A socio-political advocacy group, ‘Egbe Ajosepo fun Itesiwaju Gbogbo Wa’, has made a case for the Oke-Ogun zone to produce the governor of Oyo State in 2027.

The group’s national chairman, Dauda Olaifa-Alade, made the call on Thursday at the maiden general meeting and community sensitisation programme toward the 2027 governorship election.

The meeting was held at the House of Chiefs in Ibadan.

According to Mr Olaifa-Alade, the political history of Oyo State has revealed that the distribution of the governorship seat has not reflected the true spirit of fairness and inclusivity.

He noted that while one zone had been perpetually privileged in the last 42 years, others had remained sidelined, except when the position moved out of Ibadan.

This, he said, was an imbalance that called for a review.

“We must tell ourselves the truth, a house where only a few members eat at the table while others are kept at the door cannot continue to experience peace.

“Our demand is simple and just; 2027 must be the year that Oyo State will embrace a new political culture, one where the governorship power rotates among all zones, giving every son and daughter a fair sense of belonging.

“When this begins, we plead that it begins with and from Oke-Ogun Zone, which is the next largest to Ibadan in terms of population.

“This is neither a call for division nor a cry of bitterness but a demand for balance, inclusivity, peace, and sustainable development,” he said.

He, therefore, urged political parties, leaders, and stakeholders to let fairness guide their decisions toward the zoning of the 2027 governorship ticket.

Mr Olaifa-Alade reiterated the resolve of Oke-Ogun to support any political party that selected its candidate from any of the towns in the zone, irrespective of religion, cultural or social affiliations.

The secretary of the Oyo G22 Renewed Group, Adebayo Olagbenro, stated that the demand was in line with his group’s focus.

According to him, Oyo G22 Renewed Group has been a frontrunner in the campaign for other zones, apart from Ibadan, to be given the chance to govern the state.

Mr Olagbenro explained that G22 lacks focus, particularly on a specific zone, but generally supports the call for other zones to be given a chance.

He noted it was high time youths, market women and citizens of other zones woke up to claim their rights as true citizens of Oyo State.

This, he said, could only be achieved if other zones remained united in their demand to take the governorship seat out of the Ibadan zone.

“Each zone, whether Oyo, Ogbomoso or Ibarapa, cannot stand separately and achieve any meaningful result.

“Other zones should no longer see themselves as second-class citizens, helpers or slaves in the state affairs; they need to wake up to claim what belongs to them.

“The remaining zones outside Ibadan are yet to discover the worth and power at their disposal if they join hands together on their demand.

“This demand cannot be achieved either by confrontation or appeal, but by a healthy alliance among other zones,” he said.

The programme featured presentations and goodwill messages from representatives from other zones and governorship aspirants from the Oke-Ogun zone.

(NAN)