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Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has ditched his Deputy, Rauf Olaniyan, ahead of his second term bid for the governorship of the state in 2023.
Makinde dumped Olaniyan for a former Attorney-General in the state, Bayo Lawal.
Lawal, who hails from Kishi in Irepo Local Government Area of Oyo state, was the state Attorney-General in the administration of the late Governor, Lam Adesina.
He has also served as the Executive Chairman of the Oyo State Housing Corporation under Makinde.
This development lends credence to the alleged rift between the Governor and his Deputy.
Recall that Olaniyan emerged as Makinde's deputy after his former party African Democratic Congress (ADC) wherein he was a governorship aspirant, struck an alliance with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of the 2019 election.
It's believed that without the accord, which also involved some other political parties, Makinde's emergence may not have been possible.
However, stakeholders loyal to the Deputy have accused the Governor of not honouring the agreement between the duo before the 2019 election, adding that Makinde has refused to carry Olaniyan along in the affairs of the state.
There have been indications that the aggrieved Deputy and his supporters are considering leaving the PDP to join another political party ahead of next year's election.
In a similar development, Senator representing Oyo South Senatorial district, Kola Balogun, defected from the PDP after it was alleged that Makinde had decided to hand his seat to another aspirant who defected from the APC.