The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Ganduje, on Monday, inaugurated a 305-member National Campaign Council for the November 16 governorship election in Ondo State.

The council is headed by the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-OLu, with Kebbi State Governor, Nasir Idris, as Deputy Chairman 1 and Cross River State Governor, Bassey Otu, as Deputy Chairman 2.

A former Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege, is the secretary of the council.

Speaking at the inauguration at The Dome, Akure, Ganduje said the party was poised to claim all the six states of the zone.

He said with President Bola Tinubu from the southwest, the best way to appreciate him was to galvanise a huge APC followership to ensure the party wins elections in the zone.

Ganduje reiterated that South-West would soon be controlled totally by the ruling APC, adding that the party would empower its members to triumph in the Ondo governorship poll.

He harped on the need for the national campaign council to synergise with the Ondo State Council to achieve the aim of winning the Ondo election.

Ganduje said, “The national campaign council will bring a strong synergy to the governor’s campaign council, to ensure we succeed.

“The President is doing a good job for this country, he has introduced reforms to strengthen our economy. By doing so, Ondo State will help to retain our state for APC through democratic means.

“Also, Mr President is from this political zone, to show that we appreciate him, this zone would be homogenous in terms of party followership, through democratic means.

“We will weaponise our members to make sure that we win this election. So, we urge prominent members of our party to ensure that we win this election.”

Some of the heads of various subcommittees of the campaign council, as announced by Sanwo-Olu, included a former National Chairman of the APC and former governor of Osun State, Chief Bisi Akande and governors of Ekiti, Ogun, Imo, Katsina, Borno.

Sanwo-Olu said the council would simply engage in an issue-based campaign.

Sanwo-Olu said, “I want to thank Mr President for setting up this campaign council. We want to assure our party that we would do everything, within our means, constitutionally, to ensure a smooth campaign.

“The campaign would be issue-based. Aiyedatiwa is a man that we will go out for because we believe he is capable.

“Come November 16, all of us will come back to celebrate when our party has scored higher lawful votes and declared winner of the election.”

Ondo State Governor and candidate of the party in the election, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, said the inauguration of the campaign council was a big boost and a huge addition to the winning resolve of the party in the November election.

Aiyedatiwa bragged that the APC had what it takes to win the election, which other parties in the state are lacking.

The governor said, “Other political parties, even our arch opponents, now know what they lack but which we have in abundance.

“We have love, unity, respect, courage, vision and unwavering commitment to succeed. We have a heart that truly cares for the people and a resilient mind with a winning mentality.

“We are grateful to the people of Ondo State for the exceptional show of love to our party.

“They appreciate our commitment to make life more abundant, more meaningful, more rewarding and worth living for them. And we do not take their trust for granted.

“This is why, throughout our campaigns in the cities, towns, villages, hamlets, door to door and face to face, we have listened carefully to the feedback from their lips to our ears.

“They are words of solidarity and confidence, words which demonstrate the strong bond we share with our people and the love they have for a leadership that upholds their dignity.”

Earlier, in the welcome address, the state chairman of the APC, Mr Ade Adetimehin, said the people of the state were ready to support Aiyedatiwa by returning him to power in the November 16 poll.

He said the ruling party was more than united with the coming together of all the aggrieved members of the party, stressing that the members of the opposition parties in the state were already jittery with the overwhelming support for Aiyedatiwa.

“So, all we are doing is to coordinate ourselves and make the leadership of our party proud.

“Come November 16, we are going to make you (national leaders present) proud and return the governor to power.

“At the end of today, PDP will be jittery because it will be difficult for them to assemble these arrays of party leaders and political leaders,” the chairman stated.

Other national leaders of the party in attendance included Governors of Ekiti and Ogun states, Mr Abiodun Oyebanji and Dapo Abiodun, respectively; former Governor of Kebbi and Zamfara states, Alhaji Atiku Bagudu and AbdulAziz Yari; the National Vice Chairman of the APC (South), Mr Emma Enukwu, among others.

No distraction, party says

The Ondo State chapter of the APC said there was no truth in a report that some groups who were members of the party abandoned Aiyedatiwa a few weeks before the governorship election.

There were reports that some factions within the state APC had rejected the party’s candidate to support the Social Democratic Party candidate, Mr Benson Akingboye.

The said report quoted leaders from APC-affiliated groups, including the APC Solidarity Group, Jagaban Coalition, APC Youth League, and Ondo APC Patriots, as expressing discontent over Aiyedatiwa’s nomination, which they claimed was achieved through an unfair primary process.

The statement issued by Dele Oyewo read, “We reject Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s candidature in its entirety. The SDP is currently the most popular party in Ondo State, and its candidate, Benson Akingboye, is the better choice. We believe he will dismantle the deceptive tactics deployed by both APC and PDP.”

But the state Director of Media and Publicity of the APC, Mr Steve Otaloro, said the claim of the groups was mere falsehood.

Describing the groups as faceless, he declared that Aiyedatiwa was the candidate to beat in the election.

Otaloro, in a statement, said, “The SDP Ondo State chapter, claiming that several APC factions reject Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s candidacy and support SDP’s Benson Akingboye, is completely false and misleading. No loyal party member would ever betray their party’s candidate by publicly denouncing them and endorsing another party’s candidate.

“It’s unthinkable that a genuine APC member would undermine their own party’s interests in such a manner. Comrade Dele Oyewo, the individual behind this statement, is likely an impersonator with ulterior motives. His actions have the potential to disrupt the upcoming governorship election and create unnecessary confusion among voters. Security agencies must investigate this matter.

“Considering the SDP’s candidate, Benson Akingboye, is still facing a lot of challenges as his party’s credible flag bearer, it’s clear that this statement is a desperate attempt to sway public opinion. The APC remains united, and Governor Aiyedatiwa’s outstanding track record, exceptional leadership qualities, and widespread popularity among the people of Ondo State make him the clear favourite to win the upcoming election.”

The APC spokesperson maintained that the party remained on issue-based campaigning, showcasing Governor Aiyedatiwa’s achievements, and outlining his vision for Ondo State’s future.

“The party will not be distracted by baseless allegations and impersonation tactics aimed at deceiving the public. With the election drawing near, it’s essential to prioritize fact-based information and reject misleading narratives,” he stressed.

PUNCH