Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate Barrister Hazeem Gbolarumi has expressed firm confidence in winning the Oyo State gubernatorial campaign in 2027.
Declaring an absolute end to internal intra-party warfare, the veteran politician insisted that the Oyo PDP machinery stands unified, tactically prepared, and structurally aligned to secure a decisive victory at the 2027 Oyo gubernatorial poll.
Speaking during an engaging media session with journalists on Sunday in Ibadan, Gbolarumi unequivocally dismissed claims of persistent factionalism.
He explicitly rejected any narrative splits between camps aligned with Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike and incumbent Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, positioning the party as a single, cohesive force.
“There is no faction in the party anymore. There is nothing like Wike faction or Makinde faction. It is one PDP now,” Gbolarumi stated, addressing the long-running Seyi Makinde Wike faction rumors directly.
Grassroots Commitment and the Oyo PDP 2027 Election Agenda
Positioning his narrative around ideological consistency and community organizing, the experienced politician emphasized his unbroken allegiance to the umbrella party. He highlighted a political record entirely devoid of cross-carpeting or opportunistic party switching over the decades.
“I have never for one day or one minute defected from this political party since inception,” Hazeem Gbolarumi declared. He framed his candidacy around long-standing grassroots engagement and direct familiarity with the everyday realities facing the state’s electorate.
Addressing party governance, the former deputy governor articulated a clear boundary regarding political authority. He stressed that holding an executive public office does not automatically confer internal party leadership. Institutional party structures and executive organs, he argued, must always maintain primacy over individual elected officials.
Hazeem Gbolarumi Clarifies National Party Dynamics
Clarifying broader national political dynamics, Hazeem Gbolarumi addressed Minister Nyesom Wike’s cross-alignment with President Bola Tinubu’s administration. He noted that Wike’s strategic engagements did not constitute anti-party activity within the wider Seyi Makinde Wike faction context.
He explained that the national PDP leadership had granted explicit consent before such support was extended, asserting that personal high-level alignments do not preclude solid party backing for candidates across all electoral levels.
With economic outlooks and demographic pressures forming the backdrop of the Oyo PDP 2027 election landscape, Hazeem Gbolarumi leveled sharp critiques at current economic measures, targeting high youth unemployment and short-term palliative programs.
Arguing that sustainable economic relief requires structural industrial development rather than transient financial or food distributions, he outlined a platform prioritizing public education, healthcare delivery, structural infrastructure, and judicial fairness.
“Many youths are jobless,” Hazeem Gbolarumi noted, adding that “There may not be job creation if you don’t have an industrial development vision.”
Moving Past Palliatives in the Oyo State Gubernatorial Campaign
On campaign strategy, Hazeem Gbolarumi signaled a deliberate shift away from clientelist political practices—locally referred to as “stomach infrastructure.”
While acknowledging standard campaign expenditures for public branding and operational logistics, he rejected direct cash-for-votes or food handouts, pointing instead to a more discerning and politically mature electorate across Oyo State.
Aligning with this economic vision, Hon. Ayobami Olunloyo, the PDP candidate for the Oyo Central Senatorial District, outlined legislative reform, targeted constituency interventions, and private sector partnerships as core drivers for regional development.
Olunloyo specifically advocated for strategic public investments in agricultural storage infrastructure to mitigate post-harvest losses, alongside expanded vocational training programs to absorb unemployed tertiary graduates.
Confirming administrative readiness for the Oyo State gubernatorial campaign, Oyo State PDP Chairman Prof. Rahman Akinoso assured stakeholders that party membership registries and procedural preparations for the upcoming electoral cycle remain strictly on schedule.
As political parties across Nigeria consolidate their bases, this unified stance signals an aggressive, strategy-first push aimed at retaining power in South-West Nigeria’s historic political capital.
