We Are Formidable In Ondo, Southwest, Says ADC

Ondo State chapter of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has said the party was committed to making the party a formidable force in the South West and in Ondo State.

The party’s caretaker chairman in the state, Asiwaju Ayowole Ademoyegun, said the party has embarked on a mobilisation strategy across the six states in the South West, led by former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola, the National Secretary of the party.

He spoke to LEADERSHIP while reacting to concerns that the party is struggling to find its footing in the South West where the incumbent, President Bola Tinubu hails from.

Apart from the Labour Party’s 2023 governorship candidate in Lagos State, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, who recently joined the ADC with his supporters, no prominent South-West politician has publicly identified with the opposition party.

A former governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, who was alleged to be part of the coalition by his political ally, Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi, has since distanced himself from the group.

Although the ADC has gained some prominent leaders from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the national level due to the party’s lingering crisis, the same cannot be said of the South-West. Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State, for instance, recently denied nursing any plan to dump the PDP for the ADC.

It will be recalled that President Tinubu won only four out of the six South-West states in the 2023 presidential election, polling 2,279,407 votes in the region.

Ahead of the 2027 polls, it was learnt that the President and his political strategy team are targeting victory in all the six South-West states, particularly Lagos, where Tinubu was governor for eight years but lost to Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, in 2023.

Reacting however, Ademoyegun said, “The ADC has been engaging with grassroots members and opposition leaders to build a strong coalition against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

“Several prominent politicians have defected to the ADC, including: At least four former gubernatorial candidates from various parties. Former Senators, House of Representatives members, and House of Assembly members. Scores of former members of various State Executive Committees. Thousands of new members defecting from their former parties in every Ward across the six South West States.

“The party has been actively engaging in grassroots mobilization, emphasizing democratic values, inclusion, and transparency.

“The ADC appears to be gaining momentum in Ondo State, driven by its mobilization strategy, coalition building, and commitment to democratic values,” he said.