2027: Aiyedatiwa Warns Ondo APC Against Division, Targets One Million Votes for Tinubu

Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa has warned members of the All Progressives Congress against internal divisions, saying the party’s position as Africa’s largest political party will not guarantee victory in the 2027 general election without unity.

 

Aiyedatiwa gave the warning on Saturday in Akure while inaugurating the Ondo State APC Presidential Campaign Council, its directorates and sub-committees ahead of President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid.

 

The governor, who chairs the council, urged party leaders and members to work together and mobilise support across the state, recalling how cooperation among opposition groups helped the APC defeat the Peoples Democratic Party in the 2015 presidential election.

 

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

 

Aiyedatiwa also warned party members against repeating the divisions that weakened the PDP, urging them to resolve internal disagreements and prioritise the party’s electoral interests.

 

He said the APC’s campaign should focus on the achievements of the Tinubu administration and his government in Ondo State.

 

APC Sets One Million Vote Target

The governor’s call for unity came as APC leaders in Ondo State set a target of securing at least one million votes for Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election.

 

Deputy Governor Olayide Adelami urged party members to intensify grassroots mobilisation through house-to-house campaigns and direct engagement with residents.

 

The Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Olamide Oladiji, also urged party leaders to work towards a convincing victory, while the Chairman of the Governor’s Advisory Council, Pius Akinyelure, expressed confidence that the party could surpass the one million-vote target.

 

Senators Tayo Alasoadura, Remi Okinrinboye and Olusola Oke also pledged to mobilise support for the President’s re-election.

 

Oke said he would work with different groups across the state to achieve the target, while citing federal appointments, road projects and the proposed benefits of the coastal highway project as reasons for supporting Tinubu’s administration.

 

The one million-vote figure is the party’s stated target. It is not a prediction of the election result.

 

Governor Lists Tinubu’s Reforms

Aiyedatiwa urged campaign council members to explain the policies and projects of the Tinubu administration to voters, particularly the removal of the petrol subsidy and the government’s use of the resulting savings.

 

He argued that Tinubu had implemented reforms that previous administrations had been unwilling to undertake, citing the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway as an example of a major infrastructure project.

 

The governor also referred to the President’s record as Lagos State governor and expressed confidence that the Federal Government would support efforts to address coastal erosion in Ayetoro, an Ondo State community affected by the Atlantic Ocean’s encroachment.

 

He said his administration was working to address the problem and expected federal assistance.

 

Aiyedatiwa also urged campaign officials to highlight his government’s activities, including road and bridge construction, graduate training, school projects, the provision of equipment for hospitals and health centres, and the regular payment of workers’ salaries.

 

These were among the achievements he said the party should present to voters during the campaign.

 

APC Chairman Cites State Projects

The Ondo APC chairman, Kolawole Babatunde, said the party would run an issue-based campaign centred on the performance of the state and federal governments.

 

He claimed that the Aiyedatiwa administration had completed more than 50 road projects, with over 50 others ongoing.

 

Babatunde also cited student grants and scholarships, as well as the payment of pensions and gratuities, as part of the state government’s record.

 

The chairman urged campaign committees to reach communities across Ondo State and explain the party’s programmes to residents.

 

Former Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly Victor Olabimtan, who serves as Director-General of the campaign council, also called on party members to support Tinubu’s re-election.

 

Campaign Council Constituted Earlier

The inauguration followed an earlier announcement by the Ondo APC that it had constituted a 228-member presidential campaign council.

 

In a report published on October 5, Vanguard said the council included political leaders, serving and former lawmakers, women and youth leaders, party stakeholders and grassroots mobilisers from across the state.

 

Aiyedatiwa was named chairman, with Adelami as vice-chairman and Olabimtan as Director-General.

 

The council is expected to coordinate the party’s presidential campaign and grassroots mobilisation in Ondo State ahead of the 2027 elections.

 

According to the timetable published by the Independent National Electoral Commission, the presidential and National Assembly elections are scheduled for January 16, 2027.

 

Aiyedatiwa urged members of the council to begin the work of mobilisation across the state, stressing that party unity and the presentation of its record to voters would be central to its campaign.