A prominent member of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Buba Galadima, has asserted that Abdul-Azeez Olajide Adediran, popularly known as Jandor, was the actual winner of the 2023 Lagos State governorship election.
Speaking on Arise Television’s ‘The Morning Show’ on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, Galadima claimed that Jandor “won the election, but it was taken away from him.”
Despite official results showing that Jandor finished third with 62,449 votes—far behind Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who secured 762,134 votes, and Labour Party’s Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, who garnered 312,329 votes—Galadima alleged that the outcome was manipulated.
Galadima also criticized the ruling APC, accusing the party of strategically exploiting Jandor’s defection. He argued that Jandor’s recent return to the APC was part of a broader scheme to weaken opposition parties and solidify the APC’s dominance in Lagos politics.
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“You have just seen what Jandor has done. Look at the support the people of Lagos have given Jandor. In fact, I will say that he won the election. It was taken away from him,” Galadima stated.
Galadima further expressed disappointment over Jandor’s decision to rejoin the APC, lamenting that such moves undermine the strength of opposition politics in Nigeria.
“But today, look at him; he just back-pedalled and went back to the APC. How are we going to do opposition? We should do opposition on principles—even if you are alone, stand based on your principles, not based on chop-chop,” he remarked.
Meanwhile, Jandor, who recently defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to rejoin the APC, defended his decision as a pragmatic choice. He argued that the APC’s viability and capacity to win future elections were key factors in his move.
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He insisted that his primary concern was the interest of Lagos State, which he believes would be better served within the ruling party.
Jandor also pointed to indiscipline and anti-party activities within the PDP as significant reasons for his departure. He stated that such internal challenges made it difficult for him to continue his political journey with the opposition party.