Abimbola Olawunmi, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has officially joined the race for the 2025 Ekiti governorship election after purchasing the party’s Expression of Interest and Nomination forms.
Her declaration comes despite speculations that incumbent Governor Biodun Oyebanji would be returned as the consensus candidate of the ruling party.
Addressing journalists shortly after obtaining the forms, Olawunmi dismissed insinuations that she was being sponsored by some APC leaders to serve as a spoiler candidate in the primary.
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She stated, “If you mention my name anywhere in Ekiti, people will rise up and say she has always been a consistent voice. Even during Ayodele Fayose’s time, I was arrested and imprisoned for one week because I criticised him. I had the same experience under Kayode Fayemi. I have never kept quiet when leaders fail.”
READ MORE: Ekiti Election: Oyebanji’s Victory Shows APC Is Accepted By Nigerians – Buhari
Positioning herself as the only challenger to Governor Oyebanji, the APC aspirant argued that Ekiti State has little to show for the huge allocations it has received from the Federation Account in recent years.
According to her, “For now, I am the only challenger the incumbent is having. Why do I feel at this time it is important to challenge the status quo? Because what we feel is happening in Ekiti State is not right. Our roads, schools, hospitals, our infrastructure are nothing to write home about. And despite all the allocations coming to the state, there is nothing commensurate to show for it.”
Olawunmi further alleged that the Oyebanji administration has received unprecedented revenue without tangible development outcomes.
“Since the president was inaugurated in 2023, the allocation coming to my state tripled. By the end of June 2025, when we analysed what had come in, we discovered the Oyebanji administration had received over ₦500 billion in three years. But when you come to Ekiti State, you hardly find anything that reflects that,” she said.
She also accused a cabal of hijacking governance in Ekiti, insisting that she remains determined to clinch the APC ticket despite opposition.
“No man can intimidate me. I have always been a voice for women. I believe that if the men have failed us, the women can bring the desired change to the state,” Olawunmi declared.
