2026: Osun in political turmoil

…as Adeleke quits PDP, Omisore, six others disqualified by APC

Ahead of next year’s governorship election, Osun State in the last few weeks has been in political turmoil, which has spread across all the major political parties, centred on who emerges the candidates of the various parties.

What has also heightened the political tension in the state is the abrupt resignation of Governor Ademola Adeleke from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the controversial governorship primary of a faction of the party held a day after Governor Adeleke officially quit the party, and the purported disqualification of Senator Iyiola Omisore by the governorship screening committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from contesting the gubernatorial election.

All these incidents, which occurred within a week, have put the state off balance politically, with tension rising all over the place.

While the faction loyal to Governor Seyi Makinde’s leadership, which nominated one Adebayo Ademola (Fyyo), is jubilating after the primary, the other faction loyal to the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, did not support the primary and has declared that its own primary has been suspended till further notice.

Divisions in PDP

The postponement of the primary was announced by the chairman of the party, Chief Sunday Bisi, who said this became necessary in view of the internal crisis within the party at the national level, where there are two parallel executives.

Chief Bisi, in his statement on the primary, which was based on the sudden resignation of Governor Adeleke, argued that the governor had fulfilled all procedural requirements earlier outlined in the PDP nomination timetable.

He said the governor purchased and submitted his expression of interest and nomination forms between October 13 and 25, 2025, and subsequently appeared before the Screening Committee on October 30, 2025, where he was cleared and issued a Certificate of Clearance.

He, however, revealed that: “Internal conflicts at the national level escalated soon after the screening process, leading to the suspension of key officers responsible for overseeing congresses and primaries.

“The leadership crisis, now the subject of multiple court cases across the country, prevented the conduct of ward and local government congresses scheduled for 24 and 29 November 2025, during which delegates for the primaries were to be elected.

“In light of these developments, it has become inevitable that the PDP governorship primaries can no longer hold as scheduled.”

But unexpectedly, despite the fact that Governor Adeleke was expected to be the party’s flag bearer, his resignation caught everyone napping. In order not to take chances, in case the governor changed his mind, the other faction went ahead with the primary to pick its candidate, even though the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was not present to supervise the exercise, which ended in chaos.

Although Governor Adeleke, who is still going to contest the governorship election, has not announced his new party, there are speculations that he might join the Accord Party. But Business Hallmark was reliably informed that during a stakeholders’ meeting held at the weekend, he told party elders to remain in the PDP with his followers pending the time he and his deputy – who has also quit the PDP – would announce the party they plan to join.

As controversies over his exit from the PDP and the factional primary – marred by violence – raged, members of the Osun State PDP House of Representatives caucus kicked against what they described as a “kangaroo” primary, accusing Governor Makinde of Oyo State of attempting to destabilise the party and cause mayhem in Osun State.

Hon. Bamidele Salam and five others stated that the caucus was disappointed in Governor Makinde’s meddling in the party’s affairs and asked him to desist from actions capable of destabilising Osun’s political atmosphere.

The lawmakers condemned the purported governorship primaries, which they argued were orchestrated with “thugs and political jobbers imported from Ibadan, Oyo State.”

They added: “It is laughable that the Oyo State governor does not understand, or chooses to ignore, the fact that the PDP has laid down procedures for the conduct of primaries, which include elections of ward ad-hoc delegates and national delegates, without which no valid primaries can be conducted.

“We unequivocally reject the fraudulent conduct of a purported primary, which threw up one Adebayo Adedamola Fryo as the PDP candidate in the 2026 elections.

“We equally warn the said Fryo not to parade himself as candidate of our party, as such will be tantamount to criminal impersonation and an attempt to provoke the peaceful and law-abiding leaders and members of the PDP in Osun State.”

“While noting the avoidable mess that Governor Makinde’s blind ambition and political immaturity has thrown the party into in the last few weeks, we advise the governor to learn from a Yoruba proverb which says that a man accused of being a thief does not go near the villagers’ chickens pretending to be dancing at night.”

They then asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to “discard the phoney results” of the primaries, which they said did not comply with the PDP Constitution and the Electoral Act.

Intrigues in APC

Just as the PDP in the state is battling its internal crisis, the All Progressives Congress (APC), which appeared to be relatively peaceful, may be heading towards its own internal squabbles, which could cost the party the governorship again, due to the purported disqualification of Senator Iyiola Omisore and six other governorship aspirants from the race by the screening committee.

It was said that the committee, in its report to the National Working Committee (NWC) at the weekend, based the disqualification of Omisore in particular on a petition written by stakeholders of the party in Osun State.

Apart from the petition, it was alleged that the governorship aspirants also failed to meet the mandatory requirement of being sponsored by five fully registered and financially up-to-date members from each local government area, which did not conform to the APC Constitution and guidelines for the 2025 governorship primary.

The committee gave the names of the disqualified aspirants as Senator Omisore, Babatunde Haketer Oralusi, Oyedotun Babayemi, Akinade Akanmu Ogunbiyi, Benedict Olugboyega Alabi, Adegoke Rasheed Okiki Adekunle, and Senator Babajide Omoworare.

The committee, however, left the report as an open cheque for the party’s national leadership to use their discretion in arriving at a final decision.

The committee cleared the former Managing Director of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, and Mulikat Abiola Jimoh to contest the primary election billed for next month.

Although there has not been any reaction from the affected aspirants, Business Hallmark learnt from a party leader that more is yet to be heard about the outcome of the screening committee’s report, and that some of the disqualified aspirants are likely to go to court, alleging foul play in favour of a particular aspirant backed by the former governor and current Minister of Blue Economy, Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola.

It was said that Oyetola has never hidden his preference for Oyebamiji, one of the two cleared aspirants.

Possible fall-outs

Business Hallmark further learnt that if proper care is not taken by the party leadership, the APC may be heading towards irreconcilable differences, which could lead to key leaders and their supporters abandoning the party before the election, spelling a major setback.

Another APC leader told Business Hallmark that if the party wants to avoid a major crisis – and a repeat of what happened when Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola teamed up with the incumbent governor in the last election, which contributed to the party’s defeat—it must allow a free and fair contest among all aspirants.

He argued that most aspirants are not new to the race and are familiar with the rules guiding their qualification for the primary.

He referred to Omisore, Omoworare, and Ogunbiyi, who are not contesting for the first time.

“How do you want them to accept the outcome of the screening committee? I am sure they would have looked at all the rules and conditions before submitting their nomination forms. They can give these reasons to others, but not to Omisore in particular, who is not new in the game.”

New bride

Meanwhile, with speculations that Adeleke may be joining the Accord Party, the national body of the party has begun making adjustments to make his entry smooth.

The party has embarked on a sweeping reconfiguration of its Osun State structures, giving credence to reports that Adeleke is preparing to join the party for the 2026 governorship contest.

The National Working Committee (NWC) said the party has “no faction anywhere, neither at the national nor at the state levels. We remain one united, indivisible family, firmly guided by our ideology of Oneness and Progress.”

As such, the NWC approved a new Caretaker Committee for the Osun State chapter, appointing Pastor Victor Akande as chairman following the expiration of the outgoing leadership’s tenure.

The party also adopted the electoral guidelines for its forthcoming Osun governorship primaries and constituted the committee that will supervise the 2026 exercise. It said the new Accord structures are being strengthened to accommodate credible and visionary Nigerians seeking a disciplined, stable political platform.

“Our membership growth has been organic, genuine, and reflective of the trust Nigerians now place in our leadership. We will not tolerate any individual whose actions or utterances seek to undermine the harmony, stability, and unity of the party,” the NWC stated.