2027: Aiyedatiwa inaugurates Tinubu’s campaign council, targets one million votes

Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa on Saturday charged leaders and members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state to close ranks and intensify grassroots mobilisation to secure President Bola Tinubu’s re-election in 2027.

Aiyedatiwa gave the charge while inaugurating the Ondo State APC Presidential Election Campaign Council, its directorates and subcommittees at the International Culture and Event Centre, The Dome, Akure.

The governor, who chairs the council, stressed that the party’s numerical strength and political influence would not guarantee victory without unity and effective mobilisation.

He urged members to learn from the coalition-building that led to the formation of the APC in 2014 and its victory over the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2015 general election.

Recalling how opposition parties came together to dislodge the PDP, Aiyedatiwa warned that internal disagreements could undermine the APC’s electoral prospects if left unresolved.

“As large or as big as we are, if we are not together, it will be difficult to win election. That is why it is very, very important that we must remain united,” he said.

The governor noted that the 2027 elections would involve contests for the presidency, National Assembly, governorship positions in states holding elections and state Houses of Assembly. He urged party members to work collectively towards victory at all levels.

He added that retaining power was essential to sustaining the interests of party members and their communities.

He said, “It’s only when we retain power, that is when your own individual interests and your community interests can be met. All of us must work together.”

Aiyedatiwa urged the campaign council to base its engagement with voters on the achievements of the Tinubu administration and his government in Ondo State.

He listed regular payment of workers’ salaries, graduate training programmes, road and bridge construction, the provision of medical equipment to public health facilities and investment in education among the achievements of his administration.

On the Federal Government’s policies, the governor defended the removal of the petrol subsidy, recalling that presidential candidates had promised to end the subsidy during the 2023 election campaigns.

He said Tinubu had fulfilled the promise and was redirecting the savings towards development projects. Describing the administration’s reforms as an important selling point for the APC ahead of the next general election, he said, “the President has made the job easy for us by those reforms”.

Citing the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, Aiyedatiwa said successive administrations had not undertaken the project, describing Tinubu as a leader with the courage and determination to execute major infrastructure projects.

He also expressed confidence that the President would support efforts to address coastal erosion in Ondo State, particularly the persistent sea incursion threatening Ayetoro in Ilaje Local Government Area.

“We must tame the sea incursion at Ayetoro. And I know Mr President will help us to do that,” he said.

The governor urged members of the campaign council to take their message to every community in the state, explain the administration’s policies and mobilise voters ahead of the presidential election.

In his remarks, Deputy Governor Olayide Adelami challenged APC members to work towards delivering at least one million votes for Tinubu in Ondo State.

He said achieving the target would require sustained grassroots mobilisation, including house-to-house and street-to-street campaigns.

Adelami urged party members across all age groups and segments of society to participate actively in the campaign, expressing confidence that the APC would achieve its objective.

Similarly, the Chairman of the Governor’s Advisory Council, Pius Akinyelure, expressed optimism that the party would win convincingly, saying the turnout at the inauguration demonstrated members’ readiness for the electoral contest.

“We shall win and win convincingly. We shall make more than a million votes that we are now talking about,” he said.

The Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Olamide Oladiji, also called on party leaders to return to their respective constituencies and mobilise support for the President.

He said the state had a record of electoral victories and should work towards delivering a convincing result for Tinubu in 2027.

In his speech, the Director-General of the campaign council, Hon. Victor Olabimtan, commended President Bola Tinubu for his policies and programmes aimed at addressing the country’s challenges and promoting national development.

Olabimtan urged APC leaders and members in Ondo State to close ranks, demonstrate commitment to the campaign and mobilise support for the President’s re-election in 2027.

He said the inauguration of the campaign council marked the beginning of a coordinated effort to engage voters across the state. He urged members to take the campaign to their respective local government areas, wards and communities.

The campaign director-general expressed confidence that Ondo State could improve on its previous electoral performance, stressing the need for party members to work collectively towards achieving the target set for the state.

He also appreciated Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa for inaugurating the council and providing leadership for the party’s mobilisation efforts, calling on members to support the campaign structure in the task ahead.

In his welcome address, APC State Chairman Kolawole Babatunde said the party would adopt an issue-based campaign, highlighting the achievements of the federal and state governments.

He cited road construction, scholarships, student grants, and the payment of pensions and gratuities as areas the party would present to voters.

Babatunde said the Aiyedatiwa administration had completed more than 50 road projects, with over 50 others ongoing, adding that the government’s performance would form a major part of the campaign message.

“Our campaign is going to be issue-based. We’ll be telling our people what we have done as a government,” he said.

Three senators from Ondo State also expressed confidence in Tinubu’s re-election, urging APC members to intensify mobilisation to achieve the one-million-vote target.

The senator representing Ondo North, Olusola Okinrinboye, likened the President’s economic reforms to surgery, saying the temporary pain would eventually give way to recovery and greater strength.

He described the reforms as necessary for Nigeria’s development and compared Tinubu’s leadership ambitions with the transformation associated with the administration of Chief Obafemi Awolowo in the former Western Region.

Okinrinboye also commended Aiyedatiwa for introducing programmes to cushion the effects of economic hardship on residents.

The senator representing Ondo Central, Tayo Alasoadura, urged party members to translate their political strength into votes through practical grassroots engagement.

He recalled that Tinubu had previously acknowledged Ondo State’s performance in the South-West during an earlier election, challenging the party to improve on its previous results.

“We know what we want to do. We know the task that has been given to us. I don’t think we need to talk too much. Let us go home and work. Let us give our governor all the support,” he said.

Also speaking, Chief Olusola Oke pledged to mobilise voters across the state to deliver one million votes for the President, citing federal appointments from the state, road projects and the coastal highway among the reasons the APC should sustain its support for Tinubu.

He challenged critics of the President to provide workable alternatives to the administration’s policies, insisting that the country was moving in the right direction.

“One million is our target. It is achievable. We are going to achieve it, and I can assure you that mobilisation will begin immediately,” he said.

The inauguration was attended by the Secretary to the State Government, Taiwo Fasoranti; former Deputy Governor Omolade Oluwateru; Chairman of the APC Elders’ Forum, Nimbe Farukanmi; members of the State House of Assembly; former legislators; party chieftains; members of the State Executive Council; women and youth leaders; traditional rulers; and other political stakeholders.