Nigeria: Why Ondo’s Two Political Power Centres Must Find Common Ground for Tinubu’s 2027 Project

Each Ondo State Governor, Fortunate Aiyedatiwa and Minister of Inside, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, owe their present political standing to the identical man, which makes their current friction in Ondo one thing nearer to a household dispute than an atypical rivalry. Or so observers say.

However the case could be made extra simply for Aiyedatiwa, particularly his survival. As deputy governor in 2023, he confronted an impeachment try backed by all 26 members of the Ondo Meeting, pushed by factional combating across the late Governor Rotimi Akeredolu. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu summoned either side to Abuja and ordered it dropped.

That intervention let Aiyedatiwa stay in workplace, succeed Akeredolu upon his demise, and later win a time period of his personal. Tunji-Ojo’s path ran in another way however traces again to the identical supply.

The person in query was a federal lawmaker with regional affect till August 2023, when Tinubu appointed him Minister of Inside. The ministry gave Tunji-Ojo, popularly referred to as BTO, a nationwide platform he had not beforehand held, seen by way of his clearing of passport backlogs and the automation of immigration methods.

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Each Aiyedatiwa and Tunji-Ojo, in different phrases, maintain their present positions as a result of Tinubu determined they need to. And it’s a debt that analysts argue has not produced a shared technique.

Aiyedatiwa is constructing Ondo for Tinubu 2027 by way of the equipment of incumbency, whereas Tunji-Ojo funds parallel teams, together with the Grassroots Motion for Tinubu, drawing on federal assets and unbiased mobilisation networks.

Ondo APC chairman Babatunde Kolawole has referred to as each males brothers working towards the identical purpose, an outline meant to decrease the temperature round a dispute that has already disrupted the get together’s Nationwide Meeting consensus preparations within the state.

The sensible argument for cooperation is easy. Aiyedatiwa controls get together construction and authorities equipment. Tunji-Ojo controls grassroots networks that attain voters formal get together channels usually miss. Mixed, they cowl extra floor than both does alone.

Whether or not that mixture occurs will rely much less on statements from get together elders than on whether or not both man is prepared to let the opposite’s community function with out attempting to soak up or outshine it.