Today, Saturday, 17th of January, 2026, Ace Broadcaster and former ally of Governor Seyi Makinde, Oriyomi Hamzat declared publicly that he is now a member of the Accord Party and that he would contest for the position of Governor of Oyo state in 2027 on the platform of the Accord Party.
Let me use this opportunity to welcome him into the murky waters of politics.
The game has changed and in politics, the hunter must be fully aware that he can become the haunted in a twinkle of an eye.
When I started to notice the activities of the Group called ‘ Oyo Npe O’, its relationship with Oriyomi Hamzat and the rumored gubernatorial ambition of the Broadcaster, I had promised that I would ask him to provide answers to some unanswered questions I have been asking for some time now regarding some his activities when he was closer to Governor Seyi Makinde, once he makes up his mind to join partisan politics.
At this point, there are no hiding places. The issues I am about to raise will always be put at him moving forward and if he truly wish to convince the public that he has nothing to hide, he must address those issues to the satisfaction of curious minds.
I must say that I was amused at the treatment meated out to him by Governor Seyi Makinde’s ‘ Osise Ijoba’,( Government workers), I mean the Leadership of the Parks Management System, PMS.
A couple of days ago, I saw the Chairman of the PMS, ‘ Tommy ‘ or what is he called, issuing instructions to some unidentified crowd of people, I think they must be public transport workers.
He said they are Government workers and and that their loyalties are to the Government in power and the PDP.
As a result of that misconception, he directed that public transport workers should not deploy their vehicles for hiring to politicians who are not of the PDP stock, including Oriyomi Hamzat.
Isn’t that funny?
It was the same funny fellow who issued instructions that motorists should not ply some routes during the ill fated Convention of the PDP tagged ‘Ibadan 2025’!
Imagine that! The Chairman of a transport union, issuing instructions which should be within the purview of the Governor of Oyo state as the Chief Security officer of Oyo state?
The sad part of this whole scenario is the fact that the Court of Appeal sitting in Ibadan had declared the actions of Governor Seyi Makinde in setting them up as illegal, null and void.
Yet, someone who is unknown to the Law of the Land has been issuing far reaching instructions to the detriment of the Law abiding citizens of Oyo state under the Government of Seyi Makinde.
If Tommy and his gang planned to disrupt Oriyomi Hamzat by asking the transport workers under them not to deploy their vehicles for the program of today, honestly, they failed.
Do I pity Oriyomi Hamzat? No. I don’t.
He has been part of the Governor Makinde’s inner circle when they used to enjoy trampling on the rights of other people in the past and I will give an example.
In 2021, during the Local Government election conducted by Governor Seyi Makinde, four innocent lives were lost in Eruwa, Ibarapa East Local Government.
Mukaila, aka Auxiliary led a large number of thugs to Ibarapa East to disrupt the election because the PDP were bound to lose to the Labor Party in that election.
It was such a very gory, frightening and terrible experience on that day in 2021.
Bullets were flying and the whole of the two Towns of Eruwa and Lanlate remained under siege of Auxiliary and his thugs for hours.
One of those who lost their lives on that day was one Mr. Ebenezer Opakunbi.
I was informed, allegedly so, that some people, including the widow of late Mr. Opakunbi attempted to seek Oriyomi Hamzat’s intervention but he declined.
At that time, he was a voice within the Seyi Makinde Government.
When you build a monster, it might turn against you one day.
Oriyomi Hamzat was a voiceferous defender of Governor Makinde’s policies, good or bad, it will be interesting to see how he goes against him when the chips are down.
Now, I have to refresh the memory of Oriyomi Hamzat to the allegations made against him by a Non-governmental organization, Dataphyte around the month of April, 2022.
Dataphyte had exposed alleged scam in the award of #998 million Naira contract awards to 7 different Companies.
Dataphyte raised allegations of contract inflation, fraudulent contract bidding and contract ambiguity in the contracts awarded between August 2019 and December 2020.
The contracts were awarded in 3 batches for the supply of customized notebooks for secondary schools in Oyo state.
First set of 12 contracts totalling #454.504 million Naira was awarded on August 28, 2019.
A second set of contracts were awarded in June, 2020 with a total value of #94.196 million Naira and described as “production of second batch exercise books for students of public secondary schools in Oyo state “.
A third set of contracts were awarded in December, 2020 at the cost of #446.370 million Naira for the supply of 212,505 copies of sixty leaves notebooks.
According to Dataphyte, a non-customized sixty leaves notebook at Mokola was selling for just a hundred Naira (#100) at the time and the prize also reduces based on the quantity required.
It was alleged that 3 out of the 4 Companies who were awarded the contracts on December 17, 2020 are owned by the same individual.
It was further alleged by Dataphyte that JEDA GLOBAL VENTURES, INSIDER MULTIPURPOSE VENTURES AND SURE ETIQUETTE MEDIA PLUS are owned by Oriyomi Hamzat Abdulrahman.
Dataphyte alleged further that Oriyomi Hamzat registered 2 different Companies the same day.
Both JEDA GLOBAL VENTURES and INSIDER MULTIPURPOSE VENTURES were registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC on September 8, 2020 and the two Companies won a contract two months after Registration.
Both Firms also allegedly operate from the same office location and space at 2nd floor, Salensile Building, Kajola Bus stop, Monatan, Iwo Road, Ibadan.
SURE ETIQUETTE MEDIA PLUS LIMITED was also allegedly registered to the same location as the other 2 Companies named above.
SURE ETIQUETTE MEDIA PLUS LIMITED was however listed as ” inactive” at the CAC portal at the time, according to Dataphyte.
Interestingly, SURE ETIQUETTE MEDIA PLUS LIMITED , also owned by Oriyomi Hamzat was also listed as one of the Companies that won a contract on the contracting Portal of Oyo state, as reported by Dataphyte.
Section 16(8)(g) of the public procurement act of Oyo state criminalizes a situation where one person would front for same contract with multiple organizations.
The same section also forbids a bidder to have a relationship with other parties in the proceedings, that is, a relationship with other bidders vying for the same contract.
Against procurement Laws, contracts were awarded to an inactive Company without a waiver.
I am sure that Oriyomi Hamzat is well aware of the allegations by Dataphyte.
I am also sure that he is aware of Governor Seyi Makinde’s promise to investigate the matter at that time.
I am further sure that Oriyomi Hamzat is aware that Governor Makinde never informed the public about the outcome of his investigation into the matter, if at all he bothered to conduct any investigation into the matter.
Oriyomi Hamzat is now a full blown politician and a gubernatorial aspirant.
The public deserves to know the truth about exactly what transpired between him and Governor Makinde in the controversial award of contracts for the production of customized notebooks for alleged inflated prices.
The public will also want him to defend otter allegations raised by Dataphyte and the standard of defense and proof required of him must be that which is capable of removing every vestige of doubts.
Like I said, Oriyomi Hamzat is welcome into the ring.
Sola Abegunde.
