THE November 16, 2024 governorship  election in Ondo State, which produced Dr. Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa, as the governor of the state, can best be described as a smooth, violence-free one, devoid of electoral practices and allied crimes. It marked another watershed in the history of the State as the people went to the poll to elect their preferred candidate to govern the state for the next four years, beginning from February 24, 2025.

SEVENTEEN political parties and their candidates who participated in the election including the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) whose flagbearer is the incumbent Governor of the State, Hon Lucky Aiyedatiwa; Peoples Democratic Party has the former Deputy Governor of the State, Hon Agboola Ajayi as its candidate;  Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) has Dr Abbas Mimiko as the flag bearer, New Nigeria People’s Party has Mr Olugbenga Edema as the candidate; Accord Party (AP) Falaiye Ajibola, Action Alliance (AC) Akinnuli Omolere; African Action Congress (AAC) Adekunle Ajayi, African Democratic Congress (ADC) Adeyemi Nejo; African Democratic Party (ADP) Ayodeji Akinnodi; All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) Olatunji Popoola,  among others.

AFTER the conclusion of the voting and counting process, The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa,   the APC candidate as the winner of the November 16 governorship election in the state.

ACCORDING to the INEC,  Aiyedatiwa polled a total of 366,781 votes to defeat his closest rival, Ajayi Agboola of PDP who scored a total votes of 117,845 while ZLP’s Dr Abbas Mimiko, younger brother of the former governor of the state, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, came a distance third with 2692 votes.

APC candidate, Governor Aiyedatiwa, convincingly wọn the historic election in all the 18 local government areas of the state in the conduct  of the poll,  which was adjudged peaceful, free and fair by various observer groups; giving credence to the reason 13 political parties publicly accepted the result and congratulated the winner.

THE Hope specially congratulates Governor Aiyedatiwa on his overwhelming victory at the poll and urges him to be magnanimous in victory. We equally commend INEC, for the peaceful conduct of the election and the security agencies for their efforts which made the exercise peaceful and violence-free.

IN his acceptance speech, Governor Aiyedatiwa  pledged to work tirelessly to justify the trust the people  reposed in him, while he promised to continue to run an inclusive and participatory government, where every citizen has a voice and an opportunity to contribute to Ondo State’s  collective progress.

IN addition,  he vowed that his government would continue to prioritize the welfare of the people, foster economic growth, and ensure that our state remains a beacon of hope and prosperity for generations to come. He urged the people to rededicate themselves to the service of our dear state now that the election are over, and to move the State to an enviable height.

NO doubt, there are challenges in the various sectors of our economy. Since the reward of victory is hardwork, we call on Governor Aiyedatiwa to work his talk for the overall development of the State. There are enormous needs in the state’s education sector from the tertiary to basic level, especially with the ‘Japa’ syndrome which is taking our professionals away, there is a need to build human capacity to effectively deliver on its mandates. In the agriculture sector,  a lot has to be done, going by inflation  in food prices.

THE government should expand agricultural policies in a way that will ensure massive production of food. Ondo has no reason, as an agrarian state, not to be able to feed its people. There should be aggressive agriculture to mop up the army of  the unemployed youths  and for us to be self-sufficient in food production and export.  Health is wealth.  So, we implore the governor to look into the sector with passion, and the infrastructure  sector.

THE Hope commends the governor for extending a hand of fellowship to the opposition parties, and for inviting them to collaborate with his government and work together in the onerous task of building a better Ondo State for the overall good of our people. We commend the PDP’s candidate, Agboola Ajayi, who rejected the election result, for towing the path of the rule of law. We, however, urge him and all other candidates to join hands with the winner and move the state forward

TO the winner, it’s a call to action, going by his campaign promises. We urge him not to renege on his  electoral promises. We equally appeal to the citizens to support Governor Aiyedatiwa to deliver the dividends of democracy to all in a bid to move the state forward and shun any act of violence that may impede the peace of the  state.

WITH this renewed mandate, we are confident that Governor Aiyedatiwa will build upon his accomplishments, and take the state to even greater heights of social and economic development for the benefit of the good people of Ondo State.