Members and leaders of the All Progressive Congress (APC) from across all the three zones of Ogun State gathered today, Tuesday at the expansive hall of the Abeokata Sports Club to emphatically endorse the governorship ambition of Nigeria’s past High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Ambassador Sarafa Tunji Isola.
From as early as 9am, the Club’s main hall was already filled with political operatives from across the state who were singing and dancing in anticipation of the day’s outcome.
Apart from the endorsement, the over 20 various groups also announced a merger into the newly formed Sarafa Support Group (SSG) as the main group for realizing the former Minister of Mines and Steel’s ambition. The operations of the groups were also divided into local government units for effective operations.
Speaking about the reasons behind his intention to contest for the governorship position in the state, Isola said his main concern was for the oneness and unity of the state. Decrying what he called a history of disruptive transitions between past governors of the state, which blamed for the state’s poor and uneven development, said he was grateful for what he had benefited in the state.
Isola described his candidacy as a way to give back to the state which has given him a lot, starting from his first elective position as a local government chairman. He promised to be a governor for every resident of Ogun State.
Isola spoke while addressing the Ogun APC stakeholders event tagged ‘Harmonization and Seeking for Endorsement’ with membership drawn from party members across the three senatorial district in the state.
He added that though he was not desperate to be the state governor, he was convinced by some political leaders in the state,especially a Chieftain of APC in the state, Chief Olajoju Fadairo.
He also disclosed that he has consulted widely with former governors of the state and traditional rulers across the state. He said he already got their nod to be the next governor of the state.
“My concern in this project is the oneness of all indigenes of Ogun state,” he said. “We know our various roots in the state, most especially those of us in Egba land. It is important for me to appreciate it, being a former Chairman of the chairmen of local governments, a former Secretary to the state government, a former minister of Federal Republic of Nigeria and former Nigerian High commissioner to the UK.
“When I consulted former governors of the state, who happened to be my principals, Otunba Gbenga Daniel and Senator Ibikunle Amosun, and later held meetings with Alake of Egbaland and Olowu of Owu Kingdom, which was facilitated by Chief Olajoju Fadairo to seek their opinion, i was so happy that they accepted me to be the next governor of the state”, he disclosed.
He also called on the people present at the event to get on their feet to sing a solidarity song to demonstrate their support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and to endorse his second term bid in forthcoming presidential election.
Speaking earlier, Chief Fadairo assured Ambassador Isola of Ogun people’s support, saying the level of turn out of the party members across the state at the Stakeholders meeting was a testament to his endorsement to be the next governor of Ogun state in the 2027 general elections.
While narrating how he pleaded with Ambassador Isola when he was the Nigerian envoy in the United Kingdom to contest for the governorship position, Fadairo said he already consulted some stakeholders in the state before appealing to the former high commissioner. He said it was a thing of joy for him when Isola accepted the assignment.
In their separate remarks, the representatives of the various groups from the three senatorial districts, and other stakeholders including tradition Chieftaincy holders and professional associations, commended Tunji Isola for his early engagement with them, noting that he is the most qualified aspirant to be the next governor of the state.
They also reflected on his legacy of service, when he was the SSG in the state, when he was a Minister, and his antecedents as a Nigerian high commissioner in the UK, saying he directly impacted livelihood of Ogun state indigenes and Nigerians as a whole.
According to one of the, “Isola’s track record of compassion and service distinguishes him as a humane leader who understands the needs of the people”.
