The President of Afonja Descendants Union (ADU) in Kwara state, Alhaji Abdulkarim Olola-Kazum, has said that the 2027 governorship election in Kwara State will be open to aspirants in the three senatorial zones in the North Central state.
Chief Olola-Kazum made the declaration while speaking with newsmen, maintaining that the state has never reserved the governorship seat for any particular district through official mandates or collective bargaining.
“The governorship contest has historically been an open field where all interested aspirants can present their platforms,” he told journalists, adding that the 2027 election will follow this inclusive tradition, allowing voters to choose their governor based on merit and vision rather than regional affiliation.
“This approach embodies the true essence of democracy, which we strived to uphold even during the challenging times under military rule,” he explained. “Hearing talks of rotational governorship or making space for certain groups undermines the democratic values we stand for. Such practices will be unequivocally rejected.”
Findings revealed that Deputy Majority Deputy of the 10th Senate and Senator representing Kwara South Senatorial District, Senator Lola Ashiru, has shared a similar stance in a recent chat with journalists.
Senator Ashiru has said zoning is not part of Kwara’s political tradition and should not be dictated by any single political leader, however influential. The senator emphasized that any decision regarding zoning should come from a consensus among the majority of political stakeholders, spanning different parties and regions.
“Governorship is never zoned in Kwara state. Anybody who wants to become a governor must be prepared to work hard and campaign hard to convince people to vote for him or her.
“While I sympathize with Kwara North, it’s been a long time since the time of Governor Shabba Lafiagi who’s from Kwara North. Lafiagi was not given the governorship of Kwara state based on zoning. He fought, worked hard, and campaigned for it. He bargained for it.
You can’t tell me to vote for you if you don’t come to me. And I’ll ask you what is there for my community. Any of the governorship aspirants that come to me, I’ll ask him what’s on the table for my community. This is about negotiation, bargaining, politics.
“Positions are never zoned. There’s no place where we’ve zoned the position of governorship.”
