- backs South-West political realignment
- Yoruba leaders decorate governor as Ondo patron
Ondo State Governor, Hon Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa, has declared that the Yoruba race remains united despite political differences among the six South-West states, urging the region to close ranks in pursuit of its political interests.
He spoke on Thursday when the Yoruba Leaders of Thought, led by its Chairman and former Oyo State deputy governor, Chief Iyiola Oladokun, paid a courtesy visit to him at his office in Akure.
The governor said it would be desirable for all South-West states to belong to the same political party, but stressed that differences in political affiliation could not diminish the common identity of the Yoruba.
“Yoruba is one, irrespective of the state. Either Ondo, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti, we are one,” he said.
Aiyedatiwa declared Ondo State’s support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election in 2027, saying the state would also back APC candidates for the Senate, House of Representatives and State House of Assembly.
He thanked the Yoruba Leaders of Thought for choosing Ondo as the first point of call in its efforts to secure what belonged to the Yoruba race in Nigeria.
The governor acknowledged the group’s support for the Buhari/Osinbajo ticket in 2019 and its backing of Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election.
He commended its ongoing mobilisation for Tinubu’s re-election, saying the paramount interest of a political party was to gain power when in opposition and retain it when in government.
“So, that is what we are doing, to retain the power for another four years,” he said.
Aiyedatiwa also appreciated the group for commending his role in the just-concluded Osun election, saying Ondo gave good support despite not publicly announcing its position.
He described Ondo as a progressive state with a long history of progressive politics and mobilisation of the Yoruba race.
Recalling his political journey, the governor said he joined active politics in 2010 when the state was under progressive leadership and became a member of the Alliance for Democracy (AD).
He said he had never belonged to a political party outside the progressive fold, having moved from AD to ACD, ACN and later APC.
Aiyedatiwa said supporting the progressive movement and Tinubu’s re-election was a task that must be accomplished.
He described the Yoruba Leaders of Thought as an offshoot of Afenifere, saying the two organisations remained one through their cross-pollination and mixed membership.
According to him, the group had only brought additional energy to the mobilisation of the Yoruba race across the South-West.
He urged the organisation to work closely with the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission, describing its members as young people with a vision and development agenda spanning political, economic, social and cultural issues.
Aiyedatiwa said politics could not be separated from those areas of development.
Addressing the political differences across the region, he noted that Osun was currently under the Accord Party but said its governor had openly declared support for the President.
He assured the organisation of his support for its activities in Oyo and Osun states, noting that the two states currently had no APC governors from whom it could seek assistance.
The governor said the APC remained the vessel through which the political agenda and interests of the region could be pursued.
He, however, pledged to provide the necessary support to the organisation within his administration’s limited resources.
Earlier, Oladokun said the Yoruba Leaders of Thought had commenced a tour of the six South-West states to promote unity within the APC and strengthen the political interests of the region ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He said Ondo was the first point of call following the organisation’s decision to sensitise leaders across the six states on the need to work together and join forces in pursuit of the South-West’s political interests.
Oladokun said the decision was taken at the organisation’s meeting last month, adding that it had met with the South-West Executive Committee of the APC in Ibadan about two weeks ago to assess developments within the party across the region.
He said the organisation’s primary objective was to ensure that the APC maintained a cohesive front, particularly as Tinubu seeks re-election.
Oladokun said the group had a standing committee that responded to issues within the APC and contributed to resolving them whenever they arose.
He explained that the organisation emerged from Afenifere following a disagreement over the direction the group should take in pursuing the political interests of the South-West.
The former Deputy governor commended Aiyedatiwa for his efforts and commitment to the Osun election, saying reports from the state and some leaders indicated that the governor did more than he had promised at a meeting he attended.
He said although the APC lost the Osun election, the party would record victories in other states in the future.
Oladokun appealed to Aiyedatiwa to support the organisation’s activities and its members from Ondo State who would participate in its meetings and programmes.
He also sought Aiyedatiwa’s assistance for Oyo and Osun, noting that the two states currently had no APC governors whom the organisation could approach for support.
He said such assistance would help sustain the organisation’s activities and strengthen the APC in the two states.
Oladokun said the organisation had also resolved to recognise Aiyedatiwa and his colleagues as patrons and leaders in their respective states.
The group later decorated Aiyedatiwa as its patron in Ondo State.
In attendance were the Deputy Governor, Dr Olayide Adelami; Chief of Staff, Prince Segun Omojuwa; Head of Service, Chief Segun Odusanya; State Chairman of APC, Hon. Kolawole Babatunde; Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Alhaji Amidu Takuro; and Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Hon. Adesoji Afolabi.
The Hope
