Ondo 2024: Why we endorsed Aiyedatiwa – Arogbo Ijaw

The Ijaw-speaking Arogbo Kingdom of Ese Odo Local Government Area in Ondo State has endorsed Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s political ambition to continue as governor.

The endorsement, announced on Monday, was supported by Senior High Chief Bibopere Ajube, a Niger Delta Peace Ambassador and entrepreneur, who cited the governor’s significant achievements during the nine months he has led the state.

Ajube expressed a commitment to ensuring Aiyedatiwa’s victory by pledging to fund the governor’s election campaign across the six local government areas in the Southern Senatorial District of the state.

Speaking on the endorsement, the traditional ruler of the community, the Agadagba and paramount ruler of Arogbo Ijaw Kingdom, Pere (Barrister) Zaccheus Doubra Egbunu, Opukutu III, highlighted that their support was rooted in the strong backing the Ilaje people provided to their son, Hon. Donald Ojogo, during the 2023 House of Representatives election.

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“Our governor is our son in Arogbo Ijaw Kingdom because he is our closest neighbor. There is no way we will not give him maximum support, especially as an Ilaje man,” the monarch stated.

“In Ijaw land, we value and reciprocate good gestures; we cannot forget in a hurry how the Ilajes mobilized strongly for our son, Hon. Donald Ojogo, to win the House of Representatives seat in 2023. For the very first time, an Ijaw man is in the Green Chamber. So it’s our duty, it’s an obligation for us to vote massively for this Governor, who happens to be our Ilaje son,” the monarch added.

Ajube, who is also the Pathfinder of Arogbo Ijaw Kingdom, reiterated his commitment to funding the election while hosting Governor Aiyedatiwa at an elaborate ceremony where over 2,000 members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) defected to the APC.

“Mr. Governor, your election is our election and that of the president because it is the first governorship election in the Southwest since the 2023 presidential election that produced our own President Ahmed Bola Tinubu,” Ajube remarked.

“As such, it is of great consequence to the President, and we cannot afford to play with it. We will not disappoint our president, and that is why we have dismantled all the ward structures of the PDP in our Kingdom.

So, Your Excellency, just leave the six local government areas in the Southern Senatorial District of the state to me for funding. Just keep the little money you have for other senatorial districts. I have the capacity. I am an Ijaw man. We don’t deceive people. If we say we will do something, don’t doubt it—we will do it.”

Governor Aiyedatiwa, while receiving the defectors, expressed his gratitude for their decision to join the APC, a party he described as a family of true progressives where everyone’s voice counts.

He thanked all the party leaders for their support and announced various initiatives aimed at improving the lives of the people of the state.

The Chairman of Arogbo LCDA, Hon. Caleb Ebi Molos, also expressed appreciation to the governor for his concern for Arogbo Kingdom and assured him of the total support of the people of Arogbo LCDA.

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE