The 2027 governorship candidate of the Allied Peoples’ Movement (APM) in Oyo State, Hon. Abimbola Adekanmbi, received an emotional welcome at Bodija International Market, Ibadan, during a visit to the shop where his late mother, popularly known as Iya Elelubo, traded in unprocessed yam flour, elubo ikokoro.
Adekanmbi, accompanied by his wife, Dr. Olukemi Adekanmbi, party leaders, campaign officials, lawmakers and supporters, began the visit at the M.R.S. Filling Station before proceeding into the market.
The delegation also paid a courtesy visit to the Babaloja of Bodija Market, Alhaji S.A. Jimoh, before walking through the market amid greetings from traders and residents.
The emotional high point came when Adekanmbi arrived at his mother’s former shop. Speaking to traders, he recalled spending part of his childhood there, helping his mother with her business and running errands. He said proceeds from her elubo ikokoro trade contributed to his upbringing and education, describing his story as evidence that people from modest backgrounds can rise to positions of responsibility.
Adekanmbi told the traders that, if elected governor, he would prioritise measures to improve the business environment, including infrastructure, security and support for small businesses. He specifically promised to reconstruct the internal roads within Bodija Market, describing the project as one of his priorities if he wins the 2027 election.
The delegation later visited the Bodija plank market, where Adekanmbi commissioned a fire station donated by the late Ibadan North Federal Representative, Hon. Musiliu Akinremi Olaide, popularly known as Jagaban. He described the facility as important to protecting traders and their businesses from fire incidents and commended the late lawmaker for the project.
At separate engagements with market associations at Bodija Isopako Town Hall and the Oderinlo Ultramodern Complex and Motor Park, traders presented their concerns and expectations ahead of the 2027 election.
Adekanmbi said his background as the son of a market woman gave him a personal understanding of the challenges faced by traders. He promised to pursue policies that would support commercial activities across Oyo State and said he would complete ongoing projects of the present administration while introducing new development initiatives.
The visit also attracted representatives of various community groups, including the Arewa and Igbo communities, as well as market leaders who expressed support for the APM candidate and urged him to remember the commitments made during the engagement.
Adekanmbi also thanked Governor Seyi Makinde for giving him the opportunity to contest the governorship election on the APM platform, describing the governor as a developmental leader whose projects, he said, should be sustained.
The Bodija visit combined campaign engagement with a deeply personal return to the market where Adekanmbi said his mother’s trade played a significant role in his early life, making his childhood story a central feature of his message to the traders.
 in Oyo State, Hon. Abimbola Adekanmbi, received an emotional welcome at Bodija International Market, Ibadan, during a visit to the shop where his late mother, popularly known as Iya Elelubo, traded in unprocessed yam flour, elubo ikokoro.){kind=link}