Seven governorship aspirants who contested the gubernatorial ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on April 20 with Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa have thrown their support behind the governor.
The endorsement for the governor was made by the aspirants about a month after the shadow primary was held in the state ahead of the November 16 governorship election.
The aspirants include Morayo Lebi, Dayo Faduyile, Soji Ehinlanwo, Diran Iyantan, Mayowa Akinfolarin, Funmilayo Waheed-Adekojo and Jimi Odimayo.
They appealed to members of the party to embrace peace instead of allowing the outcome of the shadow primary to cause division within the party.
According to a statement signed by the seven aspirants, the victory of the party in the forthcoming governorship polls should be the focus of all genuine party members.
“We, the under-listed chieftains of our party, the APC, who were aspirants in the just-concluded Governorship Primary, wish to call on all members of our party who have a genuine interest in the success of the party in the forthcoming general election in November to embrace peace for a resounding victory in the polls.
“The party position is that His Excellency Lucky Aiyedatiwa is our gubernatorial candidate; this position should be sacrosanct to us all, even when some of us have expressed some reservations.
“We acknowledge that perfection is a moving target. As party leaders who have significantly contributed to nurturing the party to impressive growth, we cannot allow anything that could lead to the polarisation of our party, with the potential consequence of undermining unity within our party.
“We therefore call on our supporters and all stakeholders to put aside personal interests and allow the overriding interests of the party to take precedence.”