Osun Guber Race Hots Up, APC Submits Governorship, Legislative Candidates To INEC

The 15 August Osun governorship election race gathered steam over the past week amid intrigue and controversy.

The election sparked an altercation between Governor Ademola Adeleke, who is seeking re-election under the platform of the Accord Party, and the national ruling party, All Progressives Congress (APC).

Adeleke had blamed President Bola Tinubu and the immediate-past governor of the state, Adegboyega Oyetola, over happenings in the state ahead of the election.

The Osun state governor, at a campaign rally in the state, alleged that extrajudicial killings were occurring in the state and urged President Tinubu not to turn a blind eye to the development.

Adeleke allegedly threatened that a repeat of the 1983 political crisis would be visited on Osun state should he lose the August 15 governorship election.

“President Bola Tinubu, something is happening in Osun that you have not moved to put an end to. They are killing our people. You are the President; you are the father for all of us. Osun has said they won’t allow rigging.

“There won’t be rigging in Osun. Remember what happened in 1983. It started in Yorubaland. When they cheated Bola Ige and Ajasin. Osun will not agree. We want a free and fair election. President Tinubu, I am passing this message to you. We have endorsed you; why are they still killing us?” he queried.

But the APC National Secretary, Senator Surajudeen Ajibola Bashiru, asked Adeleke to stop casting aspersions on President Tinubu and other party leaders over an election that is still days away.

Bashiru said the governor’s outburst was born out of fear of imminent defeat, asking how a sitting governor can be crying over rigging in an election that is coming up in days ahead, when in politics, 24 hours is enough to change things.

Also, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) froze bank accounts operated by the Osun state government, which many viewed as politically motivated.

But EFCC defended its decision, saying the action was taken to prevent the alleged diversion of public funds and was unrelated to the governorship election.

The anti-graft agency said it had been investigating the Osun State Government since March 2026 over the alleged fraudulent handling of Ecology Funds, Intervention Funds and Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) allocations, amounting to about N11 billion.

The Osun State Government had approached the Federal High Court to challenge the EFCC’s decision to place restrictions on its bank accounts.

However, President Tinubu ordered the EFCC to immediately approach the court to vacate the order freezing the accounts of the Osun State Government.

Tinubu said he was deeply embarrassed by the timing of the EFCC’s action, especially when the state’s governorship election was holding in a few days’ time.

Meanwhile, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has successfully uploaded all its governorship, deputy governorship and State Houses of Assembly candidates for the 2027 general elections to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Candidate Nomination Portal.

The National Chairman of the APC, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, disclosed this in a statement posted on his X handle, congratulating party leaders, members and candidates on the successful completion of the nomination process.

“I am pleased to announce that the All Progressives Congress (APC) has successfully achieved a 100% upload of all our 56 Governorship and Deputy Governorship, and 1,015 State House of Assembly candidates on the INEC Candidate Nomination Portal,” Yilwatda said.

By this, the ruling party has beaten the Saturday, August 8, 2026 deadline for authorised leaders of political parties to upload the names and relevant particulars of their flag bearers to the portal.

In another development, the factional Accord Party’s presidential candidate and National Chairman, Prof. Christopher Imumolen, announced his withdrawal from the 2027 presidential race and endorsed Tinubu for a second term.

He said the decision followed extensive consultations with the party’s leadership and members.

Imumolen said that national interest should always take precedence over personal ambition and partisan considerations.

According to him, Tinubu’s re-election is inevitable because Nigerians are beginning to appreciate the long-term benefits of the administration’s reform agenda despite prevailing economic challenges.

“Tinubu will win because of his people-oriented programmes and the massive support he has received from different parts of the country.

“There is focus. Let us forget about the challenges of inflation and security. There must be progress. If another person comes in 2027, he will have to start all over again.

“There must be continuity. He has identified the challenges, and we need to move from where we are to the next phase. That is why we are supporting him, and he will win. My support is total,” Imumolen said.

On the other hand, the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) established a national reconciliation committee to meet with all aspirants nationwide and resolve outstanding challenges arising from the party primaries.

The seven-man national reconciliation committee is chaired by Prof. Pat Utomi and co-chaired by Buba Galadima, with Mohammed Sanni Takori (Vice Chairman), Babatunde Alli (Secretary), and Mrs Dudu Mamman Manuga, Hon. Salvador Adegoke Moshood, and Alhaji Haruna Pai as members.

The party also constituted three sub-committees for the North, South-South, and South-East geo-political zones.

Speaking at the inauguration of the committee, the National Chairman of the NDC, Senator Cleopas Moses Zuwoghe, said the panel was established to heal divisions within the party, following its primary elections and strengthen its structures ahead of the 2027 general elections.

He noted that although the NDC was barely six months old, it had made significant progress nationwide, yet faced enormous organisational challenges in conducting its primaries.

According to him, the party recorded intense contests in several states, including the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), where as many as 23 aspirants contested for a single position, resulting in disputes, multiple claims of victory and appeals.