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The Chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Ondo State Chapter, Hon. Dr. Gbenga Timothy Fasua, has led chairmen of the 18 Local Government Areas of the state to the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential rally in Akure, declaring their collective support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid.
The council chairmen, who converged on the Ondo State capital in a show of solidarity with the APC, President Tinubu and Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa, pledged to mobilise voters across their respective local government areas to secure victory for the ruling party in the January 16 presidential election.
Speaking on behalf of the 18 council chairmen, Dr. Fasua described support for President Tinubu as an act of reciprocity, arguing that the President had demonstrated commitment to strengthening grassroots governance through the financial autonomy granted to local governments.
He said Tinubu stood with the third tier of government at a critical moment by championing local government financial autonomy, which culminated in the landmark Supreme Court judgment affirming the need for direct allocation of funds to local governments.
According to him, the development has restored dignity, relevance and greater capacity for grassroots development to local councils, making the President deserving of renewed support.
“For Ondo State, voting Tinubu again is not politics; it is gratitude,” Fasua declared.
The ALGON chairman also commended Governor Aiyedatiwa for his leadership, particularly his commitment to strengthening local governments, sustaining peace and unity within the Ondo APC and aligning the state with the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda through the OUR EASE development agenda.
He reaffirmed the unalloyed loyalty of the 18 council chairmen to the governor, the APC leadership and the Tinubu/Shettima presidential ticket, promising an intensive grassroots mobilisation campaign.
Fasua assured that the council chairmen would take the campaign to every ward, polling unit and voting community across the state to ensure the APC records a decisive victory.
The ALGON chairman particularly appreciated Vice President Kashim Shettima, who led the presidential campaign rally, alongside Senator Abdulaziz Yari, Chairman of the Campaign Council; Senator Adams Oshiomhole; Senator Hope Uzodimma, Secretary of the Campaign Council; and other prominent party leaders and dignitaries who attended the rally at the Ondo State Stadium, Akure.
Explaining why Ondo State should sustain its support for the Tinubu administration, Fasua highlighted what he described as the benefits of continuity, particularly the growing financial capacity of local governments and ongoing grassroots development projects across the state’s 18 council areas.
He also pointed to increased Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) inflows, improved opportunities for local government development, and the emphasis on fiscal discipline and accountability as significant gains that should not be jeopardised.
On federal infrastructure, he cited the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and other projects with implications for Ondo State, as well as the approval of a teaching hospital for the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), as evidence of the benefits of continued engagement with the Federal Government.
Fasua further noted that Ondo State’s representation in the Federal Executive Council by two senior ministers, alongside efforts to strengthen security through the Amotekun security network and community policing, were among the reasons the state should remain aligned with the ruling party.
He also commended the unity of the Ondo APC, recalling the party’s victory across all 18 local government areas and 3,933 polling units during the 2024 election, which he said demonstrated the strength of the party’s grassroots structure.
According to him, the prevailing peace, political stability and development under Governor Aiyedatiwa provide additional reasons for the state to support continuity.
“To abandon this pipeline now would be to abandon progress itself,” he said.
Fasua’s declaration at the rally underscored the determination of the 18 local government chairmen to translate their political support into grassroots mobilisation, with the ALGON leadership insisting that the state’s local government structures would play a critical role in the APC’s campaign.
The Ondo ALGON chairman consequently reaffirmed the collective position of the council chairmen, declaring: “Ondo is for Tinubu. Ondo is for APC. Ondo is for continuity.”
