• APM predicts Tinubu’s defeat as PDP hails ‘advance payment’
• Adeleke wins 19 LGAs with 511,067 votes, defeats Oyebamiji by 66,252
• Gov. urges supporters to shun post-election violence, seek peace
• Tinubu congratulates Adeleke, asks him to unite Osun, accelerate devt
• SERAP demands probe into alleged vote-buying, violence, voter intimidation
• Yiaga Africa urges INEC to institutionalise lessons from Osun poll
• Adeleke pledges accelerated devt, backs Tinubu for 2027

The declaration of Governor Ademola Adeleke as winner of Saturday’s governorship election in Osun State has rekindled confidence in the power of the ballot, with the Allied People’s Movement (APM) predicting defeat for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election, while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) described the victory as an “advance payment” against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), with the balance to come in 2027.

Adeleke secured 511,067 votes across 19 of the state’s 30 local government areas, in an election that suggested that, despite the growing influence of money, political structures, intimidation and other forces capable of distorting electoral contests, voters can still determine who governs them when sufficiently mobilised and resolute.

The APM, in a statement yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Yusuf Abubakar, described the outcome as a sign of growing discontent with the ruling All Progressives Congress and a foretaste of what awaits Tinubu in 2027.

The party said the election demonstrated that “every political establishment seems unbeatable until the people decide otherwise”, describing Adeleke’s victory as a triumph of the people over the APC.

For a state with a long history of keenly contested elections, about 43.2 per cent of registered voters participated in the August 15 poll, according to figures from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

INEC put the total number of registered voters at 2,339,544, while 1,010,684 voters were accredited for the election. A total of 1,005,800 votes were cast, comprising 985,079 valid votes and 20,721 rejected ballots.

The turnout, despite concerns about violence and heightened political tension in the days leading up to the election, indicated that a significant proportion of the electorate defied the odds to exercise their franchise.

The election also provided a notable test of the electoral process, with the influence of federal power appearing less decisive, while reports of intimidation and vote-buying were comparatively less pronounced.

More significantly, the deployment of technology, particularly the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and electronic transmission of results, was generally performed beyond expectations, reinforcing confidence in the capacity of technology to improve the credibility of Nigeria’s electoral process.

APM said voters’ reactions to APC leaders during the Osun campaign indicated growing dissatisfaction with the Federal Government and a desire for a change in leadership.

“The booing of President Tinubu’s political henchmen, including APC state governors, as they fled from Osun State shows that Nigerians are done with the APC and cannot wait to vote out President Tinubu in 2027,” the statement said.

The party also claimed that the APC would struggle to command genuine support during the 2027 campaigns, alleging that Nigerians would reject the administration at the polls.

It said: “Nigerians can no longer continue to stomach the arrogance in failure, totalitarian proclivities, worsening insecurity and economic hardship that the Tinubu administration now represents.”

APM urged the APC to “read the handwriting on the wall” and abandon any plan to manipulate the 2027 presidential election.

The Peoples Democratic Party described Adeleke’s victory as an “advance payment” in separate statements signed by the party’s Interim National Working Committee, Comrade Ini Ememobong, and National Publicity Secretary, Jungudo Haruna Mohammed.

While Ememobong focused on the broader political implications of the election and alleged institutional interference, Mohammed congratulated Adeleke and urged political actors to put Osun’s interests above partisan considerations.

“Overall, the result from Osun is an advance payment by Nigerians against the APC, the balance will come in 2027,” Ememobong said.

He alleged that the APC deployed its political machinery to Osun in a bid to secure victory, citing alleged intimidation, assaults and arrests involving opposition politicians.

The PDP spokesman also referred to a controversial statement attributed to Senator Francis Fadahunsi, his subsequent invitation by the police and release, alleging that the episode reflected the pressure placed on opposition figures during the election.

“The ruling party that is ruining the country mobilized their entire rigging machinery to Osun, with nothing left to chance, boasting that they will repeat the Edo experience,” he said.

Ememobong said the people of Osun resisted the alleged machinations and ensured that the ballot prevailed.

He accused security agencies, particularly the police, of partiality and faulted the freezing of the state government’s accounts by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), as well as what he described as a delay of more than two hours in uploading results from 470 polling units by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

“The manifest partiality of security agencies, especially the police, and even the shameful intervention by the EFCC freezing the accounts of the state; and the intentional delay (more than two hours) in uploading the results of the 470 polling units by INEC, are acts that are not just condemnable but are actions capable of derailing democracy,” he said.

He urged Nigerians not to become complacent ahead of 2027, saying the APC’s failure to secure victory in Osun should not be taken as the end of alleged attempts to undermine the electoral process.

“Nigerians must vote, protect and defend their votes,” Ememobong said.

He said electoral victories must reflect the freely expressed will of voters rather than the influence of political power or state institutions.

“Election results must be reflective of the wishes of the people freely expressed through the ballot and not the enforcement of the whims and caprices of a privileged minority of oppressors,” he said.

Ememobong urged Nigerians to remain vigilant, saying the defence of democracy ultimately depended on citizens’ ability to protect the integrity of their votes.

How Adeleke defeated AMBO to clinch second term
While declaring the result at about 7:25 a.m. yesterday, the Returning Officer for the election and Vice Chancellor, Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, Prof Joshua Olalekan Ogunwole, declared Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party winner, defeating the All Progressives Congress candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, by 66,252 votes.

Adeleke, who contested for a second term, polled 511,067 votes, while Oyebamiji, popularly known as AMBO, scored 444,815 votes.

The collation exercise, which commenced at about 2:15 a.m., followed the arrival and verification of results from the 30 local government areas of the state.

Declaring the result, Ogunwole said: “Having secured the huge number of lawful votes, the candidate of Accord, Ademola Nurudeen Jackson Adeleke, is hereby returned elected as the winner of the August 15 governorship election in Osun State.”

Adeleke won in 19 local government areas, including Ife Central, Orolu, Boluwaduro, Ede South, Ife North, Ilesa West, Ifedayo, Osogbo, Oriade, Odo Otin, Ife East, Ifelodun, Iwo, Ede North, Ila, Ayedire, Ejigbo, Egbedore and Ayedaade.

Oyebamiji won in 11 local government areas, including Irepodun, Boripe, Obokun, Ilesa East, Atakunmosa West, Atakunmosa East, Isokan, Olaoluwa, Ife South and Olorunda.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate, Najeem Salaam, came third with 17,180 votes but did not win any of the 30 local government areas, including Ejigbo, where he hails from.

The declaration triggered jubilation among Adeleke’s supporters, many of whom had gathered around the INEC collation centre and along the Gbongan-Ibadan Expressway, waiting for the final announcement.

Unite Osun, accelerate development, Tinubu tells Adeleke
President Bola Tinubu has urged re-elected Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke to use his fresh mandate to unite the state and accelerate its socio-economic development, regardless of how residents voted in Saturday’s governorship election.

Tinubu, who congratulated Adeleke on his victory, said the outcome reaffirmed the confidence of the people of Osun State in his leadership and represented a positive affirmation of Nigeria’s democratic process.

In a statement yesterday by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the President said he personally called Adeleke to congratulate him on his re-election.

“I called Governor Ademola Adeleke earlier today to congratulate him on his election victory in Osun State. His victory once again confirms the confidence the people of Osun State have in him,” he said.

Tinubu urged Adeleke to make unity and development central to his second term and reach out to all sections of the state, irrespective of their political affiliations.

“I wish him great success as he prepares to lead the state for the next four years. Now that he has won, Governor Adeleke must unite the people of Osun State and rally them for growth, stability, and social and economic progress, regardless of the political choices they made in the election,” the President said.

He commended the other contestants for their participation, describing their conduct as a contribution to the development of Nigeria’s democratic culture.

“I salute the courage and discipline displayed by other contestants in the election. Their participation deepened and enriched our country’s democratic culture,” Tinubu said.

The President said the outcome of the election “reflects the will of the people” and expressed confidence that democracy would continue to flourish in Nigeria.

He also commended the Independent National Electoral Commission and security agencies for conducting what he described as a peaceful and transparent election that produced a clear winner.

Adeleke urges peace, unity after Osun election victory
Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, yesterday urged residents and his supporters to shun post-election attacks and work towards restoring peace and unity across the state.

Adeleke, who spoke to journalists after his victory in Saturday’s governorship election, appealed to residents to avoid counter-attacks and allow old wounds from the pre-election violence to heal.

He said communal harmony could only be achieved through compassion, particularly after weeks of gun attacks across the state.

The governor observed a minute’s silence for victims of the pre-election violence and urged community leaders and traditional institutions to intensify peace-building efforts in their communities.

He said: “The issues are settled by the grace of God and people.”

Adeleke dedicated his victory to God and the people of Osun State, commending them for their resilience, strong will and unwavering commitment to democracy.

He said his second term would build on his achievements while addressing areas where his administration had fallen short.

“As you have trusted me with a second term in office, I will reinforce my strong points and correct my errors. Osun will witness further accelerated development and growth under my renewed five-point agenda.

“To all lovers of democracy, I thank you for supporting our struggle. From home and abroad, the support is overwhelming. My faith in democracy is deepened.

“Most importantly, I thank the media for standing by us. The constant coverage in support of democracy emboldened us. We are grateful. Osun State is on the march again. We shall expand development, and widen the net of good governance,” Adeleke remarked.

Also, in an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today, while responding to questions about his earlier expression of support for Tinubu despite belonging to the opposition Accord Party, Adeleke said: “I never reached an agreement with Mr President, no. My support is just based on the fact that he is a Yoruba man and he is from the South-West.”

Adeleke said he believed Tinubu deserved another opportunity to consolidate his administration’s reforms, adding that he would actively support the President during the 2027 campaign.

Stakeholders laud INEC, security, say vote buying still a threat to democracy
As varied reactions trail the outcome of the Osun poll, stakeholders have lauded INEC and security agencies for the success of the exercise.

They urged the electoral body to ensure adequate provision of technological devices in subsequent elections.

However, they were unanimous in their submissions over the danger of vote buying to the credibility of electoral processes.

Speaking to The Guardian, a former lawmaker, who hitherto represented Osun Central in the National Assembly, Senator Olu Akanbi, noted that the poll had raised the awareness of people on freedom to choose leaders.

He explained that the issue of vote buying in Nigerian politics had to do with the candidates, stressing that some political gladiators have cult followership like late President Muhammadu Buhari and the Osun State governor, Adeleke.

“Vote buying will soon go out of fashion in Nigeria because yesterday in Osogbo, people were singing mockery songs to deride vote buyers. People collected money from politicians and still voted for people of their choice.

“The amount of money that the APC governors brought to Osun was humongous if the story is true and yet it did not reflect in the results of APC during the election, “Akabi remarked.

On the rating of the police, he said the electorate in Osun were vigilant during the election, saying the development compelled INEC and security agencies to display professional standards that aided the success of the exercise.

Also speaking, a veteran journalist, Alhaji Liadi Tella, chided the media for dwelling on negative reportage over the election process, thus failing to publicise the success of the exercise.

“INEC has done its best, and no one is perfect, but if the APC had enough grounds to challenge the outcome of the election, they would go ahead to contest the outcome.

In his submission, a renowned sociologist, Prof Lai Olurode, contended that the electoral umpire had delivered a credible poll in Osun, though more attention should be focused on faulty technological devices ahead of the 2027 polls.

Speaking on how the Osun governorship poll has highlighted the growing influence of voter consciousness and grassroots engagement in determining electoral outcomes, a community leader, Kabiru Adeniyi Adisa; policy analyst, Prof Femi Ajayi; and Deputy Governorship Candidate of the African Democratic Congress in Oyo State and lawyer, Chief Niyi Aborisade, have said the result offered important lessons for political parties and candidates ahead of future elections, particularly the 2027 general elections.

SERAP, Yiaga urge INEC to strengthen electoral process after Osun poll
The Independent National Electoral Commission has been urged to strengthen its electoral systems and replicate the gains recorded in the 2026 Osun State governorship election nationwide ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The calls were made separately by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and Yiaga Africa, with SERAP seeking investigations into alleged electoral offences during the poll and Yiaga Africa urging INEC to institutionalise the lessons learnt from the election.

SERAP, in a petition at the weekend signed by its Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, urged INEC, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to jointly investigate alleged vote-buying, financial inducement, violence, voter intimidation and other electoral offences linked to the election.

The organisation also called on the agencies to facilitate independent regional and international scrutiny of the election by the African Union (AU), Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and relevant United Nations human rights mechanisms.

SERAP urged the agencies to trace the sources and movement of funds allegedly deployed for vote-buying and other unlawful electoral activities, and identify individuals or organisations that provided, authorised, distributed, financed or facilitated the alleged payments.