Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has rejected claims by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) that the party played a role in securing his re-election victory in the state’s governorship election.
Adeleke said there was no electoral agreement, alliance or partnership between him and the ADC before, during or after the election.
The governor made the clarification through a statement issued by his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, on Tuesday.
Adeleke Attributes Victory to Voters
Adeleke said his victory was made possible by the support of the people of Osun State and what he described as divine favour.
He stated that ADC was not part of the coalition or political alliance that supported his re-election campaign.
The governor, however, expressed appreciation to political partners who contributed to what he described as the success of the election.
“I commend political partners who went all out to make Saturday a victory day for all Osun people,” he said.
Governor Says He Leads All Osun Residents
Adeleke stressed that the election period had ended and that his responsibility was now to serve every resident of Osun State regardless of political affiliation.
He said his administration would focus on governing all citizens irrespective of party, religion or ethnic background.
“But we must clarify, for the sake of history, that ADC was never part of the alliance,” Adeleke said.
“Now that the election is over, I am a governor of all Osun people, irrespective of political groups, religion or race.”
INEC Declares Adeleke Winner
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Adeleke winner of the Osun governorship election in the early hours of Sunday.
According to the official results announced by the INEC Returning Officer, Prof. Joshua Ogunwole, Adeleke secured 511,067 votes.
His closest challenger, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress (APC), received 444,815 votes.
The candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Najeem Salaam, finished third with 17,180 votes.
Ogunwole, who is Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti, announced the results at the INEC collation centre.
INEC recorded 985,079 valid votes, while 20,721 votes were rejected, bringing the total votes cast to 1,005,800.
Focus Shifts to Governance
Following his re-election, Adeleke said his administration would move beyond political competition and concentrate on delivering development for the people of Osun State.
The governor’s clarification comes amid ongoing discussions among political parties and stakeholders over the alliances and factors that influenced the outcome of the election.
