Exactly two months after the endorsement of Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola as the All Progressives Congress (APC) consensus candidate for the 2027 Ogun State governorship election, the party has announced Kudirat Adegunwa-Balogun as its deputy governorship candidate.

The announcement was made on Sunday by Governor Dapo Abiodun at an emergency APC Strategic Caucus meeting held at the party’s secretariat in Abeokuta.Governor Abiodun stated that the decision was reached after several consultations with party leaders and stakeholders in the state.

He noted that the party considered gender balance and religious tolerance in selecting her from Ososa town in Odogbolu Local Government Area of Ogun East Senatorial District.The governor said, “If the government is coming from the West, we felt that for equity and fairness, the deputy governor should come from the East. So, we sat and looked across the local governments in Ogun East and consulted widely within that constituency.“Yes, we’ve accepted. But until this august body ratifies that, we cannot consider it as something that has been formally accepted by the party and the state. So, we thought we must bring, in the same fashion that we brought the governorship candidate here…

“So today, it gives me great pleasure to announce to us who our deputy governor will be by the grace of God. today, we have among us Mrs Kudirat Abiodun Adegunwa-Balogun and, by the grace of God, Mrs Manobu will be our deputy governor.”In his remarks, the governorship candidate, Solomon Adeola, thanked the governor for the strategy deployed in the selection of various candidates for the 2027 election.Adeola disclosed that a total of 17 aspirants indicated interest in becoming the deputy governorship candidate and that all were qualified to represent the state, but one person had to emerge, hence the decision.He added that she is the daughter of the Asiwaju of Ijebuland and business mogul, Sulaiman Adegunwa.In her acceptance speech, Adegunwa-Balogun appreciated the state governor, party leaders and the governorship candidate for the trust and opportunity to serve.

Mrs Adegunwa-Balogun maintained that she does not take the support for granted but rather sees the nomination as a call to duty and a privilege to serve.Earlier in his welcome address, the Ogun APC Chairman, Yemi Sanusi, appreciated the state governor for his wisdom and congratulated all candidates who emerged victorious in the primary election.He noted that the primary election process was not yet completed, hence the purpose of the meeting.Our correspondent observed that while the state Deputy Governor, Noimot Salako-Oyedele, was absent, Iziaq Salako, the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare; the Director-General of the National Sports Commission and former two-term commissioner in Ogun State, Bukola Olopade; the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Oludaisi Elemide; the Secretary to the State Government (SSG); and members of the Governor’s Elders Advisory Council (GEAC), among others, were present at the meeting.

Contrary to claims by former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, that he made the late Muhammadu Buhari president, the lawmaker representing Edo North Senatorial District, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, has said Amaechi did not even vote for Buhari in 2015.

Oshiomhole, who spoke on Sunday in an interview on The Mic On Podcast, said the African Democratic Congress (ADC) chieftain could not vote because he was “overwhelmed” by the former Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike.

According to the lawmaker, Amaechi, who served as the Director-General of Buhari’s campaign, instructed his supporters in Rivers State to boycott the election.

He said, “Amaechi lied that he made Buhari president. Amaechi was not able to vote for Buhari in 2015 because he unwisely directed the people of Rivers State to boycott the polls as he was overwhelmed by the forces of Wike.

“As Director-General of the campaign, he asked his people not to vote.”

Amaechi had, in an interview on Arise TV, claimed that it was he, and not Tinubu, who made Buhari president in 2015.

Senator Adams Oshiomhole has the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, Peter Obi does not have what it takes to win the 2027 election.

In an interview with Mic On Podcast on Sunday, the lawmaker claimed that Peter Obi lacks reputation, citing his alleged inability to manage and resolve party crisis.

Oshiomhole said the former governor of Anambra State cannot be taken by his own words, pointing out how he (Obi) failed to keep his promise of staying put in the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA.

“Peter Obi has no reputation, you cannot take him by his words. First he said he was not going to leave APGA when Ojukwu handed the party to him and the party produced him as a governor.

“After that Obi joined a party because he wanted to be a vice president but he was defeated, in stead of staying back to strategize, Obi left and went to Labour Party because he doesn’t want to do primaries.

“Labour Party handed over the ticket to him, on a platter of gold. According to him, he got eight million votes. Common sense will prescribe that you manage that platform, invest in it and deal with all eternal challenges, but he wanted where food is ready and left the Labour Party.

“He wanted to ADC and they forcefully took over the leadership of the party but when they said there will be a primary election and because he doesn’t want to go through the first stage of election, he went to join NDC,” Oshiomhole said.