Olajide Adediran, better known as Jandor, isn’t one to shy away from bold claims — and his latest one is no exception.
Reflecting on the 2023 Lagos governorship election, Jandor believes that if not for what he calls the “Peter Obi effect,” the story of who governs Lagos today might have been very different.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Tuesday night, the former Lagos State governorship candidate for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) painted a vivid picture of an unexpected political storm that upended his chances.
“The 2023 election came with this tsunami that nobody ever expected,” Jandor said. “After Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) won the February presidential election in Lagos, the dynamics changed completely against the PDP for the governorship poll weeks later.”
The race for Lagos governor ended with the incumbent, Babajide Sanwo-Olu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), retaining his seat. Sanwo-Olu polled 762,134 votes, trailed by LP’s Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour with 312,329 votes. Jandor, once seen as a strong contender, managed only 62,449 votes.
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In a shocking turn of events, Peter Obi defeated the APC’s Bola Tinubu in his own stronghold, Lagos. Obi secured 582,454 votes to Tinubu’s 572,606, while PDP’s Atiku Abubakar lagged behind with 75,750 votes.
“Before the February 25th general election, we were everywhere on the streets of Lagos,” Jandor recalled. “The ruling party was nowhere to be found. We had several debates, and Sanwo-Olu didn’t show up — he said he didn’t want to share a stage with me.”
According to Jandor, the momentum was building in his favor until the political landscape shifted after Obi’s unexpected win in Lagos.
“The 2023 election was a two-horse race until the presidential results came in,” he said. “When Peter Obi came first, Asiwaju second, and Atiku third, there was this belief that if we did it once, we could take the state. We became victims of that wave.”
It’s a wave Jandor insists no one saw coming. “We did everything we could, but that tsunami came and swallowed everything,” he said. “Nobody saw that coming.”
Despite the loss, Jandor remains philosophical. “I probably would have won the election if not for the Peter Obi effect,” he said. “But I believe it just wasn’t God’s time yet.”
Jandor’s political journey has been anything but ordinary. Once a prominent figure within the APC, he broke away in 2022 with his Lagos4Lagos Movement, seeking a new political home in the PDP. But his stay there was short-lived. Recently, he left the PDP, accusing party leaders of sabotage and lamenting the lack of accountability for those engaging in anti-party activities.
“We waited patiently for two years to see if the national leadership would act according to the party’s constitution,” he said. “Instead, the same person accused of anti-party activities was rewarded with a position on the Disciplinary Committee. That was the final straw.”
As for what’s next, Jandor’s ambitions remain clear. He hasn’t ruled out joining another political party as he sets his sights on the 2027 governorship race.
“I’ll consider any platform that aligns with my vision,” he said.
One thing’s certain: Lagos hasn’t heard the last of Jandor.
Source: Ripples
