Ahead of primaries, Elders throw weight behind Aiyedatiwa as preferred candidate
Ahead of the April 20 primaries of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo state, the Elders of the Party have thrown their weight behind the Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa as her preferred candidate.
Speaking with journalists after the meeting of the group on Tuesday, the Chairman and former Ambassador to Togo, Sola Iji, said the group took the decision following the recommendations of the committee set up to assess all the governorship aspirants and pick the best out of them.
The group also insisted that the candidate must not be a stranger to the party members and must be a loyal party man who would respect and take care of the welfare of the members.
Iji said, “We resolved in our first meeting to commit ourselves to a unanimous goal in the forthcoming governorship primary of APC in the state. We consider this as a necessary step towards asserting our true worth in the party.
“Nevertheless, during our second meeting, we unanimously agreed to set up a nine-man committee headed by Mrs Christy Olufowose to identify the various aspirants jostling for the ticket of our party; assess them using some well-thought-out criteria and present three of them for further consideration by the leadership of the group.
“At our last meeting, the committee submitted their report wherein Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, Wale Akinterinwa and Dr Paul Akintelure were recommended.
“Furthermore, the group mandated its leadership to have further consultation and deliberations in arriving at the choice of our preferred aspirant. Consequently, the leadership of the group met, reviewed the report of the committee and considered the three recommended aspirants qualified and worthy.
“However, in contriving the choice of our preferred aspirant, the leaders believed that it is normal and conventional to offer a right of first refusal to His Excellency, Lucky Aiyedatiwa as a sitting governor.
Iji added that part of the reasons of the group in choosing Aiyedatiwa was his conduct and performance in less than 100 days in office as the governor of the state.
“On the whole, having been satisfied with the conduct and performance of His Excellency, Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, we are pleased to inform the general public that he is our preferred aspirant in the forthcoming governorship primary of APC in Ondo State.
“By this decision, we are determined to deploy our numerical strength and resources to ensure the victory of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa at the primary. It is our fervent belief that Governor Aiyedatiwa’s candidature will position our party for a resounding victory at the general election and engender good governance in the state,” he stressed.
