Adebayo Adelabu, former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and governorship candidate of the Oyo APC in 2019 has announced that he will, once again, run for the office of the number one citizen in Oyo State in the 2023 general election under the platform of the All Progressives Congress.
He revealed this at a press conference held at his political headquarters in Ibadan on Monday.
Speaking during the event, Adelabu maintained that he currently remains the most qualified aspirant across all political platforms to transform the state from its current form.
He stated: “Today is the first day heralding the process for my declaration to run for the post of governor of Oyo State again. Today is not my official declaration; it is a day for me to engage the pressmen because on the day of my official declaration there might not be time for that.”
He noted that his gubernatorial ambition is to enrich politics with ethics to the service of humanity within the Oyo state context.
“Most of you will recollect that I voluntary retired from the CBN to enter the political frame to give Oyo people a First-class governance. My past and present are like an open book before you and without being immodest, I have been an excellent performer everywhere I have served.
“The last 3 years have provided me with the sober opportunity to review our state. After this introspection, I concluded that our state can be better than it is”.
Recall that Adelabu, grandson of the late Ibadan political leader, Adegoke Adelabu Penkelemesi, lost the 2019 election to the incumbent, Seyi Makinde of the Peoples Democratic Party.
However, speaking further at the event, he noted that he is confident of his capability to defeat Makinde, who is poised to pick the PDP ticket, at the polls next year.
The event had in attendance various chieftains of the APC in the state. Some of these chieftains are the party’s factional chairman, Abu Gbadamosi; Deputy chairman, Olayide Abass; former lawmakers, Ayoade Adeseun and Saheed Fijabi, among others.
Meanwhile, Teslim Folarin, the lawmaker representing Oyo central, will be declaring his gubernatorial bid tomorrow under the APC platform.
Presently, six APC governorship aspirants have bought the party’s interest of expression and nomination forms while Makinde and one other have declared their interest in the ruling PDP.
