About 332 members of the All Progressives Congress drawn from wards across Osun State on Wednesday received N200,000 each from the party’s National Secretary, Senator Ajibola Basiru, as business grants.
The beneficiaries were presented with the money at a programme held in Osogbo, Osun State, and attended by APC leaders, including its governorship candidate, Bola Oyebamiji.
Speaking during the event, Basiru explained that the initiative was executed through his political organisation, the Alubarika Movement, which he described as a mobilisation arm of the APC.
The APC National Secretary also said the intention was to ensure victory for the party in the August 15 governorship election and expressed his commitment to delivering maximum votes for Oyebamiji at the poll.
“All our members are working assiduously to ensure the victory of our party in the August 15 election. Our own tactics and strategy are predicated on mobilisation, education and ensuring that people identify with our party, not violence.
“332 people in each ward, and we did N200,000 for each of them, making N66.4 million that we distributed to our members today. In the coming months, we are going to do additional empowerment to support our members in whatever trade and vocation they are doing,” Basiru said.
He urged the beneficiaries to use the money to support whatever trade or business they were engaged in, saying, “Just as I told them when I was addressing them, nobody is going to collect administrative charges from them, and they should not use it for mobilisation. We already have money to mobilise. They should use it to support their business so that they can better their lives.”
Also speaking at the event, Oyebamiji declared support for the initiative, saying more programmes of such nature would be executed by the Osun APC to motivate its members.
“This empowerment by the National Secretary of our party is massive and encouraging. This is service to humanity. This will go a long way in stabilising our party members.
“It is one of the things we are going to do for our party members, and I believe this will encourage them to work very hard so that, come August 15, 2026, the APC will win convincingly,” Oyebamiji said.
Ahead of the August 15 governorship poll, political parties fielding candidates have been employing various measures to woo voters.
Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke said his administration was intensifying efforts to empower young entrepreneurs and strengthen business activities across the state.
Speaking at the inauguration of a Backroom Lounge in Osogbo, the governor, represented by the Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Bunmi Jenyo, said parts of the state capital were now operating a growing 24-hour economy.