PDP, APC clash over Aiyedatiwa’s statewide thank-you tour

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ondo State chapter, has criticised Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa over his statewide thank-you tour, emphasising that the tour indicates a failure of governance.

While describing Aiyedatiwa’s tour of the state’s 18 local council areas as a charade, the opposition party stressed that governance under the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state has been reduced to optics and handouts.

Aiyedatiwa had on Monday embarked on a statewide tour of local government areas to thank grassroots residents and galvanise support for President Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The PDP, in a statement issued by its Director of Media and Public Communications, Wande Ajayi, stated that Aiyedatiwa ought to be embarking on a statewide commissioning tour of completed projects rather than going to communities with what he described as token gestures.

According to Ajayi, the tour was an indication that the government has lost direction with misplaced priorities and has also failed to understand the real mandate of leadership.

He said, “Across the length and breadth of the state, public schools are collapsing, healthcare facilities are in a state of ruin, roads have become death traps, and civil servants and pensioners continue to suffer under harsh economic realities. These are the issues crying for attention, not staged tours and festive rhetoric.

“Beyond press statements announcing the flagging off of projects, the reality on the ground is that none of these projects is up to twenty per cent completion, with the slowest execution pace Ondo State has witnessed in its recent history. Governance has been reduced to propaganda optics and public relations, while development has been completely abandoned.”

However, the APC, responding to the PDP’s stance on the governor’s thank-you tour, stressed that Aiyedatiwa’s decision to personally visit communities across the state reflects humility, accessibility, and a commitment to inclusive leadership.

In a statement, the Director of Media and Publicity of APC in the state, Steve Otaloro, stated that the current challenges facing the state, like those of many subnational governments, are largely rooted in national and global economic realities, which he said the administration continues to navigate with restraint and responsibility.

“Contrary to the PDP’s claims, this administration has not reduced governance to handouts or optics. The modest support extended to vulnerable citizens during the tour must be understood within the broader framework of social intervention and compassionate governance, particularly in a period of national economic adjustment.

“A government that acknowledges hardship and provides relief alongside long-term development planning is acting responsibly, not insultingly. On project delivery and fiscal accountability, the APC-led government has nothing to hide,” Otaloro said.