Ex-governorship aspirant, Mr. Dotun Babayemi, has declared his intention to contest the ticket of the All Progressives Congress for the Osun State 2026 governorship poll.
Babayemi, who spoke to journalists after meeting the APC leadership at the party’s State Secretariat in Osogbo on Monday, however, declared that all the aspirants who have shown interest in seeking the opposition party’s ticket so far have the capacity to deliver.
Earlier, Babayemi, accompanied by his supporters, disclosed his intention to join the race for the party’s ticket during a meeting with the members of the APC State Working Committee led by the chairman, Mr. Tajudeen Lawal.
Responding during the meeting, Osun APC chairman Lawal called for a decent contest that would not cause division, emphasising the need for unity for the party to record victory in the governorship contest.
Addressing journalists after the meeting with the APC SWC, Babayemi, who hails from Gbongan, a community in the West Senatorial District, said his aspiration for the governorship ticket was beyond agitation for zoning.
“The agitation for the zoning to the west has been there for a long time. However, even if I’m from the West, I dare say that all the candidates are competent to govern this state better than the incumbent is doing, irrespective of where they come from.
“Though, out of all the aspirants, I dare say humbly, that I’m the best. So it is not just about west, it is looking at the best,” Babayemi said.
Shedding more light on his mission to the APC secretariat, Babayemi said, “We are here to consult the party after speaking with the elders and leadership of our party. We met with the leader, Alhaji Adegboyega Oyetola, to let him know that we would like to go out to consult for the governorship.
“Our people have been expressing their interest for more than seven months, so we should come out to present ourselves as an aspirant for the 2026 governorship election. Before those consultations started, it was necessary to inform the foundation, seek approval, and understand the rules with which they wanted us to operate.
“That is why we decided to come and inform the party that we are about to commence consultations. We are about to go to the grassroots which is where the party is. So we needed to speak with the working committee of the party before we do that, and that is what we have done. The leadership of the party gave us some guidelines, and they told us the dos and don’ts and how to interact with other aspirants and the public.”
