Alhaji Buba Galadima, a prominent figure in the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), has claimed that Abdul-Azeez Olajide Adediran, popularly known as Jandor, was the rightful winner of the 2023 Lagos State governorship election, accusing the ruling party of taking the victory away from him.
Galadima, speaking on Arise Television’s The Morning Show on Tuesday, stated: “In fact, I will say that Jandor won the election. It was taken away from him.”
Despite Jandor securing a distant third place with 62,449 votes in the election—far behind Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who polled 762,134 votes—Galadima insisted that the will of the people had been undermined.
Galadima also criticized Jandor’s recent return to the All Progressives Congress (APC), stating that it was part of a larger strategy by the ruling party to weaken opposition forces ahead of the 2027 elections.
He said, “You have just seen what Jandor has done. How are we going to do opposition? We should do opposition based on principles even if you are alone.”
In defense of his defection, Jandor explained his decision to rejoin APC, emphasizing the party’s “viability and capacity to win elections” and citing issues of indiscipline and anti-party activities within the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
His departure from PDP and alignment with APC continues to stir controversy, with critics accusing him of undermining opposition unity in the state.