The Ogun Youth Vanguard (OYV), a pressure group, has hit back at attempts to question the indigeneship of the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Senator Olamilekan Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, describing the campaign as a desperate political strategy aimed at frustrating the longstanding aspiration of the Yewa people to produce the next governor of Ogun State.

In a statement issued in Abeokuta on Friday by its Secretary, Abdulhamid Irewole, OYV challenged those questioning Adeola’s roots to produce their evidence before the appropriate judicial or constitutional authorities rather than resorting to what it described as a campaign of calumny through television appearances and social media.

The group alleged that political interests opposed to Adeola’s emergence had deployed individuals to television stations to cast doubts on his ancestry, describing the development as an attempt to “chase shadows” and divert attention from the APC candidate’s record of service.

OYV also took aim at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate, Ladi Adebutu, alleging that he had been deploying his supporters to propagate what the group described as “false claims” against Adeola.

The group said Adebutu, who is facing prosecution arising from allegations relating to vote-buying and corruption, should allow the courts to determine his case instead of attempting to cast aspersions on the character of another candidate.

“Someone who has allegations of vote-buying and corruption hanging over him should first remove the log in his own eye before pointing accusing fingers at an innocent person. Rather than addressing the serious allegations before the courts, Adebutu appears to believe that he can secure Ogun’s governorship through a dubious campaign strategy. That strategy has failed,” the group said.

OYV insisted that the indigeneship issue was part of a broader political effort to frustrate what it described as the legitimate and longstanding aspiration of the Yewa people to produce the governor of Ogun State.

It alleged that those behind the campaign were attempting to rob Yewa of an opportunity that the zone had pursued for decades, but declared that such efforts would not succeed.

The group also drew attention to the current political configuration of the state, noting that Governor Dapo Abiodun and Adebutu are both from Iperu in Ikenne Local Government Area.

According to OYV, those seeking to perpetuate the existing political arrangement at the expense of other zones are merely attempting to turn the hands of the clock backwards.

“The aspiration of Yewa to produce the governor of Ogun State is sacrosanct. No amount of blackmail, intimidation or politically motivated attacks can erase that aspiration,” the group said.

It further argued that if the present arrangement were to be sustained indefinitely, the implication would be that other zones would have to wait many more years before their turn.

“It is the turn of Yewa, and attempts to deny the people of the zone their longstanding aspiration have failed,” OYV said.

The group challenged anyone with credible evidence capable of disproving Adeola’s claim of Ogun indigeneship to present it before the appropriate authorities, insisting that television appearances and political allegations cannot substitute for due process.

It said Adeola would remain focused on his campaign and urged the electorate to judge all candidates on their records, programmes, experience and commitment to Ogun State.

“Ogun people deserve a campaign based on issues, not distractions. If anyone has evidence capable of disproving Senator Adeola’s indigeneship, let such evidence be presented before the appropriate authority. Otherwise, those behind the campaign should stop chasing shadows and allow the people to focus on the issues that matter,” the group said.

The formal inauguration of the Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC)campaign council is scheduled for today, Friday, September 18, at the APC Secretariat on ACME Road, Ikeja, Lagos.

The APC Lagos chapter, had earlier unveiled its campaign council structure ahead of the 2027 general elections, with Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and former governors Babatunde Fashola and Akinwunmi Ambode among those listed in key positions.

The structure was released on Thursday by the Kadri Obafemi Hamzat Media Centre.

Prince Tajudeen Olusi is listed as Chairman of the Governance Advisory Council, while Sanwo-Olu will serve as Advisory Council Chairman. Fashola and Ambode were named as Co-Chairmen.

Other members of the advisory structure include President Bola Tinubu’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila; Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa; and former Minister of Health, Senator Adeleke Mamora.

At the main campaign council level, Sanwo-Olu is listed as Chairman, with his deputy, Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, serving as Deputy Chairman.

Cornelius Ojelabi is named Vice Chairman I, Obasa as Vice Chairman II, while Damilola Sonayon James will serve as Vice Chairman III.

Former Senator Musiliu Obanikoro is listed as Director-General of the campaign council, with Rasaq Ajala as Deputy Director-General and Adekunle Olayinka as Campaign Secretary.

The campaign structure also includes directorates and sub-committees responsible for legal and compliance matters, party and inter-party affairs, administration and logistics, traditional institutions, diaspora engagement and residents’ associations.

Lawal Pedro, SAN, is listed to head the Legal and Compliance Directorate, while Moshood Mayegun will oversee Party and Inter-Party Affairs. Other officials were assigned responsibilities across the various specialised units.

The structure also provides for grassroots coordinators across the state’s local government areas and Local Council Development Areas.

The Executive Chairman of Ejigbo LCDA, Aare Taoheed Adebayo Taiwo, has attributed the many achievements recorded so far by his administration , to President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda which he said,had provided a stronger framework for grassroots development, adding that the support of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu under the THEMES Plus Agenda had also created room for the council to take greater responsibility for development within its communities.

The Chairman made the revelations on Thursday, at the presentation of his Council’s Renewed Hope Mega Empowerment Programme to 700 residents of the area at the Council Secretariat, Ejigbo, during which major stakeholders in the LCDA, including politicians, traditional rulers, religious leaders and business owners, declared their support for the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidates in the forthcoming 2027 general elections, including President Bola Tinubu, Dr. Kadri Hamzat and other candidates contesting various elective positions

Taiwo said in collaboration with the state government, the council had embarked on free medical and mental health outreaches, providing support for tuberculosis screening, measles-rubella vaccination, as well as maternal and child nutrition initiatives

He said more than 600 youths and women had graduated from the vocational training programme facilitated by the council in partnership with the Blessed Gumpat Foundation, equipping participants with practical skills to improve their livelihoods.

Recent reporting similarly puts the number of graduates from the council’s skills acquisition programme at more than 600.

Two beneficiaries of the first empowerment programme, who openly testified at the event, said the initiative had been a turning point in their businesses and family lives.

Items distributed at the event under the Mega Empowerment Programme included sewing machines, generating sets, cooking gas, grinding machines, hairdressing materials and wheelchairs.
Ten residents who emerged from a rigorous screening process also went home with ₦500,000 each to support their businesses, while another set of beneficiaries received ₦100,000 each alongside POS machines to commence business transactions.

While declaring their surport for APC candidates in the coming elections, stakeholders at the event pledged to embark on a rigorous house-to-house campaign to mobilise massive support for the APC ahead of the 2027 elections.

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Addressing the gathering, the Guest of Honour and Chairman of the Governance Advisory Council, Prince Tajudeen Olusi, appealed to members of the party to work together in ensuring victory for the party’s candidates at the polls.

Olusi recalled that the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo had tried but failed to emerge as President of Nigeria, adding that the people of the South-West should rally around President Tinubu to continue the ongoing reforms aimed at improving the lives of citizens.

Describing himself as a son of the soil, Olusi recalled that he attended school in the area decades ago and commended the infrastructural development recorded under the stewardship of Aare Taoheed Adebayo Taiwo.
In his remarks, High Chief Muraina Akanbi Taiwo solicited continued support for the leadership of the council to enable it to deliver on its campaign promises.

The Lagos State Chairman of the APC, Pastor Cornelius Ojelabi, noted that the council chairman had deepened democratic practice by ensuring that no one was left behind in the implementation of people-oriented policies.
He told the gathering that the chairman had not betrayed the trust reposed in him since assuming office, assuring that every vote in Lagos for President Tinubu in 2027 would encourage him to continue serving the state and the nation at large.