Court Verdict: Aiyedatiwa Denies Nursing Re-election Ambition
•By Admin
AKURE — GOVERNOR Lucky Aiyedatiwa has denied nursing ambition for re-election in 2028 governorship election in Ondo State.
He stated this on Thursday night while reacting to the verdict of a Federal High Court sitting in Akure, barring him from re-contesting governorship election in the state.
The governor described the court judgement as an unnecessary distraction, saying he had not at any time declared interest in contesting another governorship election.
He said: “I would like to start with just clarifying a bit of sanity as regards to this matter.
“Let me establish some truth so that the general public can have a better understanding of what has been and what is now.
“A lot has been said on social media and there are a lot of misconceptions and opinions trying to distort the truth.
“But the truth is that I have never at any time declared to anybody that I am going to contest an election. I have said this about a year ago. It is not time for any governorship election in this state.
“There is no timetable. There is no sign of any election and I have not expressed interest at any time that I am going to run for the office of the governor again because it is not yet time.”
Speaking further, Governor Aiyedatiwa said he did not approach the court to seek eligibility to contest any election, noting that the case was initiated by other individuals seeking clarification on his eligibility.
He, therefore, declared that the legal battle would not distract him from focusing on governance and delivering on his promises to the people of the state.
According to Governor Aiyedatiwa, “I don’t feel any form of distraction. I feel good and I will continue doing my work for the good people of Ondo State.
“I want to fulfil the promises that I made during my campaign and ensure that I deliver.
“I had an election. I completed the tenure of my late principal and I contested the election which I won on November 16, 2024.
“It is still fresh. I have never thought about any other election other than delivering on the fresh mandate that has been given to me.
“You have to take things step by step even though I am aware of the constitutional provisions that say a deputy who completes the tenure of his principal can only continue one more time.
“I also know that the law talks about a Nigerian having the right to contest for the same position a maximum of two times which is eight years.
“Those provisions are there but I have not even gone into that thinking because the election is still fresh.”
But when asked if he would appeal the verdict of the lower court, the governor said he had not seen the details of the ruling and would consult his lawyers before deciding on the next step.
He said: “The judgement delivered by the Federal High Court in Akure is a judgement of the court. I have not seen the details. I only heard about it.
“My lawyers will look at it and if there is room for seeking further interpretation they will advise. I cannot say yes or no for now.”
The noted that the Supreme Court is the final authority on constitutional matters, saying “This is the first time this kind of case is happening in the constitution of Nigeria.
“We must look at it carefully so that there will be an authority on the matter for the future.”
Meanwhile, the governor dismissed as false the rumoured face-off between him and the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunj-Ojo.
He said: “The young man you mentioned, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, I don’t have any issue with him. If you ask him, he will tell you he does not have any issue with me. Politics is laden with interest and people have different interests, so sometimes you see push and pull.”
Speaking on the death of some individuals during the APC congress in the state, the governor said the incident was related to issues within the National Union of Road Transport Workers and not directly connected to the congress.
He, therefore, disclosed that he had expanded the number of stakeholders participating in party meetings since assuming office.
According to him, “When I came on board as governor, I inherited a list of 10 members from each local government for stakeholders’ meetings.
“I expanded it to 20 per local government and later increased it to 30. Today we have 60 stakeholders per local government attending meetings every quarter.
“That is about 1,080 members. So where is the claim that people are being driven away? I am bringing more people into the party.”
•INDEPENDENTNG.