Damisi Ojo, Akure
The Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to the Ondo State Governor on Public Engagement, Steve Otaloro, has debunked the report alleging that Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa has shifted his support from the APC candidate for Ondo South Senatorial District, Dr. Isaacs Kekemeke, to the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Hon. Matthew Oyerinmade (MATO).
In a statement on Monday in Akure, the state capital, Otaloro said there is no truth whatsoever in the insinuation that the governor has abandoned the APC candidate and now supporting the candidate of another political party.
Ondo South Senatorial Seat at the Upper Chamber,Abuja became vacant following the appointment of Senator Jimoh Ibrahim as Nigeria’s Ambassador to the United Nations (UN) by President Bola Tinubu.
The position is being keenly contested by APC and PDP candidates.
Otaloro described Aiyedatiwa as a committed member and leader of the APC in Ondo State who has consistently demonstrated his loyalty to the progressive political family, dating back to the days of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) and the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), which eventually metamorphosed into the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The SSA said ‘It is therefore inconceivable that the Governor, who currently leads the APC in Ondo State, would deliberately pitch his tent against the candidate of the same party in favour of a candidate contesting on the platform of another political party.
“The Governor has never authorised anyone to speak on his behalf in support of any opposition candidate, and any claim suggesting otherwise should be treated as false, mischievous and politically motivated.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Governor Aiyedatiwa remains firmly committed to the APC and its candidates. His political loyalty and responsibility as the leader of the party in Ondo State do not permit him to engage in any action that would undermine the party he leads.
“It is also instructive that Dr. Isaacs Kekemeke himself has publicly dismissed reports of any disagreement between him and the Governor, affirming that the Governor supported his emergence as the APC’s candidate and remains his benefactor and the leader of the party in the state”.
The statement consequently urged members of the public, APC supporters and the people of Ondo State to disregard the rumour of an alleged shift in the Governor’s support, saying It is nothing more than an attempt by political actors to create unnecessary division between the Governor and the APC’s senatorial candidate.
Otaloro maintained that Governor Aiyedatiwa remains an APC leader, an APC loyalist and a supporter of the party’s candidates who will not support any candidate against the party he leads.
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