Why Governor Biodun Oyebanji should test his popularity in another party, by Olumide Akomolafe
In Ekiti politics, loyalty to party and principles has always defined true leadership. Sadly, the current trajectory of Governor Biodun Oyebanji reveals a dangerous drift away from those values. The governor has, over time, built his administration not on the backbone of the All Progressives Congress (APC) members who fought tirelessly to bring him into office, but on the structures of opposition figures who once waged war against the progressive family. This betrayal raises a critical question: should Oyebanji continue to wear the APC badge when his heart and political alliances clearly reside elsewhere?
It is no secret that the governor has placed former Governor Ayodele Fayose at the center of his administration, granting his loyalists plum appointments and giving them more space in government than long-standing APC stalwarts. Over 170 Fayose allies currently occupy positions of power in the Oyebanji government, while genuine party members who worked and sacrificed for APC’s victory languish in neglect. What message does this send to the faithful? That commitment to APC values is less important than being a fair-weather friend from PDP?
The APC family is watching, and Abuja is not blind either. In the Villa, Oyebanji’s romance with Fayose has become a source of suspicion. Party leaders question how a sitting APC governor can elevate yesterday’s adversary above today’s comrades. To them, it signals not just poor judgment but misplaced loyalty. Abuja knows Fayose’s history, his hostility toward APC, his persecution of its members, and his long record of betrayal. Aligning with him is not strategy; it is self-interest. And for a sitting governor, that is a costly mistake.
This is why it may be time for Biodun Oyebanji to leave APC altogether and test his real popularity elsewhere. If indeed he believes Fayose and his structure give him strength, then let him try his luck on other platform or any other party. Let him measure whether the same APC members he has sidelined will follow him out of loyalty, or whether they will remain in the house they helped to build. That test will reveal the truth about his standing among the people.
Ekiti people are discerning. They do not reward betrayal. History has shown that incumbency does not guarantee loyalty when trust has been squandered. Governor Oyebanji should remember that Fayose himself once lost the opportunity to produce a successor because Ekiti voters cannot be taken for granted. If Oyebanji is confident that his new political friends have made him stronger, then let him step out of APC and face the people without hiding behind the structures built by others.
The APC deserves a leader who will strengthen, not weaken, its foundation. Governor Oyebanji has chosen a different path, one that aligns him more with opposition figures than with the men and women who made his victory possible in 2022. For the sake of clarity, for the sake of truth, and for the sake of justice, it is only fair that he takes his ambition outside the APC umbrella. That way, the party can reposition itself with loyal leaders, and Oyebanji can discover where his true strength lies.
The 2026 contest will not just be about incumbency; it will be about credibility. If Governor Oyebanji has lost the confidence of the APC family, then perhaps the time has come for him to face the people from another platform. Only then will Ekiti and Nigeria know his real worth.
