The governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State, Senator Sharafadeen Alli, has promised to grant local governments (LGs) and local council development areas (LCDAs) autonomy from his first day in office if elected governor in 2027.
Alli made the pledge on Thursday at the inauguration of the Oyo State chapter of the PBAT Door-to-Door Movement, where 32 campaign vehicles donated by the group’s Grand Patron, Chief Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, were unveiled at the Obafemi Awolowo Stadium, formerly Liberty Stadium, in Ibadan.
“All our LCDAs and LGs will have autonomy on the day we are sworn in on May 29, 2027,” he said.
The APC candidate expressed appreciation to Tompolo for the donation, assuring him that the vehicles and other campaign materials would be put to judicious use to mobilise support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election and the party’s candidates in Oyo State.
“We have stayed out of government in Oyo State for too long, and we are working assiduously to ensure we take over the government in 2027,” Alli said.
He added that the APC was determined to secure victory not only in the presidential and governorship elections but also in the National Assembly and state House of Assembly polls.
Alli recalled that Oyo State recorded the highest number of votes for Tinubu in the South-West during the 2023 presidential election, saying the party was working to double the figure in 2027. He urged eligible voters to collect their Permanent Voter Cards and vote early for APC candidates.
Speaking on behalf of Tompolo, Chief Kestin Pondi said the 32 vehicles were donated to strengthen grassroots mobilisation for Tinubu and other APC candidates in the state.
Pondi defended the president’s economic reforms, describing them as necessary measures whose benefits would become evident over time.
“We will vote for President Tinubu to continue his reforms. Reforms are never easy in the beginning. That is what we are all experiencing now. But we will enjoy later. We must pay the sacrifice today for our children to enjoy in the future,” he said.
He urged residents to support Tinubu, Alli and other APC candidates, adding that the movement would intensify its door-to-door mobilisation ahead of the elections.
The National Coordinator of the PBAT Door-to-Door Movement, Comrade Sunday Adekanbi Asuku, also called on supporters to mobilise voters at the grassroots and work towards the victory of the president and Alli.
“The time has come to elect our leaders. Some people are ganging up against your son. Yoruba, ronu o,” Asuku said.
He urged eligible voters to obtain their PVCs, visit their polling units on election day and encourage others to participate in the electoral process.
In his remarks, the APC chairman for Oyo Central Senatorial District, Dr Joshua Oyebanji, who represented the party’s state chairman, Chief Moses Adeyemo, thanked Tompolo for the donation and expressed confidence that the APC would win the 2027 elections at all levels.
Oyebanji said the party would soon begin full-scale campaigns, urging members to remain committed to its mobilisation drive.
Also speaking, the Oyo State Coordinator of the PBAT Door-to-Door Movement, Akinjide Kazeem Akinola, expressed confidence that the state would deliver more votes for Tinubu in 2027 than it did in the previous presidential election.
“Oyo State gave President Bola Ahmed Tinubu the highest vote in the South-West in 2023. We will give the president the highest vote in Nigeria in 2027. Let us work hard to achieve this,” Akinola said.
