By Steve Otaloro
The Governor is not on the ballot, yet he is working as though every ballot paper in Ondo State carries his personal signature. His offence? An extraordinary determination to turn governance, party organisation and grassroots mobilisation into a formidable political assignment for 2027.
Yes! You heard me correctly!
Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa has been arrested!
Arrested by what, you may ask?
The police? No!
The DSS? Never!
The EFCC? God forbid!
Then who arrested the Governor?
The demands of development, the expectations of his party and the enormous responsibility of helping to deliver victory for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election!**
And the arresting officers?
The roads demanding completion, the communities expecting development, the party faithful demanding organisation, the campaign committees preparing for the task ahead and the one-million-vote target that has become a major talking point in Ondo State’s political calculations.
His alleged offence?
He has refused to approach the coming election as a spectator!
He has refused to sit comfortably in Government House and leave the political assignment to chance!
He has refused to behave like a governor whose responsibility ends at the state boundary when the presidential election comes knocking!
Instead, Aiyedatiwa appears to have embraced the assignment with the urgency of a man who understands that leadership requires more than occupying an office. It demands organisation, coordination, communication and the ability to bring people together around a common objective.
And what an assignment it is!
President Tinubu is seeking another mandate in 2027. The APC in Ondo State must organise its structures, mobilise its members, communicate its record and persuade the electorate. The Governor, though not a candidate in the presidential election, has placed himself at the centre of this organisational effort.
If commitment were a candidate, one might be tempted to ask whether Aiyedatiwa would have to contest against himself!
COUNT ONE: THE GOVERNOR WHO HAS FORGOTTEN HOW TO SIT STILL
What manner of governor is this?
He is expected to attend to governance, monitor projects, engage stakeholders, receive delegations, consider policy proposals and address the daily needs of the people.
Yet, as the 2027 election approaches, he has taken on the additional responsibility of coordinating a statewide campaign effort.
On October 17, 2026, Aiyedatiwa inaugurated the Ondo State APC Presidential Election Campaign Council and its directorates and subcommittees at The Dome in Akure. He assumed leadership of the council and called for unity and grassroots mobilisation in support of President Tinubu. The campaign’s stated ambition includes securing more than one million votes for the President in Ondo State.
One would have thought that inaugurating the council was enough to keep a governor occupied. But no!
There is the need to organise the structures, coordinate the campaign committees, mobilise party members, prepare for the inauguration of the campaign machinery and ensure that election logistics are properly planned and distributed in accordance with the law and established electoral procedures.
Every district matters.
Every local government matters.
Every ward matters.
Every polling unit matters.
And, above all, every eligible voter matters.
This is the thinking behind a campaign that seeks to move beyond grand declarations into practical organisation.
Aiyedatiwa is not merely talking about a target. He is putting a structure in place to pursue it.
That is the difference between announcing an ambition and preparing to work towards it.
The Governor’s supporters have every reason to take pride in the seriousness with which he is approaching the assignment. He is demonstrating that political leadership is not simply about asking party members to deliver results; it is also about providing direction, creating coordination and ensuring that the machinery required for the task is properly organised.
COUNT TWO: ONE MILLION VOTES- AN AMBITION THAT DEMANDS WORK!
One million votes!
The figure is substantial, the target ambitious and the assignment demanding.
But why should a political organisation establish a target if it is unwilling to do the work required to pursue it?
The proposed one-million-vote objective gives the Ondo APC campaign a clear numerical ambition around which it can organise its activities. It requires the party to examine its grassroots strength, identify areas where engagement must improve, communicate its policies and performance, encourage eligible citizens to participate and ensure that its candidates are adequately prepared for the contest.
Aiyedatiwa’s role is to provide leadership and coordination, not to assume that votes can be commanded.
In a democracy, votes are earned from citizens who retain the freedom to make their own choices. The Governor’s task is therefore to help present the administration’s record, explain the party’s programmes and build a campaign capable of persuading the electorate.
And if the campaign is serious about its one-million-vote ambition, it must be equally serious about the arithmetic: registered voters, turnout, local political conditions, the performance of candidates and the effectiveness of lawful grassroots mobilisation.
This is where Aiyedatiwa’s organisational approach becomes important.
The target is not a substitute for work. It is a reason to work.
It is a call for every campaign committee to understand its responsibility, every party structure to become active and every candidate to contribute to the collective effort.
President Tinubu can therefore look towards Ondo State and see a campaign that has publicly declared its ambition and established a statewide council to pursue it.
The final result belongs to the electorate. But the preparation belongs to the campaign.
And Aiyedatiwa appears determined to ensure that the preparation is taken seriously.
COUNT THREE: FROM THE FAMOUS 18–0 TO A STATEWIDE ELECTORAL PROJECT
Here lies the historical reference point for the Governor’s political confidence.
In the November 2024 governorship election, Aiyedatiwa won all 18 local government areas of Ondo State. He polled 366,781 votes, while the PDP candidate, Agboola Ajayi, received 117,845 votes.
That result became one of the defining features of the Governor’s political story.
The 18–0 record is significant because it demonstrated that the APC could secure victories across the state’s local government areas in that election. It provides a reference point for the party’s subsequent discussions about statewide mobilisation.
But Aiyedatiwa’s ambition now extends beyond repeating a governorship victory.
The 2027 electoral assignment encompasses the presidential election, three senatorial districts, nine federal constituencies and 26 state constituencies.
In other words, the Governor’s political responsibility, as his supporters see it, is not confined to helping the President secure support. It also includes encouraging an organised campaign for APC candidates seeking election to the National Assembly and the Ondo State House of Assembly.
That is a considerable undertaking.
A presidential candidate must appeal to a national electorate. A senator must persuade voters across a senatorial district. A House of Representatives candidate must address the needs of a federal constituency. An Assembly candidate must demonstrate an understanding of the communities he or she hopes to represent.
Different contests. Different responsibilities. One statewide campaign environment.
The 18–0 victory does not automatically guarantee another electoral sweep, but it gives the Governor and his party a historical result from which to study their organisational strengths and identify areas requiring further work.
The challenge is to build on that experience, not simply celebrate it.
And that is precisely why the Governor’s current campaign effort matters: it seeks to translate previous political experience into a more coordinated approach to the next election.
COUNT FOUR: DEVELOPMENT IS THE CAMPAIGN’S MOST PERSUASIVE EXHIBIT
But no political organisation can depend on structures alone.
The strongest campaign is one that can explain what it has done, what it is doing and what it intends to accomplish.
For Aiyedatiwa, the administration’s developmental agenda provides an important part of that conversation.
Consider the state’s road infrastructure programme, including road projects and rehabilitation efforts in different parts of Ondo State. Such projects matter because roads connect farmers to markets, workers to workplaces, patients to hospitals and communities to economic opportunities.
Consider education, including reported interventions in teacher recruitment, school rehabilitation and support for students sitting external examinations. These are issues that affect families directly and shape how citizens assess public investment.
Consider healthcare, including reported efforts to improve primary healthcare facilities and strengthen access to essential services.
Consider agriculture, rural development and the state’s investment ambitions, including the proposed Ondo deep seaport and wider industrial development initiatives.
These are areas through which the administration can explain its policy priorities and demonstrate the relationship between governance and the daily needs of citizens.
The deep seaport, refinery initiative and other major industrial proposals must, of course, be described according to their actual implementation status. Proposed investments should not be confused with completed facilities, and announced projects should be assessed against evidence of delivery.
That distinction does not diminish the importance of development planning. Rather, it makes the administration’s account more credible.
A road that has been completed can be inspected. A school that has been rehabilitated can be visited. A healthcare facility can be assessed. A public programme can be evaluated by the people it is intended to serve.
For a Governor seeking to mobilise political support, the value of these projects lies in the tangible improvements they deliver and the evidence citizens can independently verify.
This is where Aiyedatiwa’s developmental agenda and campaign responsibility meet.
The campaign must communicate achievements accurately, explain ongoing work honestly and set out future plans clearly. It must give citizens the information needed to judge the administration’s record.
Aiyedatiwa’s political assignment is therefore not simply to mobilise the APC. It is also to ensure that the administration’s work is properly presented to the people.
COUNT FIVE: WHY THE OTHER APC CANDIDATES SHOULD TAKE HEART
Now, let us consider the position of the other APC candidates.
Imagine a senatorial candidate preparing for 2027 and learning that the Governor is coordinating a statewide presidential campaign structure.
Imagine the nine House of Representatives candidates and the 26 state Assembly candidates watching the party establish a framework for mobilisation across the three senatorial districts.
The implication is straightforward: a coordinated statewide campaign can provide an organisational platform within which individual candidates can communicate their programmes and reach voters.
But the Governor cannot campaign in place of every candidate.
Each aspirant or candidate must earn public confidence through personal credibility, a clear programme and an understanding of constituency needs.
The Senator must explain the intended contribution to lawmaking and oversight. The House of Representatives candidate must articulate a constituency agenda. The Assembly candidate must demonstrate an understanding of local priorities and the legislative responsibilities of the office.
The Governor’s role is to encourage coordination, reduce unnecessary fragmentation and help ensure that the party approaches the election with a shared understanding of its objectives.
The candidates’ responsibility is to complement that structure with their own hard work.
This is how a statewide political organisation can function: common direction, clear responsibilities and candidates who understand that the electorate must remain at the centre of the exercise.
If Aiyedatiwa succeeds in strengthening that coordination, his contribution will extend beyond the presidential campaign. It will help establish a common framework within which the party’s candidates can undertake their respective campaigns.
That is an ambitious assignment, but it is a logical one for a Governor who has chosen to assume a central organisational role.
COUNT SIX: THE GOVERNOR’S REAL OFFENCE IS REFUSING TO TREAT 2027 AS BUSINESS AS USUAL
The familiar approach to elections is to wait until the campaign season becomes intense before beginning the serious work of organisation.
Aiyedatiwa’s current approach points in another direction.
The campaign council has been inaugurated. Its directorates and subcommittees provide a structure for coordinating activities. The one-million-vote target gives the campaign a measurable ambition. The Governor’s public emphasis on unity and grassroots mobilisation establishes the broad direction of the exercise.
The next task is execution.
That means clear responsibilities, regular coordination, credible information, effective communication, lawful logistics and sustained engagement with communities.
It also means keeping governance in view.
The Governor must continue to attend to the responsibilities of his office while the campaign machinery performs its assigned functions. Public resources must be managed according to the law, and electoral materials and logistics must be handled transparently and in compliance with the rules governing elections.
The objective is to build an effective party campaign without compromising public service or the independence of voters.
That is the standard against which the campaign should be judged.
And that is the standard Aiyedatiwa’s supporters should want the administration and the party to meet.
THE FINAL VERDICT: GUILTY OF TAKING THE ASSIGNMENT SERIOUSLY!
My Lord, the evidence has been presented!
Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa is not on the presidential ballot. Yet he has accepted a central role in organising the Ondo APC’s campaign for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
He has inaugurated the campaign council, taken responsibility for its leadership, encouraged unity and grassroots mobilisation, and embraced a one-million-vote target.
His supporters can point to the administration’s developmental agenda, the statewide reach of the 2024 governorship victory and the campaign structure now being assembled as the foundations of this effort.
The assignment is demanding. The target is ambitious. The electorate will make the final decision.
But there is a distinction between guaranteeing a result and demonstrating a willingness to work for it.
Aiyedatiwa has publicly committed himself to the latter.
And that deserves to be understood in its proper context: as a Governor seeking to coordinate his party’s efforts, present the administration’s record and help the party prepare for an election that will involve several levels of government.
So, let President Tinubu take note of the organisation taking shape in Ondo State.
Let the APC senatorial, House of Representatives and Assembly candidates understand the importance of combining their individual campaigns with effective statewide coordination.
Let the campaign committees understand that the one-million-vote target requires planning, persuasion and measurable effort.
And let the Governor continue to demonstrate that the work of governance and the work of political organisation both demand seriousness, discipline and accountability.
For Aiyedatiwa, the 18–0 victory of 2024 is a reference point, not a licence for complacency. The one-million-vote target is an ambition, not an entitlement. The campaign council is a structure, not a substitute for the hard work ahead.
The responsibility now is to turn those elements into an organised, lawful and persuasive campaign.
That is the real story of a Governor who is not on the ballot but has chosen to play a central role in preparing his party for 2027.
And if the political drama must end in a courtroom, let the verdict be delivered in the language of satire:
COUNT ONE:.Excessive commitment to campaign organisation.
COUNT TWO: Refusal to regard the one-million-vote target as a mere slogan.
COUNT THREE: Persistent insistence that the 18 local government areas must not be neglected in the mobilisation effort.
COUNT FOUR: Determination to ensure that the presidential, senatorial, House of Representatives and Assembly campaigns are properly coordinated.
COUNT FIVE: The audacity to approach an election in which he is not a candidate with the seriousness of a man who understands the weight of the assignment.
The verdict?
GUILTY OF TAKING THE JOB SERIOUSLY!
The sentence?
Continue governing. Continue organising. Continue communicating. Continue engaging the people. Continue building a campaign founded on verifiable performance, party unity and respect for the electorate.
And when the votes are cast, let the people deliver their verdict freely.
For Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, the assignment is clear: provide the leadership, build the structure, sustain the mobilisation and give the APC the best organised opportunity to present its case to the people of Ondo State.
The Governor may not be on the ballot, but he has made it clear that he intends to be fully engaged in the work that precedes it.
That, in itself, is the story.
Steve Otaloro is a media practitioner and political commentator.
