Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Ado-Ekiti to represent President Bola Tinubu at the inauguration of Governor Biodun Oyebanji for a second term in office.
Politics Nigeria reports that Shettima arrived at the Ekiti Agro-Allied International Cargo Airport on Friday ahead of the swearing-in ceremony scheduled to take place at the Ekiti Parapo Pavilion in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital.
He was received by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, Governor Oyebanji and several other dignitaries.
Among those present were governors of Kwara, Imo, Sokoto, Kebbi, Ondo and Jigawa states, All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman Nentawe Yilwatda, Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council Abdulaziz Yari and former Governor of Ondo State Olusegun Mimiko.
Other members of the vice president’s delegation included Deputy Chief of Staff to the President Ibrahim Hadejia, Minister of Solid Minerals Development Dele Alake, Deputy Governor of Kano State Aminu Sule Garo, Senator Muntari Dandutse and Special Adviser to the President on Special Duties in the Office of the Vice President Aliyu Modibbo Umar.
Senate President Akpabio had also arrived at the airport at about 10 a.m., leading a delegation of federal lawmakers that included Deputy Senate President Jibrin and other senators.
The Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum and Governor of Imo State, Hope Uzodimma, was among the dignitaries who arrived earlier. Former Governor of Osun State Bisi Akande also arrived for the ceremony.
The guests were received by Oyebanji, Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele and other senior government officials before proceeding to the venue of the inauguration.
The ceremony will formally begin another four-year tenure for Oyebanji and his deputy, Monisade Afuye, following their victory in the 2026 Ekiti governorship election.
Oyebanji, the APC candidate, won the election with 319,224 votes, according to results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The returning officer, Professor Adenike Oladiji, who declared the results, said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Oluwole Oluyede, polled 40,543 votes, while Dare Bejide of the African Democratic Party (ADP) secured 12,872 votes.
Oladiji, who is the Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, said 384,940 voters were accredited for the election. The poll recorded 375,777 valid votes and 6,332 rejected votes.
Following the announcement, President Tinubu congratulated Oyebanji and commended Ekiti voters for what he described as their peaceful and orderly conduct during the election.
In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu also praised security agencies for maintaining law and order during the poll.
The president described Oyebanji’s victory as a significant political milestone, noting that the governor had become the first in Ekiti State’s history to win re-election and succeed himself since the state’s creation in 1996.
Tinubu attributed the governor’s electoral success to his administration’s record in infrastructure, agriculture, youth employment, education, healthcare and rural development under the BAO agenda.
He urged Oyebanji to remain magnanimous in victory and work with all stakeholders to consolidate on his achievements during the next four years.
The president also called on other candidates who contested the election to support the governor in advancing the state’s development.
Tinubu further reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to working with the Ekiti State Government to deliver more benefits to residents under his Renewed Hope Agenda.
