Olu of Warri Speaks On Endorsing Bola Tinubu For President

Olu of Warri Speaks On Endorsing Bola Tinubu For President

The Olu of Warri, His Majesty, Ogiame Atuwatse III, has rejected claims that he has backed the presidential campaign of Bola Tinubu, a presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress.

Reports had surfaced alleging that the traditional ruler had backed the former Lagos governor during a meeting with a team from the South West Agenda for Asiwaju and the Delta State for Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday, according to the traditional ruler.

In response to the claims, the monarch issued a statement signed by Oriiz U. Onuwaje, Head, Back Office Operations, Office of the Ogiame Atuwatse III, in which he denied supporting any presidential contender on the national level.

He said that the author of the report was attempting to create a narrative that was in conflict with the Palace’s non-partisan standing.

The statement reads:

“On the instructions of His Majesty Ogiame Atuwatse III – The Olu of Warri; firmly rebut the statement claiming Ogiame’s endorsement of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and restates that Ogiame has no political affiliation or preferred political candidate for any office in the forthcoming 2023 elections be it at the regional, sub-national or national level.

“Ogiame is a father figure to all and has no personal favourite or special interests in any candidate or political party vying for any office in the forthcoming elections one way or another and will therefore not endorse or discredit any candidate to the detriment or advantage of others.

“The headlines credited to Ogiame in the referenced quotes have been taken out of context and reworked to suit a specific narrative. They cannot be further from the truth. For an unclear motive, the writer contravenes the Palace’s avowed role of non-partisanship.”