There is palpable tension, fear and confusion among politicians in Osun State as the parties prepare for the August 2026 gubernatorial election in the state.
The tension may not be unconnected to continued rumours permeating the social media over Governor Ademola Adeleke’s defection to the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state.
Adeleke, who was voted into office for the first term in 2022 on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and hopeful of a second term, had consistently denied the rumour that he was planning to defect to the APC until recently when the rumour became widespread without refutation.
On Friday, a pocket of APC youths stormed the Ogo Oluwa secretariat of the party protesting alleged imposition of Governor Adeleke as the candidate of the APC in the state by President Bola Tinubu.
The youth spokesperson who welcomed the rumoured plan by the governor to join their party, insisted that he would have to join the party through the normal channel and present himself as an aspirant to be voted for at the primary election along other aspirants.
Already, about nine stalwarts of the APC have shown interest to vie for the governorship seat while four of them that include Omooba Dotun Babayemi, Prof Rafiu Durodoye, Dr Akin Ogunbiyi and Asiwaju Bola Oyebamiji have said they will run while eyes are also on Senator Iyiola Omisore, Senator Ajibola Basiru, Senator Mudasiru Hussen and Chief Benedict Alabi just to mention but few.
Adeleke had consistently referenced the president in his political dealings and never tolerated attacks on Tinubu by his associates which probably informed an open endorsement of the president for a second term by the three serving senators of PDP in the state.
Observers have said that the withholding of Osun local government funds over absence of elected political functionaries at the third tier of government that has almost crippled the state financially may have brought Adeleke to his knees.
Recall that the two leading parties are at loggerheads over the local government elections conducted by them and interpretation of judgements delivered on the matter by courts.
It was gathered that one of the conditions given to Adeleke to get the fund allocations was to join the ruling APC with a rumoured offer of automatic governorship ticket of the party which the governor may have accepted.
Indication of his acceptance to join the APC includes his absence at the Southwest caucus meeting of PDP held in Ibadan on Friday and the failure of his media office to issue a statement to the contrary as at the time of filing this report.
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