…Aiyedatiwa says Tinubu’s achievements will guarantee victory

By: Bola Ojuola, Akure.

Vice-President Kashim Shettima has set a 1.2 million-vote target for Ondo State in the January 16, 2027 presidential election, charging the state to deliver a decisive electoral margin for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election.

Speaking at the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign rally at the Akure Township Stadium, Shettima said Tinubu enjoys the backing of influential political figures in Ondo, unlike opposition presidential candidates Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, whom he accused of lacking similar elite consensus in their home states.

“For the people of Ondo, as we are talking, there is a universal elite consensus backing the President here in Ondo,” he said.

He named former Ondo State Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, and former governorship candidate, Chief Olusola Oke, SAN, among prominent figures supporting Tinubu’s ambition.

He also cited the alignment of Gboyega Adefarati, son of a former Ondo governor and member representing Akoko South-East and Akoko South-West Federal Constituency, as evidence of the APC’s growing political consolidation in the state.

In Anambra, he said former governors Chris Ngige, Chinwoke Mbadinuju and Willie Obiano, alongside incumbent Governor Charles Soludo, were not aligned with Obi, the former Labour Party presidential candidate.

Questioning Obi’s economic credentials, Shettima said, “The ability to import cheap South African wines does not make one a guru in economics.”

He described Obi’s tenure as Anambra governor as mediocre and challenged opposition politicians to identify their major achievements in the past 25 years of democratic governance.

With Ondo’s registered voter population put at 2.1 million, the Vice-President said the APC expects at least 1.2 million votes from the 1.8 million residents who had collected their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).

He described the massive turnout at the rally as a political shutdown, recalling the party’s campaign outings in Cross River, Nasarawa, Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Ebonyi and Jigawa states.

In his welcome address, Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa pledged at least one million votes for Tinubu’s re-election, declaring Ondo’s commitment to the President’s second-term ambition.

He said the state voted massively for Tinubu in 2023 because of his leadership, progressive credentials and record as former Lagos State governor, adding that Ondo recorded the highest percentage of votes for him nationwide.

Governor Aiyedatiwa said Tinubu had justified the confidence reposed in him through reforms introduced since assuming office in May 2023, whose benefits, he noted, had extended to the grassroots.

He thanked the President for appointing three ministers from Ondo: the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, the Minister of Youth and the Minister of Interior.

The governor also highlighted his administration’s recruitment of more than 6,000 workers across various sectors, road and bridge projects, rehabilitation of health institutions and support for young entrepreneurs as added advantage to the President’s re-election.

Describing the rally as a demonstration of Ondo’s resolve to secure Tinubu’s re-election, Aiyedatiwa said participants would return to their local governments, wards and polling units to mobilise residents and publicise the President’s achievements.

“We will all go to the mountains, to the hills and everywhere to tell the people about your re-election,” he said.

He urged Tinubu to count on the support of Ondo residents, expressed confidence that the state would deliver the promised votes and prayed for God’s continued protection for the President.

Also speaking, APC National Chairman, Prof Nentawe Yilwatda, described Tinubu as the most experienced, exposed, prepared and competent among the 18 presidential candidates presented by political parties.

He said the President was fearless in confronting Nigeria’s economic challenges, noting that more than 31 states which could not pay salaries when he assumed office could now meet their obligations.

The Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign and former Zamfara State Governor, Abdulazeez Yari, said Tinubu had demonstrated exceptional commitment to Ondo through political appointments and other benefits.

Yari urged Aiyedatiwa and other APC leaders to intensify mobilisation, stressing that the party is seeking massive votes from Ondo to widen Tinubu’s national electoral margin.

He called on youths, women and elderly residents to turn out en masse on election day.

Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum and Secretary of the Presidential Campaign Council, Governor Hope Uzodimma, urged eligible voters to collect their PVCs ahead of the election.

Uzodimma urged residents to retrieve their cards to qualify to vote and called on APC leaders and supporters to embrace unity, teamwork and sacrifice.

Describing Ondo as Tinubu’s political home, he urged residents to put aside grievances and vote massively for the President and his running mate.

In his goodwill message, former Edo State Governor, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, urged Nigerians, particularly youths, to support Tinubu’s re-election, arguing that the country needs statesmen rather than petty traders in politics.

He praised Tinubu for appointing competent people to key positions, citing the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy as evidence of the President’s confidence in the intellectual capacity of Nigerians.

Oshiomhole said the administration had continued to invest in roads and railways, while the Federal Government had approved an additional N70,000 for federal civil servants to improve their purchasing power.

Former Ondo State Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, pledged to work with other leaders to deliver votes for Tinubu and all APC senatorial and House of Representatives candidates.

Mimiko commended Tinubu for building political consensus among the country’s political elite on major national issues, including the proposed establishment of state police.

Also, APC chieftain, Chief Olusola Oke, SAN, said Ondo leaders are indebted to Tinubu for projects and political appointments, pledging to work towards delivering the one million votes to the President.

He dismissed social media propaganda against the party and expressed confidence in APC leaders’ ability to unite members and mobilise support for the President.

Senate Leader, Senator Michael Opeyemi Bamidele, urged APC leaders in Ondo to rally behind Governor Aiyedatiwa, the state campaign coordinator, to secure Tinubu’s re-election, insisting that the state must deliver at least one million votes.

Bamidele disclosed that Tinubu personally gave him two messages for the rally, stressing that the forthcoming election is a presidential and National Assembly election, not an internal party membership exercise.

He said the President was particularly concerned about ensuring unity among party leaders and stakeholders across the three senatorial districts of the state ahead of the January 16 election.

According to him, the President had directed all party leaders to “recognise Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa as the sole state coordinator of the presidential campaign and give him the necessary support to mobilise voters.”

He, however, said the governor had also been instructed to open his doors to all party leaders and stakeholders, irrespective of their political affiliations or previous disagreements.

“This time around, all our leaders are on the same page. The appeal of Mr President is that all our leaders should recognise that there is only one state coordinator for this campaign, and that is the governor of the state.