Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, yesterday, flagged off his re-election campaign in Osogbo, the state capital, ahead of the forthcoming August 15, 2026 gubernatorial polls, declaring that he would not succumb to forces of darkness and intimidation.

The flag-off, held at the popular Freedom Park, Osogbo, attracted a mammoth crowd of supporters, stakeholders and chieftains of the Accord Party, where some loyalists of the former National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Iyiola Omisore, officially decamped to the ruling party.

Adeleke, while speaking at the event, restated that despite the Federal High Court ruling that ordered the de-registration of African Democratic Congress (ADC), Accord Party (AP) and a few other political parties, said that his party (AP) would be on the ballot during the governorship polls and 2027 general elections.

He said: “I assure you all that the Accord Party will be on the ballot, your votes will count and I will be re-elected as your governor on August 15.

“I charge you to hold your head high. There should be no dull moments. From this assembly for democracy, the light of good governance must continue to spread to all corners of the state,” he stated.

Adeleke, however, directed the Commissioner of Police, Ibrahim Gotan, to stop his protection for the illegal occupation of the council secretariats.

He also called on United Bank for Africa (UBA) to end its unholy alliance with the court-sacked APC council chairmen, saying that the alleged diverted council funds must be fully accounted for by the bank and the sacked chairmen.

However, a loyalist of Omisore and former Commissioner for Education in Osun State, Folorunso Bamisayemi, who spoke on behalf of the decampees, including Yemi Lawal and aides of former Governor Gboyega Oyetola, expressed their readiness to work for the re-election of Adeleke.

Bamisayemi said they left APC out of frustration over past electoral losses, saying that the refusal of APC leaders to consider Omisore as a candidate also fuelled their defection.

MEANWHILE, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Osun State Council, yesterday, directed members of the National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) across the state to prevent the alleged sacked APC local council chairmen and their political appointees from accessing council secretariats.

The directive followed the decision of the Federal High Court sitting in Osogbo, which dismissed a motion seeking to stay its judgment filed by the affected chairmen.

In a statement, signed by the NLC Osun State Chairman, Christopher Abimbola Arapasopo, the union said the court’s decision rendered the claims of the sacked chairmen to office “null, void, and of no legal consequence.”

The union, therefore, instructed NULGE members in all the 30 local councils, Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) and area offices in Osun State to immediately lock the entrance gates of council secretariats against the affected chairmen, councillors, and their appointees.

It also directed workers to secure vital administrative offices and council property, urging them to remain calm and continue their official duties without panic.

The union, which further advised workers to report any attempt to forcefully gain access to the secretariats to the NLC leadership and relevant security agencies, stated that the directive takes immediate effect and will remain in force pending further communication from the NLC Osun State Council.