Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo State has said there is no vacant seat in the Alagbaka governor’s office amid preparation for the state governorship election this year.

Mr Aiyedatiwa stated this on Monday at a stakeholders meeting held with members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akure, the state capital.

The governor, who preached unity among the APC members, said that the party must retain governorship seat in the forthcoming governorship election in the state.

“We must all come together as one family to work together for the progress of our party, knowing for sure that this is an election here for us.

“An election to the office of the governor of Ondo State even though the seat is not vacant currently. Let us work together in oneness and peace so that our party, APC, will continue to govern this state,” Mr Aiyedatiwa said.

Peoples Gazette reports that it was the first such stakeholders meeting called at the instance of Mr Aiyedatiwa since the demise of his boss, former Governor Rotimi Akeredolu.

Mr Akeredolu, who had been battling underlying health conditions, died of prostate cancer on December 27, 2023.

Speaking further at the meeting, Mr Aiyedatiwa said it was important for party leaders, especially the political actors, to put the past behind them and join him in bringing progress and growth of the state.

He emphasised that what happened in the trenches was politicking and not a fight or battle, stressing that it is now important for the party to chart a new way forward by avoiding a divided house.

“To me, what happened in the past was just politics. It was not a fight; it was not a battle; it was mere politics, and I can say that I did not take any offence from that. The most important thing for us is to remain as one big family. There should be no division in our party.

“There is the need to make our party stronger and that necessitated the idea of this enlarged stakeholders meeting to bring everybody on board. Our party leaders and members are critical stakeholders that we cannot afford to neglect.

“There have been complaints from many of our party officers at local levels of not being carried along in the scheme of things. That must now be a thing of the past. All our party officers from ward to local government to State levels will be given the recognition they deserve,” the governor said.

He, however, promised to liaise with the leadership of the party to ensure the smooth running of its structure, and regular stakeholders’ engagement and the operations of the Leaders’ Caucus and the Governor’s Advisory Council.

Ade Adetimehin, state chairman of the APC, saluted Mr Aiyedatiwa for calling the stakeholders meeting and also engaging the party stakeholders in the state.

He reiterated that the party leaders must now put behind the past and foster unity ahead of the governorship election.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had scheduled the governorship election of the state for November 16.

The electoral body had also asked the political parties to conduct primaries by April to choose their flagbearer for the governorship exercise.

No less than eight aspirants have also shown interest in the governorship ticket of the APC in the state.