Politics at the grassroots in Oyo State has suddenly turned from routine to riveting. Behind those poised resignation letters in recent time lie not just personal decisions but political barometers; signs of growing disillusionment that could herald paradigm shifts ahead of the 2027 elections.
As the ruling party with vast experience in serving as both government and opposition, the PDP in Oyo state must shift from the comfort of being the ruling party to living in reality that opposition parties are lurking around the corner like beasts hunting their preys in the wild.
There is no rule to this game of number, whatever you can do to continue to expand and widen your political base is allowed and for this reason, concessions and compromise become a veritable political tool to lure politicians with political values into the party fold.
It would therefore be political naivety or at best delusion for any political party either in the opposition or ruling capacity to shut its door to interested politicians intending to join a party to add value or frustrate those within it to walk out of it. Bearing in mind the rule of this game of numbers, only a self delusion party or group of politicians would become insensitive to the consequences of such political shenanigans.
According to the news, Alhaji Adelakun Adesola Fatai, Ward 07 Chairman in Ido LGA, tendered his resignation on 31 August 2025, received by PDP officials on September 1, 2025. In his letter, he lamented the broken infrastructure promises, particularly the neglected roads like Agbofieti Junction to Oganla Orita Faaji, Orisunbare Wire & Cable, and the Nihort-Alafara-Elenusonso route to Ido town that have rendered many areas inaccessible.
He cautioned saying: “As elections loom, I find it untenable to ask my constituency to renew their trust in a party that has not delivered.” Yet, he left a door ajar for return, if PDP reclaims its promise.
Comrade Olayiwola Jelili, PDP Secretary in Oyo West LGA, followed suit on 3 September 2025. He spoke of unrecognized sacrifice, despite his instrumental roles in past elections. His exit also signals a warning: loyalty must be honored, or it will walk out publicly, not quietly.
These resignations are not mere paperwork, they are statements with the sting of abandonment, and they make it impossible for the ruling party to ignore the cracks emerging from its very foundation; the grassroots.
Ordinarily, in line with the tradition within the Nigerian political landscape, gale of defection from opposition parties into the ruling party should be the expected order of the day not of resignations from party stalwarts and executive members from the ruling party into the opposition. This is a trend that should by natural order bother all well meaning PDP leaders in the state.
The PDP must not mistake the popularity of the Governor Seyi Makinde’s administration with its strength, that would be politically suicidal because government has its obligation to all the people irrespective of party affiliations. On the other hand, the PDP is responsible for ensuring dominance of the political landscape through consistency in terms of numeric strength.
The achievements of the Makinde led government has continued to shield the ruling party’s flaws and shortcomings otherwise, it should on its part, be winning political bigwigs from the opposition into its fold. The reality of such political inadequacy by the party is that it continues to place more loads of burden on the shoulders of the governor to continue to perform well in other to sustain the party’s public appeal.
Assuming without conceding to the fact that governor Makinde decides to pitch his political tent elsewhere tomorrow, he would have taken away his personal glory with him leaving the PDP in a pitiable shadow of itself.
Now to a critical point of this analysis, is the idea of some PDP stakeholders and leaders gearing up to support or uphold 3rd term bids for some executive council members in gross violation of the party’s constitution. It was reliably gathered that political moves and schemes within the PDP are ongoing especially at the grassroots ahead of the forthcoming national congress to field exco members who have would be completing their two terms of eight years as enshrined in the party constitution for a third term.
Investigations have revealed the the fact that all is not well with the ruling party at the grassroots but party stakeholders across different geopolitical zones are still keenly observing the turn of events. While some alleged of abandonment, others accused the party leadership of poor reward system for their contributions to the success of the party thus far.
Inside PDP’s corridors in Oyo State, huddles; tight, strategic conversations are underway in a silent mode among different stakeholders. Central to these talks is the specter of third-term ambitions among local executives.
Yet, the PDP Constitution draws a clear boundary. Here is Section 47 in full, as outlined in PDP’s Constitution (2012 as amended):
Section 47 – Tenure of Office of Party Officers
1. All national, zonal, state, local government area and ward officers of the Party shall hold office for a term of four years and shall be eligible for re-election for another term and no more.
2. The election of national officers shall be held at the National Convention, while elections at the state, local government area and ward levels shall be held at congresses of the Party at the respective levels.
3. Where a vacancy occurs in any of the offices of the Party, the Executive Committee at the appropriate level shall appoint another person from the area or zone from which the officer originated to serve out the remainder of the term.
These are not mere words, they are guardrails that prevent political entrenchment. Anyone eyeing a third term is not just bending ethics, they are flouting the party’s own hard limits which will most likely or inevitably end up as a subject of litigation.
Should this be allowed to happen, the PDP in Oyo state would have enmeshed itself in avoidable legal battle with party members who may feel aggrieved against decisions to flout party constitution. The implication will be that the PDP will in one hand be tied to legal battle based on legitimacy and tied to the other hand on the struggle to retain its status as the ruling party for the next electoral cycle.
What amplifies the danger of these resignations is timing. Oyo PDP, though the ruling party with Governor Makinde at the helm, cannot afford to misread the grassroots tremors. Resignations like those of Fatai and Jelili within the space of one week clearly broadcast discontent, provided mutual momentum, and reveal cracks in the voter mobilization machinery at the grassroots.
If left unaddressed, these departures could snowball, feeding into narratives of broken promises and a party out of touch with its grassroots political assets, thereby, setting the stage for opposition resurgence in 2027.
Five lessons PDP must learn from APC’s 2019 Upset include grassroots fallout that preceded electoral collapse at the polls.
In 2018, Oyo APC suffered warning signs invisible to its leadership: local executives and ward chairmen started to drift. By 2019, the party was a fragmented shell, and PDP swept into office riding that disunity. PDP today flirts with the same predicament, unless it acknowledges and mitigates it now.
Another mistake by the then ruling party was dismissing “minor” defections which eventually fuelled bigger divides.
When APC leaders in 2018 labelled dissenters as “bitter outcasts,” they underestimated their gravity. Those outcasts aligned, unified, and facilitated defeat. PDP should not replicate this arrogance by marginalizing voices at the grassroots that is now reflected in the gale of glamourized resignations.
The 2019 APC failure emerged from perceived unmet expectations that climaxed on the strength of a coalition ready and capable of dislodge. Oyo PDP now risks the same fate if it failed to learn from history. Unfulfilled infrastructure promises, especially those Fatai flagged, are not just administrative oversights, they are political liabilities.
These WhatsApp-friendly, well-worded letters aren’t casual exits, they are strategic communications. Glamourized resignations signal coordinated dissent by the aggrieved, meant to corrode credibility. Ignoring them is like ignoring smoke in the basement before it becomes a blaze.
APC’s denial in 2018 taught voters that leadership couldn’t or wouldn’t listen. PDP has the opportunity now to show it responds. This is not about blame, it’s about saving power through humility, responsiveness, and renewal.
The resignations of Alhaji Fatai and Comrade Jelili are not isolated. They speak of a party suffocating under its own silent move to disregsrd heeding its constitution. With Section 47 clearly forbidding third-term bids and mandating succession rules, PDP has both legal clarity and grassroots urgency on its side, but no guarantee of safety.
As 2027 approaches, Oyo PDP stands at a fork in the road: will it course-correct by delivering the visible dividends of democracy, reaffirming constitutional fidelity, and healing internal wounds? Or will it repeat APC’s missteps, watch its structures crumble from within, and unwittingly pave the way for opposition revival? The huddles continue. The choice however, lies within PDP’s hands.
Editor’s Diary is a dedicated section of westernmirror.com.ng for the publication of political and public affairs analysis as affecting Oyo state and its people.