Organic Nigerians Convergence, comprising farmers, traders, barbers, and other business owners have endorsed Sharafadeen Alli for Oyo 2027 and pledged to mobilise 200,000 votes.
The Organic Nigerians Convergence has declared its support for the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Oyo State, Senator Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli, ahead of the 2027 general election.
The group also pledged to mobilise more than 200,000 votes for Alli across the state, saying his experience in public service, political maturity and ability to relate with different sections of society influenced its decision.
The declaration was made on Thursday in Ibadan during a gathering of members and supporters of the organisation and was covered by BSA Voice of Reason Media.
The Organic Nigerians Convergence, according to its Coordinator-General, Adekanmbi Siyanbade, comprises Professional Event Planner and Vendors Association of Nigeria (PEPVAN) and ordinary Nigerians from different backgrounds, including farmers, traders, barbers, business owners and other members of the society.
Siyanbade said the group was established to encourage citizens to take an active role in determining who governs them, particularly because government policies and decisions directly affect people’s businesses, livelihoods and future.
He said Nigerians could no longer afford to remain indifferent to the electoral process, stressing that citizens must participate in choosing leaders they believe can deliver responsible and sustainable governance.
“Governance in our state directly affects the people and their businesses. It is therefore important that everybody should be a partaker in the choice of who is going to become the governor or leader in their state,” Siyanbade said.
He explained that Organic Nigerians brings together people from different professions and social classes who share an ideology of supporting individuals they consider to have the best potential for elective positions.
According to him, the organisation’s objective is to assess candidates, identify those considered capable of providing effective leadership and mobilise its members to support them during general elections.
Siyanbade said the group believes that effective leadership goes beyond the construction of physical infrastructure, arguing that good policies, institutional development and long-term planning are equally important to the development of a state.
He maintained that while the execution of projects remains an important responsibility of government, sustainable policies are needed to ensure that such projects and other development initiatives have lasting impact.
He also warned that poorly designed policies and weak institutions could undermine development, regardless of the number of physical projects executed by a government.
According to him, Oyo State needs a leader who can strike a balance between what he described as “policy infrastructure” and physical infrastructure.
He further argued that Oyo could not afford to remain disconnected from developments at the federal level or from other South-West states, particularly in areas of regional economic development and cooperation.
Why the group Chose Alli
Explaining the decision to support Senator Alli, Siyanbade described the APC candidate as the group’s preferred choice for the Oyo State governorship race.
He cited Alli’s previous experience as Secretary to the Oyo State Government (SSG), his political experience and his relationships across different sections of the state.
The coordinator described Alli as emotionally stable, calm, consistent and politically mature, adding that the senator had demonstrated an ability to work with people across political and social divides.
He also referenced Alli’s longstanding relationship with former Oyo State Governor, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, saying the relationship reflected his ability to maintain political partnerships over time.
“He is mature and calculative. He is a steady politician. He can be trusted with power. He is a friend to many people in the state,” Siyanbade said.
The group also declared its support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and expressed confidence in the administration’s Renewed Hope agenda.
Siyanbade pointed to what he described as the administration’s efforts towards grassroots development and local government autonomy, arguing that policy reforms and institutional changes should be regarded as part of the infrastructure required for national development.
He said the group believed that leadership should not be judged solely by the number of physical projects executed, but also by the policies and systems established to sustain development for future generations.
According to him, the group sees a combination of Tinubu’s experience at the federal level and Alli’s experience in Oyo State as providing what it described as a balanced leadership option ahead of the 2027 elections.
He said their experience in public service, politics and relationship-building across different levels of government informed the organisation’s decision to support both candidates.
200,000-vote mobilisation
Following the endorsement, the group announced the establishment of two support platforms: Organic Nigerians for Asiwaju 2027 (ON4BAT27) and Organic Nigerians for BSA27 (ON4BSA27).
Siyanbade said the platforms would serve as mobilisation structures for the group’s campaign activities ahead of the 2027 elections.
He announced that members would embark on grassroots mobilisation, including door-to-door engagement, with the objective of securing more than 200,000 votes across Oyo State for Senator Alli.
The group subsequently declared its support for Tinubu’s bid for a second term as President and Alli’s ambition to become the next governor of Oyo State.
“It is on this basis that the Organic Nigerians have thrown our support behind Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu of APC and Sarafadeen Alli of APC as our presidential and gubernatorial candidates respectively for the coming 2027 general election,” Siyanbade declared.
He concluded by reaffirming the group’s commitment to its mobilisation campaign, declaring: “We are ON for Alli-Adedeji 2027. We are ON for Asiwaju.”
