The Director General of the Opomulero Group, Hon. Olasupo Olakunori, has said that the people of Ondo State will resist any political ambition that, in their view, seeks to disrupt the long-standing political understanding on governorship rotation in the state.
According to Hon. Olakunori, the Minister of Interior, (BTO), should consult respected political leaders and elders to better understand the political history of Ondo State before pursuing any future governorship ambition.
He explained that since the return to democratic rule in 1999, the governorship has, in his view, followed a political pattern of rotation among the state’s three senatorial districts:
- In 1999, the Northern Senatorial District produced the late Governor Chief Adebayo Adefarati under the Alliance for Democracy (AD).
- In 2003, the governorship shifted to the Southern Senatorial District, where the late Governor Dr. Olusegun Kokumo Agagu was elected under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
- In the 2007 governorship election, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko from the Central Senatorial District contested under the Labour Party. Following a legal challenge, the Court of Appeal, in 2009, declared him the duly elected Governor. He subsequently served for eight years, completing the Central Senatorial District’s turn.
- In 2017, the governorship returned to the Northern Senatorial District with the election of the late Governor Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu, SAN, CON, who served for about six years before his demise.
- Following the passing of Governor Akeredolu, the office returned to the Southern Senatorial District under the incumbent Governor, Hon. Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa, who is expected, according to Hon. Olakunori, to complete the Southern Senatorial District’s turn.
Hon. Olakunori argued that, based on this political pattern, the Southern Senatorial District should be allowed to complete its expected tenure before the governorship rotates again. He added that after the Southern Senatorial District completes its turn, the governorship should naturally rotate to the Central Senatorial District, particularly Akure South, which, according to him, has agitated to produce a governor for decades.
He maintained that any attempt to alter this political understanding for personal ambition could generate avoidable political tension and erode the confidence of party members and the electorate.
He called on all political stakeholders to uphold fairness, respect democratic principles, and preserve the unity and stability of Ondo State.
Signed:
Hon. Olasupo Olakunori
Director General, Opomulero Group
