Former Lagos State governor, Bola Tinubu, has said that Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State has performed creditably well to deserve a second term in office.
Mr. Tinubu, who spoke through his spokesperson, Tunde Rahman, in a telephone interview with PREMIUM TIMES, said as a loyal party man, he stands firmly with the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Saturday governorship election in Ondo State.
While reacting to a question on whether the former governor would make a broadcast on the Saturday poll as he did ahead of the Edo State governorship election in September, Mr. Rahman said his boss does not need to make any broadcast to express his support for Mr. Akeredolu.
He said the circumstances surrounding the Edo State election that warranted the broadcast are not the same with the Ondo State poll.
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“The broadcast that Asiwaju Bola Tinubu did regarding the Edo governorship election was in a context. It was due to the fact that the then sitting governor, who was the candidate of the PDP, had engaged in some anti-democratic actions. Fourteen members were elected to the House of Assembly and this man barred them from being sworn in to take their seats in the house.
“Consequently, Asiwaju felt that that was unbecoming of a governor. So, as a democrat, one who has fought for democracy over the years, the former governor felt that this should not be allowed to go without taking proper steps.
“The decision not to inaugurate these members means that the constituencies they were meant to represent have been without representatives for almost four years now. That is a disservice to democracy. But in Ondo, it’s a different situation.”
He said the former governor was instrumental to the unity in the party in Ondo State, adding that he ensured that other members of the party who had eyed the governor’s seat were persuaded to support the incumbent’s re-election bid.
“So, Asiwaju believes that Aketi has done enough to warrant his election.”
On Saturday, the governorship election will be held in Ondo State with Mr. Akeredolu flying the APC’s flag while the Peoples Democratic Party has fielded Eyitayo Jegede in the contest.
Mr. Jegede was also the party’s candidate during the 2016 governorship election.
The state’s incumbent deputy governor, Agboola Ajayi, will also appear on the ballot as the candidate of the Zenith Labour Party.
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