Ajadi, Other APM Candidates Receive Party Flags, Urge Peaceful Campaigns

By Ibrahim Kegbegbe

Oyo State -November 16, 2026

The senatorial candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) for Oyo Central Senatorial District in the 2027 general elections, Ambassador Olufemi Ajadi Oguntoyinbo, has received the party’s flag alongside other candidates at the official flag-off of the party’s campaign in Oyo State, with a call on members to embrace peaceful campaigns and intensify grassroots mobilisation ahead of the elections.

Ajadi was presented with the party’s flag alongside other candidates representing Oyo South and Oyo North Senatorial Districts, Hon. Dhikrullahi Adedeji Olajide, popularly known as Odidiomo, and Hon. Shina Abiola Peller, respectively. The governorship candidate, Hon. Bimbo Adekanbi, and his running mate, Engr. Muftau Open-Salawu, also received their flags alongside other candidates seeking elective positions on the party’s platform.

Speaking with journalists at the campaign flag-off held at Durbar Stadium, Oyo, Ambassador Ajadi urged party members to conduct themselves peacefully throughout the campaign period, stressing the importance of issue-based engagement, unity and widespread mobilisation across polling units, wards, local government areas and the state at large.

He called on APM supporters to take the party’s message to the grassroots and mobilise massive support from the electorate, expressing the need for continuity of good governance in Oyo State and its extension across Nigeria. He maintained that peaceful political participation and collective commitment would be essential to the party’s success in the forthcoming elections.

While presenting the party’s flags to the candidates one after another, Governor Seyi Makinde, who is the APM’s presidential candidate, expressed confidence in the party’s electoral prospects nationwide. He described the 2027 general election as a referendum on the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), predicting that Nigerians would reject the party at the polls and deliver a historic victory to the APM.

Addressing party leaders, stakeholders and supporters, Makinde congratulated Adekanbi and other candidates, expressing confidence that the people of Oyo State would overwhelmingly support the party in the January 16 and February 6, 2027 elections. He urged members not to be intimidated but to return to their respective wards and local government areas to intensify mobilisation, insisting that Nigerians were determined to take their destiny into their own hands.

In his remarks, Adekanbi expressed confidence in the prospect of sustaining the developmental strides of the Makinde administration, describing the governor’s achievements as a strong foundation for his presidential aspiration and the choice of a successor capable of continuing the state’s development. He also pledged his commitment to taking Oyo State to greater heights through the programmes and policies contained in his manifesto.

Adekanbi further urged residents of the state and Nigerians at large to obtain their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and participate actively in the electoral process. He described Makinde as a leader whose governance experience could be replicated at the national level, expressing optimism about the APM’s chances in the forthcoming elections.

Earlier, the National Chairman of the APM, Alhaji Yusuf Dantale, expressed confidence in the quality of candidates presented by the party, describing Makinde as a pragmatic and capable leader with the vision to lead Nigeria towards prosperity. He also expressed optimism that Adekanbi would sustain good governance and consolidate the achievements recorded in Oyo State. Similarly, the Deputy Governor, Bayo Lawal, called on party members to return to their respective wards and local government areas to canvass support for the party’s candidates.

In his welcome address, the Chairman of the APM Apex Campaign Council, Dr. Nureni Adeniran, appealed to party members to maintain peace and order throughout the campaign period. Goodwill messages were also delivered by former Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Senator Monsurat Sunmonu; Chief Nureni Akanbi; Chief Jacob Adetoro; Babaloja-General of Oyo State, Alhaji Yekeen Abass; and other representatives of organised groups, including teachers, persons living with disabilities and the students’ community, who commended the Makinde administration’s performance in various sectors.

The Merit Newspaper reports that the ceremony was attended by several political leaders and dignitaries, including former Deputy Governor, Engr. Hamid Gbadamosi; Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Adebo Ogundoyin; Secretary to the State Government, Professor Musibau Babatunde; Chief of Staff to the Governor, Bashorun Akinwole Akinwale; Deputy Chief of Staff, Hon. Kazeem Adeniyi; Chairman of the Elders Council, Dr. Saka Balogun; and Chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) in Oyo State, Hon. Sikiru Oyedele Sanda.

The party also presented flags to its 14 House of Representatives candidates and 32 House of Assembly candidates, marking the formal commencement of its campaign activities across the state.