Politics
Osun 2026: Clash of Incumbency and Federal Might
...as speculations of agreement between Tinubu and Adeleke unnerve APC camp
All the 14 political parties cleared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to take part in the coming August 15, 2026, governorship election in Osun State, have set the ball rolling and have commenced
strong campaigns to sell their candidates to the electorate.
As usual in any election in Nigeria, there are the mighty and the low, and going by the INEC’S list, which contained parties like the Accord party, Action Alliance, African Action Congress (AAC), the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Action Democratic Party (ADP), and the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Others are: All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Action Peoples Party (APP), Boot Party (BP), New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Young Progressive Party (YPP), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).
The two parties, missing on the list are the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP). Although the absence of the PDP stems from the irreconcilable differences among the leaderships of the party, but that of the Labour Party was not known.
Of all the 14 cleared political parties, three of them could be said to be outstanding, with their candidates very popular and well known, due to various public offices they had held in the past and currently held, before they pulled out of service, to contest.
The three parties are, the Accord Party where the incumbent Gov. Ademola Adeleke is contesting, the All Progressives Congress, (APC), with Bola Oyebamiji as its candidate, the African Democratic Party, ADC , which the former Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Salam Najeem Folasayo, is flying its flag.
An Unusual Election
What is interesting in the election is an old woman of 80, Mrs. Adeagbo Yemisi, the only woman, in the race, running on the platform of the Action Democratic Party (ADP), while the other woman in the election, will be running as the Deputy to the former Osun State Speaker Najeem, in ADC.
These three parties have been making waves since the past two months, especially, since after what observers believed as their controversial primaries.
What is further interesting and synonymous with these three popular candidates was the way they all emerged, as their parties choices.
They were all picked through affirmations, and the only candidate whose affirmation did not generate any hullabaloo, was that of Najeem of the ADC. That of the incumbent, Adeleke and Oyebamiji, generated so much heat.
As the campaigns of the parties are gathering momentum and the heat is intensed in the state for the election, it is pertinent at this juncture, to examine how the leading contenders, Adeleke, Oyebamiji and Najeem emerged.
Oyebamiji:
As for Oyebamini, the first process of his affirmation began so to say and perfected at the screening level, when his masters, who wanted him, were accused of stage-managing the disqualification of someone, like Senator Iyiola Omisore, Senator, Babajide Omoworare and others, who could give him a tough time and not giving him any chance, if they went to the proper party primaries, with him.
They had to get those strong aspirants off the way and that has now given him the room, making him to feel larger than life.
However, at the staged managed primary, two of the aspirants had to come out to announced that Oyebamiji was picked as a consensus candidate of the party.
While, Barrister Kunle Adegoke (SAN), moved the motion for his adoption, saying that with the consent of other aspirants, he “hereby moved that with the consent of other aspirants, Asiwaju Nurudeen Bola Oyebamiji has been declared the consensus candidate of our Party the APC, for the August 2026 governorship election, following the decisions of other aspirants to step down, Babajide Omoworare seconded “the motion affirming and adopting Oyebamiji as consensus candidate”
Gov. Adeleke
Although the adoption of Gov. Adeleke of the Accord Party was in the same vein, despite his approval by the National body of the party, it faced an opposition with a dispute. A faction of the Accord Party later held a separate primary, producing Clement Bamigbola as their candidate. However, the state leadership of the Accord Party, along with the faction recognized by INEC (under Maxwell Mgbudem), disqualified that move insisting, that Adeleke’s primary was the only legitimate, legally monitored, and recognized process.
His emergence, was, however, the most interesting of the leading aspirants, and it began with his defection from the troubled PDP on December 9, 2025, when he formally announced his resignation from the PDP, with the reason of the prolonged and unresolved leadership crisis, at the national level. He stated that he had joined the Accord Party over a month prior, on November 6, 2025, after consultations.
This, was also after he had been rejected by the Gboyega Oyetola led APC, Omisore groups eying the governorship, knowing fully well that if he was allowed to join them, he would automatically be the candidate of the party, a move that would scuttle their ambitions and that of their preferred candidates.
Following his defection, the Accord Party screening committee, led by Elder Ibe Thankgod, cleared Adeleke as the sole aspirant for the party’s governorship ticket, noting he met all necessary requirements. On December 10, 2025, in Osogbo, Adeleke was declared the winner of the Accord Party primary after securing 145 out of 150 votes cast by delegates.
Hon. Nojeem
The adoption of Hon. Najeem of the ADC was the most smooth sailing, as there was no rancor or opposition, being the most favoured by the leader of the party, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola.
Right now, the candidates have been going round campaigning using all the tactics they know, to appeal to the people of the state, for votes.
It was argued that, the candidate who has the most advantage in the election, is Adeleke, who has been using his visible projects in the State, as his game plan to convince the people.
Incumbency Against Federal Might
With the tone of the campaign, which is now still low keyed, it appears that the strongest voices are that of the Adeleke’s Accord Party and that of the Oyebamiji APC’S.
Adeleke has been going around using the Accord Party’s philosophy of welfarism aligned with his administration’s focus on worker and citizens welfare as the major pillars of his campaign, while Oyebamini, of the APC, who is regarded as the strongest opponent to Adeleke, has been telling the people that , his party would take over the state, through hard work and would not depend on the Federal might as claimed by the incumbent’s supporters.
At the same time, he has been using the project of Adeleke to disparaged him as a none performing governor, that the APC at all cost would shame Adeleke in the election.
However, Adeleke too replied that the voters would shame both Oyebamiji and his mentor, the former governor Gboyega Oyetola , who is now the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy.
Reacting to recent statements credited to the Osun APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji and the Marine Economy Minister, Adegboyega Oyetola concerning the August 15 polls, the governor said their utterances were “deceitful utterances designed to mask the failed, dark agenda to tamper with people’s will on August 15th.”
Gov. Adeleke blasted them that the Osun people are not deceived by the pledge of the APC chieftains to support free and fair elections, saying, “the APC candidate and his supporters must apologise for their several posts and open threats to forcefully take over Osun government irrespective of people’s will on August 15th.”
“The Osun APC campaign operatives have issued several warnings and social media posts to use federal might to override popular votes. What now changed that Mr. Oyebamiji suddenly embraced free and fair elections? Why was the Minister also echoing similar lines?”
Fair Election
“Myself, my team and my party are committed to mobilisation for a free and fair contest in which the votes of the people must count at all costs. As a man of the people, I am committed to peaceful contests devoid of violence and electoral banditry.”
“I strongly believe that I have the backing of the overwhelming majority of Osun people at home and abroad to continue to pursue my innovative agenda, which has repositioned the state as a model within the comity of nations. I am elated that the people have vowed to harshly treat electoral bandits before, during and after the governorship elections”, the governor Adeleke affirmed.
In a statement issued and signed by the Coordinator of his campaign group, Adebayo Adedeji, the APC candidate dismissed reports suggesting that President Tinubu had entered into a pact with Governor Adeleke ahead of the poll.
“We state unequivocally that this claim is false, unfounded, and a deliberate attempt to mislead the people of Osun State. It is nothing more than a desperate move to shore up the image of an administration that has failed to deliver purposeful and effective leadership,” the statement said.
According to him, his policy direction aligns with the President’s “Renewed Hope Agenda,” particularly in key sectors such as education, agriculture, and infrastructure.
“President Tinubu will not abandon a loyal and credible party man for a candidate seeking an undeserved second term,” the statement pointed out.
Adeleke, too without wasting time, fired back to dismissed claims by the APC
governorship candidate, Oyebamiji, that state’s health system is “moribund.” under his watch and accused Oyebamiji of peddling unwarranted rumours over the finances of his administration.
Adeleke pointed out that all the claims “are baseless disinformation attempt that only deepened the isolation of the opposition candidate in the minds of the public.”
Governor Adeleke argued “It is like the opposition candidate is living in another world because Osun today and from 2024, is number one across the South West in the area of provision of primary health care. When the Ikire man was in government, Osun was nowhere within the 10 digits”.
The Governor went on “Over 200 health centres were renovated under my watch and another phase of renovation is presently ongoing. Under the previous government, the APC candidate was part of the committee that mismanaged the 20 million dollar World Bank grant meant for renovation of primary health care centers. Osun won’t return to the days of insensitive leaders,” He further said.
On staff welfare, the governor added, “Under the APC candidate, the medical associations and staff in public hospitals were financially strangulated and treated as sub-humans. Under my watch and within the context of workers’ welfare, I went extra miles to restore the dignity of medical personnel.
With Adeleke and Oyebamiji as the two hottest contenders, are daily, on each other’s throats, over the election, that is still barely four months ahead, the voice of the ADC candidate Najeem is still not loud yet.
Despite this, he has been approaching his campaign with decency and basing his tactics on his agenda for the people of the state, without resorting into campaign of calumny, against any of his co-contenders.
The Ejigbo born former Speaker, has been known for his modesty, gentility, and politics without bitterness, even when he was the speaker of the state Assembly.
