Governors, under the auspices of the Progressives Governors Forum, have declared that the Ekiti State governorship election carries national significance because it would provide an outlook of what the President Bola Tinubu election would look like.

The governors stated this yesterday, in Ado-Ekiti, during the official flag-off of Governor Biodun Oyebanji’s re-election campaign.

Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, who spoke on behalf of the governors, said a vote for Oyebanji is a vote for Tinubu, urging Ekiti people to vote for the governor.

In his remark, the Chairman of the campaign council and Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, said that beyond Ekiti, the election carries national significance because it precedes the presidential election.

However, National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, declared that Oyebanji has won the election, saying that all other candidates cannot defeat the candidate of the APC.

Also, former governor of the state, Ayodele Fayose, declared that his presence was not for the party but for the Ekiti agenda, saying that after Oyebanji’s tenure, he would resume his opposition role.

Former Governor Kayode Fayemi, however, cautioned the party against complacency, urging members to go out to canvass for votes for the governor, declaring that it is not over until it is over.

MEANWHILE, the BTO Renewed Hope Team, the umbrella body of pro-Tinubu groups backing the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has raised the alarm over the incessant destruction of campaign billboards erected in honour of Tinubu in Ondo State.

The team, while accusing suspected state agents of orchestrating the vandalism in a bid to stifle the minister’s rising political profile, stated that the billboards were deliberately pulled down, an act it described as a premeditated and undemocratic act.

According to the group, in a statement, the destruction was carried out despite the billboards carrying no anti-party or divisive messaging but rather pure expressions of loyalty to Tinubu and support for the President’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

The group, which stressed that the billboards were lawfully erected and represented a genuine effort to amplify the President’s achievements, queried the motive behind the targeted pro-Tinubu materials in the state.

The BTO Renewed Hope Team also urged the President, state governors, and the APC National Chairman to launch an immediate investigation and bring the perpetrators to justice.

The group also appealed to the party leadership to address the growing internal rancour before it threatens APC’s cohesion and electoral fortunes.