The Friends Network has begun grassroots mobilisation for Senator Solomon Adeola’s 2027 Ogun State governorship bid, meeting community leaders on Thursday, August 27, 2026, to seek support and hear about urgent local needs.
Quick facts
- The engagement took place on August 27, 2026, ahead of the 2027 governorship election.
- The delegation was led by former Ogun governorship aspirant Kayode Tejuoso.
- Community leaders were asked to document local priorities for submission to Adeola.
- The group urged support for Adeola and other APC candidates.
The delegation was headed by Hon. Kayode Tejuoso, a former Ogun governorship aspirant and son of the Osile of Oke Ona, Oba Dr. Adedapo Adewale Tejuoso.
Those accompanying him included Engr. Ayotunde Ayodeji, secretary of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, Chief Tiwalade Akingbade, popularly known as Paulo Rossi, and Hon. (Engr.) Kenny Kadri Edu (Mrs.).
Also present were Pastor Kunle Odewale, Pastor Lekan Araba, Hon. Ojoye Olasehinde, Oke-Ona CDC Chairman Alhaji Tijani Qozeem and Mr Babalola Gafar.
Tejuoso said the Friends Network was created to unite people who are convinced that Adeola can provide effective leadership and good governance in Ogun State.
He said members regard Adeola, widely known as Yayi, as a politician who combines promises with action and has the experience and ability needed to advance the state.
“We all care about Senator Yayi. We are friends of the governor-in-waiting, and that shared commitment is why we have come together to back him,” Tejuoso said.
He asked Community Development Committees and Community Development Associations to record their most urgent concerns and forward them to the network, which would present them to Adeola.
Tejuoso said Adeola wanted a clear account of what residents needed so that those priorities could be addressed if he secured the opportunity to govern.
He also called on CDC officials and other community leaders to support Adeola’s bid to become the next governor and step up mobilisation for the APC candidate in their areas. The communities were asked to submit their requests formally for transmission to the incoming governor.
Pastor Kunle Odewale, another member of the delegation, said Adeola’s record in Ogun West Senatorial District showed that he could fulfil his commitments.
Odewale, who said he comes from the district currently represented by Adeola, urged the leaders to support what he called the “product” presented by the Friends Network.
He said Adeola had delivered notable interventions in Ipokia, Ota, Imeko-Afon and other parts of Ogun West during the past three years, adding that the record justified consideration for a higher office.
Speaking for the Egba Onikolobo CDC, its chairman, Mr Abdul Aregbesola, complained that local-government backing for community development projects had weakened.
Aregbesola said communities once received financial assistance from their local governments for development work, but that support was no longer available.
Mrs Dupe Faleye, chairman of the Egba Agbeyin Area CDC, welcomed the network’s visit but warned against viewing community development committees as political organisations.
She said community leaders represented residents and were primarily responsible for improving their communities.
“We appreciate your visit. But we do not want to be grouped with politicians. We represent the communities, and our work is community development,” Faleye said.
She alleged that some communities had been neglected and argued that access to essential services should not depend on which candidate residents supported.
Faleye said communities were increasingly having to provide infrastructure that should ordinarily be supplied by government, including water schemes, electricity transformers and roads.
“The communities are building the water projects, installing transformers and constructing roads themselves. We are taking on responsibilities that belong to politicians,” she said.
She also highlighted transport difficulties affecting CDCs in the local government area and said buses were needed to help community representatives move around.
Tejuoso ended the meeting by assuring representatives from the various communities that their concerns would be documented and delivered to Yayi. He appealed to them to honour their side of the understanding by mobilising strongly for Yayi and all other APC candidates.
