Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has dismissed claims by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) that the party collaborated with him to secure re-election, insisting that ADC National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi’s statements were false and that he had no electoral pact with the party.
Abdullahi had earlier told Trust TV that the ADC deliberately cooperated with the Accord Party during the August 15 governorship election to prevent the All Progressives Congress (APC) from reclaiming the state.
He explained that the ADC anticipated a split in opposition votes could hand victory to the APC, prompting the party to work with Accord rather than fielding its candidate aggressively .
But Governor Adeleke, in a statement issued Tuesday by his spokesperson Mallam Olawale Rasheed, rejected the narrative entirely.
The Governor credited God and the people of Osun for his re-election, declaring that the ADC was never part of the rainbow coalition that campaigned for his victory.
“I commend political partners who went all out to make Saturday a victory day for all Osun people. But we must clarify for the sake of history that ADC was never part of the alliance,” the Governor was quoted as saying .
Abdullahi had maintained that the ADC does not consider its candidate Najeem Salaam’s 17,180 votes a failure, arguing that their primary objective was to defeat the APC.
When asked whether the ADC directed its supporters to vote for Adeleke, Abdullahi responded: “We cooperated with the Accord party” .
However, Abdullahi had also said the ADC would not claim sole credit for Adeleke’s victory, stating: “The victory belongs to Ademola Adeleke, who, in spite of all odds, still managed to emerge as the governor of Osun state” .
Moving forward, Governor Adeleke struck a reconciliatory tone, emphasizing that the election is over and his administration belongs to all citizens regardless of political affiliation.
“Now that the election is over, I am a governor of all Osun people irrespective of political groups, religion or race,” he added.
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