Adeleke Wins Second Term in Osun, Defeats APC Rival Oyebamiji

Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has secured a fresh four-year term in office after defeating his closest challenger, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in a keenly contested governorship election.

The returning officer for the election, Joshua Ogunwole, declared Adeleke the winner at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Collation Centre in Osogbo early on Sunday.

Adeleke, who contested the election on the platform of the Accord Party, polled 511,067 votes, while Oyebamiji of the APC came second with 444,815 votes.

Najeem Salaam of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) finished a distant third with 17,180 votes.

Ogunwole said a total of 1,005,800 votes were cast across the 30 local government areas of the state, with 985,079 votes declared valid. He added that 1,010,684 voters were accredited for the election.

Adeleke’s victory is particularly significant because he secured his first term under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) but switched to the Accord Party in December.

Explaining his defection, the governor said the Accord Party’s philosophy of welfarism aligned with his administration’s emphasis on the welfare and wellbeing of citizens and workers.

“We opted for the Accord Party because its mission of welfarism aligns with our passionate focus on citizens’ and workers’ welfare,” Adeleke had said while announcing his defection.

He added that the primary purpose of government was to promote the welfare and wellbeing of the people.

The result brings to an end months of intense political campaigning across the South-West state, with 15 political parties participating in the election.

The election was preceded by heightened political tensions, including allegations and counter-allegations between the ruling party and the APC over violence, killings and destruction of property.

In response to the security concerns, the police deployed 15,000 personnel across Osun State, alongside 30 commissioners of police, to provide security during the election.

The Force Public Relations Officer, Anietie Iniedu, also disclosed that a police helicopter and a drone unit had been deployed for aerial and area surveillance.

President Bola Tinubu had, ahead of the poll, directed the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, and the heads of other security agencies involved in the election to ensure adequate security at polling units and prevent disruption of the electoral process.

“I have charged the Inspector-General of Police and other heads of security outfits taking part in the election to provide maximum security at polling units,” the President said.

He urged INEC to ensure that the election was conducted in a transparent, free and fair manner, stressing the need to protect the integrity of the process.

The election was also preceded by controversy surrounding the decision of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to freeze an account belonging to the Osun State Government.

The development generated concerns because it occurred only days before the governorship election. President Tinubu subsequently directed the anti-graft agency to unfreeze the account, describing the timing of the action as embarrassing.

Another late development came when a court ordered INEC to include the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the election, creating additional logistical challenges for the electoral commission.

INEC was consequently required to adjust its preparations, including the production and distribution of ballot papers and other sensitive election materials.

The commission’s National Commissioner supervising Osun State, Kunle Ajayi, said INEC had worked around the clock to meet the new requirements following the late court order.

He explained that millions of ballot papers were printed within 36 hours and that sensitive materials were subsequently moved to the Central Bank of Nigeria for safekeeping.

Despite the late legal development and the resulting logistical pressures, INEC proceeded with the election across the state’s 30 local government areas.

With the declaration of Adeleke as the winner, the governor will now begin a second term in office, having secured victory under a different political platform from the one on which he first won the governorship.