ZLP has spread to win Osun governorship election – Adesuyi

John Adesuyi, the Governorship candidate of the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), in Osun State has expressed confidence that his party has the spread across the State to win the August 15 governorship election.

Adesuyi, who spoke at a Newspoint programme organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Correspondents’ Chapel in Osogbo, said the ZLP would not be intimidated by campaign crowds, insisting that elections are won through strategy rather than popularity.

He said the ZLP has a wider spread than many people believe, noting that the party came sixth in the 2023 Presidential election ahead of some parties considered more popular.

He also said the party recorded votes in all the Local Government Areas of Osun during the 2022 Governorship election, unlike some political parties that failed to secure votes in some councils.

“The ZLP did not record zero anywhere in the 2022 governorship election. We were the last on the ballot paper, so nobody voted for us by mistake. Anybody who voted for us actually wanted to vote for us. We have our spread and we are not interested in vote buying. We are not going to be intimidated by crowds because crowds can easily be gathered,” he said.

Speaking on the level of support for his candidacy, Adesuyi said people had received him well during his engagements across the state, adding that while many acknowledged his programmes and expressed confidence in his ability, they also raised concerns about the role of money in elections.

He said the party was counting on what he described as loyal and honest citizens of the state who had stayed away from previous elections because they did not want to be part of what they considered a corrupt system.

According to him, although Osun has over two million registered voters, fewer than 800,000 voted in the last governorship election, leaving a large number of eligible voters yet to participate in the electoral process.

Adesuyi said the ZLP would focus on reaching out to such voters, encouraging them to collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and vote, expressing confidence that the party could secure the required votes to win the election without taking votes from other political parties.

“So we are so convinced and believe within them we can have our own required number of vote that can declare ZLP as a winner of the election without having to tamper with their own crowd”, he noted.