By Kreovant Media

…warns 157-man APC Presidential campaign council against complacency

The Governor of Ekiti State, Biodun Oyebanji has warned criticised overemphasis on political rallies, motorcades, warning Ekiti members of Ekiti All Progressive Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council against complacency.

The Governor gave this warning in Ado-Ekiti while inaugurating a 157-member Campaign Council, charging the members to embark on aggressive grassroots mobilisation and voter tracking to secure at least 90 per cent of the total votes cast for President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 general election.

Speaking during the inauguration, Oyebanji said the major task before the council was not merely to organise rallies and political campaigns but to identify eligible voters who failed to participate in previous elections and persuade them to come out and vote for the President.

The governor, who is the state coordinator and chairman of the council, said Ekiti could not afford to deliver anything less than 90 per cent of the votes cast for Tinubu, considering the calibre of political leaders and stakeholders assembled in the state for the assignment.

Oyebanji expressed concern over voter apathy, noting that despite having more than one million registered voters in Ekiti, fewer than 400,000 people participated in the June 20 governorship election.

He said the council must therefore concentrate on identifying registered voters who did not participate in the previous election, understanding the reasons for their absence and ensuring that they were mobilised to exercise their franchise in 2027.

According to him, the council would adopt a systematic approach involving the collection of voters’ registers and tracking of eligible voters across polling units, wards and local government areas.

Oyebanji urged party members to set aside political differences and work with all willing supporters, irrespective of their party affiliations, stressing that the task of mobilising voters should not be restricted to APC members alone.

The governor disclosed that the council would develop a comprehensive voter-tracking structure covering all the 16 local government areas and polling units in the state within the next two weeks, with members expected to identify and mobilise eligible voters ahead of the election.

Oyebanji, who expressed appreciation to political leaders, federal appointees, members of the National Assembly, the state legislature and other stakeholders for attending the inauguration, said the composition of the council reflected the party’s determination to deliver a decisive victory for Tinubu.

His words, “With the calibre of people we have here, it will be a shame on all of us if we cannot pull 90 per cent of the total votes cast for the President. If we could pull 85.7 per cent in the governorship election, the least we can do for the President is 90 per cent.

“Our major work, as far as I am concerned, is not campaigning. Our major work is to identify those that opted out and did not come out to vote in June and bring them out. Anything other than that, we are wasting our time.

“We don’t like to do the heavy lifting. We want to organise campaigns, arrange cars, drive around towns and do all the talking. The real work is to get the voters’ register in our units and identify those who have not come out to vote. That is the job we don’t want to do”.

In his remarks, the Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, who spoke on behalf of members of the campaign council, pledged their commitment to the assignment, describing the task as achievable, given the experience and political structure available to the party in the state.

Bamidele, who commended Oyebanji for ensuring an inclusive composition of the council, said the recent governorship election, which secured the governor’s re-election, had provided the APC with valuable experience and momentum ahead of the presidential poll.

He assured the governor that members would take the assignment seriously and work collectively to achieve a higher electoral performance for Tinubu in 2027.

The Senate Leader also welcomed candidates of other political parties including Dr Wole Oluyede of the PDP, who attended the inauguration, describing their presence as a demonstration of political goodwill and an indication that the campaign council was open to broader collaboration.

Earlier, the APC Chairman in Ekiti State, Sola Elesin, said the council was constituted to galvanise support and mobilise votes for Tinubu’s re-election, with the objective of surpassing the electoral performance recorded by the President in the state in previous elections.

Elesin urged members of the council to demonstrate commitment, dedication and a strong sense of responsibility, saying Ekiti should emerge among the leading states in terms of votes delivered for the President in 2027.