take Ekiti State University, for example. The alumni association recently bought his nomination form for re-election. Initially, it was a risky bet, but today he has earned that support. Similarly, parts of the state that had been in darkness for about 15 years are now reconnected to the national grid. EKSU itself now runs on 132kv power—the same line that feeds the Government House—boosting learning, research, and innovation.
All of these are tangible results. Even the pension payments, when injected into local communities, circulate within markets in Oja-Oba, Ikere, Erekeso, Ire, Efo, and others, driving the local economy. That is real impact.
So, when you put everything together—roads, hospitals, power, peace, welfare, youth empowerment—it becomes very difficult for anyone to say that Oyebanji does not deserve re-election on the basis of performance. He has discharged his mandate, and I am not in government, but these are things that I can see, feel, and that ordinary people are experiencing.
Why is a section of the party kicking against the statewide endorsement of the governor?
Well, again, you can’t run away from the fact that there will always be dissenting voices. You wouldn’t expect that everybody, over 3.2 million people, will face one direction. That is very unlikely. Some people, for reasons best known to them, will disagree. And of course, the democratic space and latitude allow them to do so. But as we say, the minority will have their say, and the majority will have their way.
If you carry out a statistical analysis of Oyebanji’s support base today, it is clear that this support is not born out of coercion or inducement. It comes from genuine trust that people have in him. Take, for example, Asiwaju becoming President. Didn’t one of his closest friends, the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, oppose him and even support the Labour Party? Who would have thought that? Yet, despite that opposition, Asiwaju’s record, his personality, and his national reach ultimately overshadowed those disagreements.
In the same way, by the grace of God, the performance of Governor Oyebanji, his personal character and the results people can see and relate with, will render any current dissension insignificant.
And let me also say this: it would be risky to gamble with a man like him in this job. Personally, I have not taken even a cup of water from APC in the last 10 years. This is a party we once battered, bruised, and even bled for, some people died, and I only escaped by a whisker. But that is not the point today. The point is that if we must deepen the value and essence of our democratic experience, not only in the Southwest but across Nigeria, then as we approach a very critical election in 2027, the consolidation must start now.
What are the conditions that would guarantee a free and fair primary?
Oh, the conditions are already there. In the past, you would have seen an overbearing influence of government—or the person in government—on the party and the system. But that is not the case here.
First, by nature and character, Governor Oyebanji is not that type of leader. I have known him for over 40 years, and I have never heard him speak a wrong word to anyone. Do you honestly think a man lacking in character, depth, or mental capacity could have been made Secretary of a critical committee like the State of the Nation Committee years ago? He couldn’t have been. People like Baba Afe Babalola and other respected leaders must have deliberately headhunted him for that role. Since then, his public profile has grown steadily, and that trajectory has prepared him for the job he holds today.
He is someone who understands what the founding fathers of the state had in mind when they envisioned Ekiti. He is the bridge between Baba Afe’s generation and the future we want. How do you simply remove such a person from his job? He is methodical, respectable, and respectful. Who among his potential opponents can match his reputation, his record of public service, or his trajectory? Nobody. These qualities—what in medicine you might call “congenital realities”—are inherent, and he has only built on them with experience, exposure, and personality.
That is why people are genuinely rallying around him. For instance, I organise a monthly health and fitness event in the state—the BAO Walk. Thousands of people turn out every third Saturday of the month. The governor has never once attended, and I do not pay anyone to show up. Yet we put 20,000 Ekiti people on the road at 7 a.m. every month, unbroken. Why? Because the brand—Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji—is superlatively strong.
So, whoever wants to contest against him must know that it is not just about Oyebanji as a person, but about consolidation of progress. If we shake him out of this position, the risk is that people will ask: “Why did you remove a man who served so well?” That would be a dangerous gamble.
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Governor Oyebanji is a systemic and institutional leader. He always says, “Thank God the President is with us; the President has supported me to do what I’m doing.” That tells you he sees governance as part of a bigger system, not a personal project.
This is why consolidation is so important. Ekiti has never had a smooth transmission of power from one administration to another without interruptions, crises, or breaks. This is the first time we have the opportunity to deepen that culture—where a man serves, delivers, and earns continuity. If we disrupt it, we risk cracking the wall and opening space for instability.
Oyebanji is best suited to continue. From the day he finished reading his inauguration speech, it has been clear: the work continues. At this point, we don’t need downtimes or gambles. We just need plug-and-play leadership—and Oyebanji is the only one who fits that role.
How is Ekiti now registering to vote?
And if we must kill that apathy you talked about, thank you for raising this issue, we must first ask: why are people disinterested in politics today? It’s because they say, “Leave them, it doesn’t matter.”
When you see a huge endorsement that genuinely comes from the people, from their hearts, and someone still tries to undermine it, then you are already creating room for apathy. The only way to ignite trust is to let the will of the people be done, after the will of God.
Now, who else can come into this race with the kind of impressive reputation and profile that Governor Oyebanji has, and with what he has achieved in office? If you cut this administration short, though nothing suggests that, it would be a great disservice. Our people must be primed to understand that, as the saying goes, one good turn deserves another. And with Oyebanji, it can only get better.
This is a plug-and-play situation. We don’t need downtimes anymore. We can’t gamble with the fate, fortunes, and future of two million people. All the discussions Oyebanji has held, all the commitments and goodwill he has secured, he secured them while in office, for the benefit of Ekiti. What happens now will determine whether those gains are sustained.
And don’t forget: we have a critical election coming up in 2027. What happens in Ekiti will be very consequential, because after Ekiti comes Osun, and then the general elections. That is why we must manage this decision carefully, to ensure that the consolidation we expect President Bola Tinubu to achieve starts right here in Ekiti.
How fully united is the party behind the governor?
I believe very strongly that the party is rock-solid. Rock-solid. These endorsements you see are not purchased. Some may suggest they are staged or bought, but no, that is not who we are. The Ekiti people I know are genuinely behind him, and the APC as a party is solidly behind him.
Of course, there may be pockets of discontent. Some individuals who have served in cabinets or held positions may feel, “I haven’t gotten what I wanted.” But politics doesn’t always give you exactly what you want. Most times, you don’t. For example, I first contested in 2007, but only managed to enter the House of Representatives between 2011 and 2015. Since then, I have invested so much, financially and personally, into building this party. Yet, in the last 10 years, I have not received even a cup of water from APC. At one point, I was pushed out of the party for six months, but I still came back.
So yes, there will always be pockets of discontent. But the truth is that, in the aggregate, the overwhelming opinion of APC faithful today is about 80% in support of Oyebanji.
For the primary, which option would you suggest—consensus, direct, or indirect?
Well, if we decide to go with consensus, some people will immediately say, “Oh, you are shrinking the democratic space.” But I believe we should let the people speak—just like they spoke in Ondo. The model used in Ondo was direct primaries, and it allowed the people to freely express themselves.
That is the best way to test whether these endorsements are genuine or just flukes. In Ondo, during the last election, the deputy governor tried to succeed his boss. There were nine aspirants in that race, with three top contenders. Yet the people spoke clearly through the process, and they voted for Lucky Aiyedatiwa. That is democracy in action.
So, I don’t see why our party should not allow the people to speak as well. After all, elections are about the sovereignty of the people. It is their referendum, their voice. So let the people speak.
Is this nomination politics not diverting the government’s attention from other developmental priorities?
No, I don’t think so. I believe the governor is focused enough to know his priorities. He always says this everywhere: if you want to go and vote, exercise your franchise the way you want, but let it be peaceful. If there were a Nobel Prize for Peace in this country, Governor Oyebanji would win it hands down for what he has done.
Let me give you an example. Somebody once approached me and said, “Oga, buy me a POS machine.” I bought him one so he could do the business. A week later, he came back and said he wanted to return the money and the machine because some people were attacking POS operators. I told him to wait and see how it would go. True to his style, Governor Oyebanji—who doesn’t talk much, a quiet and reserved man who works silently—sprang into action within four or five days. Till today, that same young lady called me, under God, and said, “Oga, please help me thank your friend, Governor Oyebanji. We POS operators are now doing our business in peace. There has been no crisis.”
Have you also forgotten that EKSU used to be notorious for cult clashes, gang fights, and needless killings that cut young lives short? Today, do we still witness that? When was the last time you heard of a crisis at EKSU? Now, the governor is turning the sod of the pharmacy department, alongside six other projects. He has increased subventions to EKSU and other institutions. So what more do you want to say?
We don’t want promissory notes. No. We want results, not “I will do.” We want “See what I have done.” Those are two different things. And truly, in every sector, the governor has shown results. I’m not saying, by any stretch of imagination, that the work is done and dusted. No. But as the Bible says, “Thus far has the Lord helped us.” We can only expect Governor Oyebanji to build on what he has already achieved—not someone new who will waste six or seven months just trying to figure out what is happening in the Ministry of Agriculture or the Ministry of Infrastructure. No, no, no. We don’t have that kind of time. That’s a luxury we cannot afford.
Action Congress (AC), ACN, and APC primaries used to be rancorous in Ekiti. How can that be averted?
I contested in 2018 for governor. There were 30 people on the ballot. Asiwaju was nearly frustrated at that time because Chief Oyegun, the then national chairman of the party, almost insulted him over all of us. Yes, Asiwaju, our leader, was nearly insulted by Oyegun because he said he could not tell any of his “children” to withdraw. He was frustrated and exasperated.
But today, can you see what Oyebanji has done? Everybody acknowledges it. Listen, a man who can pull Ayo Fayose and Segun Oni to the same table, who can bring Kayode Fayemi and Segun Oni into the same room, and who aligns with Baba Afe and Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN)—that cannot be a mediocre, a fool, or a stupid person.
And then you also have the likes of Ade Eyi and Senator Opeyemi Bamidele. A man who is able to bring all of these leaders into the same room is indeed the pivot for the peaceful future of Ekiti State. We cannot afford to gamble with him.
How will the primary be between Kayode Ojo and BAO?
I believe my brother, Kayode Ojo, has the democratic latitude and license to express his opinion and to test his popularity. I also believe that the minority will have their say, but the majority will have their way.