#OndoDecides: Meet the candidates and their parties

Friday, October 9, 2020 12:53 pm

Rotimi Akeredolu and Eyitayo Jegede

By Richard Elesho/ Akure

The race to the Ondo State Government House inches close to a crescendo. In a matter of hours, people of the state will troop out to elect who will lead them for the next four years. Some 1.4 million voters have been registered for the election.

All seem set for the Saturday October 10 exercise. The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC has commenced the distribution of nonsensitive election materials. The parties have also concluded open campaigns for support.

INEC cleared 17 parties and their candidates to participate in the election. However only three of them are believed to really be on ground and in contention. Many of the other parties have gone into diverse alliances or relationship with the mega three. Here are the profile of the parties, their candidates.

Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of the All Progressives Congress, APC: Akeredolu, born 21 July 1956, is the incumbent and is seeking election for a second and final term.

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN hails from Owo town in Ondo North and is banking on his first term performance, zoning arrangement and the strength of his party.

He has set his eyes on industrializing the state if he gets a second term.

Some political parties have announced support for the Governor’s reelection. They include factions of the Accord Party, AP and Social Democratic Party, SDP.

Eyitayo Jegede of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP: Jegede also a SAN hails from Akure in Ondo Central. He is an experienced politician. In fact, he will be locking horns for second time with the incumbent. He was narrowly defeated by the APC candidate in 2016.

As the race to the Alagbaka Government House gathered momentum, some eleven political parties announced a controversial alliance with the PDP and endorsed Jegede as their common candidate in the election.

The parties in the alliance are a faction of Accord Party AP, a faction of Social Democratic Party SDP, African Democratic Alliance ADC; All People’s Party APP, All Progressives Grand Alliance APGA: Allied People’s Movement APM; New Nigeria People’s Party NNPP; National Resistance Movement NRM; Labour Party LP; Young Progressives Party YPP, African Action Congress AAC.

Agoola Ajayi of Zenith Labour Party ZLP:

Agboola Ajayi

He is the third force in the election. He is the Deputy Governor of the State.

Born on September 24, 1968, he was elected along with Akeredolu on the platform of APC. He ditched the party for PDP over his ambition to govern the State. When he lost out in the race for the party ticket and running mate, he moved on to the ZLP. Although the party had concluded its primary which was won by Solomon Benjamin, the ticket was eventually handed to Ajayi.

Ajayi who hails from Ondo South relies on his deep pocket and influence of the national leader of the party, former Governor Olusegun Mimiko to help win the poll.

Rotimi Akindejoye of Accord Party, AP: The young politician is relying on support of the young demography. Two factions of his party have declared support for the mega parties but Akindejoye insists remains in the Governorship race.

Rotimi Akindejoye

The party is factionalized in pieces. With a section led by it’s national Secretary supporting Akeredolu and another faction led by the state chairman and BOT Chairman supporting Jegede, the candidate certainly has a long way to go.

Who takes the trophy? Hopefully, the electorate will decide, shortly.