Ahead of the 2027 general elections, All Progressives Congress (APC) faithful in Ifo/Ewekoro Federal Constituency of Ogun State have launched the ADJYAYI Independent Campaign Group (AICG), a support movement aimed at mobilising grassroots support for the party’s governorship candidate, Senator Olamilekan Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, former Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Hon. Motunrayo Adijat Adeleye, and other APC candidates.
The initiative, convened by former Chairman of Ifo Local Government, Chief Wole Enilolobo, is designed to complement the existing APC structure and strengthen the party’s presence across wards and polling units in the constituency.
Speaking at the inauguration, Enilolobo said the group was not established to create a parallel structure within the party but to work with existing APC leaders and structures towards securing victory for the party in the 2027 elections.
“AICG was not intended to create a parallel political structure or undermine the APC, but to build synergy with party leaders and existing structures,” he said.
According to him, the ultimate objective of the group is to secure victory for Yayi, Adeleye and other APC candidates, while ensuring that its activities remain peaceful, lawful and responsible.
He urged members to deploy their ideas, energy, networks, experience and resources towards the collective political objective, stressing that the group must maintain discipline and loyalty to the party.
Enilolobo also charged members to look beyond the election season by sustaining engagement with communities and supporting initiatives that promote youth development, women empowerment, community development and economic opportunities.
“Political movements can only earn lasting public trust when their relationship with the people extends beyond asking for votes during election periods,” the former council chairman stated.
In her remarks, Adeleye commended the organisers for bringing APC faithful together but clarified that her attendance at the event did not signify the formal commencement of her campaign.
She explained that although the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had lifted campaign restrictions for the Presidential and National Assembly elections, the Ogun State APC leadership was yet to officially commence its campaign.
“Although the Independent National Electoral Commission had lifted its campaign restrictions for Presidential and National Assembly, the APC leadership at the state level was yet to officially commence its campaign; be assured that I would follow the party’s direction before formally launching my campaign,” she said.
Adeleye, who emerged as the APC candidate for the Ifo/Ewekoro Federal Constituency after securing 25,167 votes across the constituency’s 21 wards at the party primary, urged members to maintain unity and avoid internal divisions that could undermine the party’s chances at the polls.
She called on support groups to commence early mobilisation, build effective structures across the wards and establish clear responsibilities and measurable targets.
The former commissioner also stressed the importance of grassroots engagement, noting that electoral victory could not be achieved through social media campaigns alone.
“Elections are ultimately won through people-to-people engagement and not social media alone,” Adeleye said.
She further called for greater participation of women and young people in the party’s mobilisation and strategy, while urging APC candidates and support groups to regard their individual successes as complementary to the overall victory of the party.
In a goodwill message, the Chairman of the Ogun State House of Assembly Service Commission, Rt. Hon. Suraj Adekunbi, led APC leaders from Yewa North on a solidarity visit to the inauguration.
Adekunbi, a former Speaker of the Ogun State House of Assembly, recalled Adeleye’s record of service in the seventh legislature and expressed confidence in her capacity to make the Ifo/Ewekoro Federal Constituency proud if elected to the House of Representatives.
He commended the commitment of APC leaders and members to the party’s candidates and urged them to work towards tripling the votes recorded by the party in Ifo and Ewekoro local government areas during the 2023 elections.
Adekunbi also stressed that the extensive efforts invested in voter registration must translate into actual votes for APC candidates in 2027.
He urged party leaders, support groups and grassroots mobilisers to sustain engagement with voters and ensure that the party’s structures are effectively deployed ahead of the elections.
Other dignitaries who delivered goodwill messages included former Ogun Central senatorial aspirant, Chief Muraino Banjoko; former member of the Ogun State House of Assembly, Prince Dapo Adeyemi; Vice Chairman of Ewekoro Local Government, Alhaja Aliu Abisola; Ogun Central Senatorial Women Leader, Chief Kikelomo Delano; State Women Leader, Hajia Aminat Adigun; and representative of the Yayi Door-to-Door Movement in Ifo, Adesola Okunseinde.
The speakers described Adeleye’s candidacy as “sellable”, citing her record of public service and describing her as a politician who had brought pride to the state.
They also pledged stronger grassroots mobilisation for Yayi, Adeleye and other APC candidates ahead of the elections.
Former House of Representatives aspirant, Evans Dedenbula, commended the progressive ideals of the APC and Adeleye’s emergence as the party’s consensus candidate.
Dedenbula donated souvenirs in support of the campaign, while Chief Kehinde Oladini, Convener of Yayi Progressive Partners, also donated souvenirs to the newly inaugurated group.
