Adeleke Denies ADC Support, Says Party Was Never Part Of Coalition That Backed His Osun Re-election | Sahara Reporters

Adeleke’s denial came after the ADC disclosed that it deliberately worked with the Accord Party during the election to prevent the All Progressives Congress (APC) from returning to power in Osun State.

Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has denied entering into any electoral deal or partnership with the African Democratic Congress (ADC) before, during or after the August 15 governorship election in the state.

Adeleke’s denial came after the ADC disclosed that it deliberately worked with the Accord Party during the election to prevent the All Progressives Congress (APC) from returning to power in Osun State.

The ADC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, disclosed the party’s strategy during an interview with Trust TV while assessing the outcome of the election and the performance of the ADC.

According to Abdullahi, the ADC deliberately worked with the Accord Party as part of efforts to stop the APC from winning the governorship election.

However, reacting to the disclosure in a statement on Tuesday, Adeleke said the ADC was never part of the political coalition that campaigned and mobilised support for his re-election.

The governor said the credit for his victory belonged to God and the people of Osun State, who he said overwhelmingly supported his re-election.

“I had no electoral deal or partnership with the ADC before, during, or after the governorship election,” Adeleke said.

“The credit for our victory goes to God Almighty and the good people of Osun State for their overwhelming support and re-election.”

The governor said it was important for the historical record to clarify that “the ADC was never part of the rainbow coalition that canvassed, mobilised, and supported our campaign in the battle leading to last Saturday’s election”.

Adeleke, however, commended the political parties and groups that he said supported his campaign and contributed to his victory at the polls.

“I commend all our political partners who sacrificed, worked tirelessly, and went all out to make Saturday a victory day for all Osun people. Their commitment and support were instrumental to our success,” he said.

Adeleke also called on residents of the state to move beyond the election and unite for the development of Osun.

“Now that the election is over, I remain the Governor of all Osun people, irrespective of political affiliation, religion, or tribe,” he said.

“My commitment is to unite our people and continue working for the progress and prosperity of Osun State.”

Abdullahi earlier said that the ADC leadership recognised early enough that a division of opposition votes could create an opening for the APC to win the election.

The ADC’s governorship candidate, Najeem Salaam, finished the election with 17,180 votes.

However, incumbent Governor Adeleke, who contested on the platform of the Accord Party, secured 511,067 votes to defeat the APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, who polled 444,815 votes.

Abdullahi said the ADC therefore opted for cooperation with Accord rather than risk splitting votes that could have benefited the APC.

“We saw the possibility of collaboration. We saw the possibility early enough that if we decided to go full throttle, the possibility that the opposition would divide the votes and the APC would take the victory was there,” Abdullahi said.

“And that was why we saw the opportunity to work together, and that was what happened.”

He said the ADC would not regard the low votes recorded by its candidate as a failure because the party’s broader objective was to ensure that the APC did not regain control of Osun.

“That is why we can confidently celebrate what is going on in Osun, because for us, victory means that APC was defeated,” he said.

“So we don’t see the fact that our governorship candidate did not emerge as an occasion of defeat or failure. The failure, the defeat of the APC, was a real victory for us.”

When asked if the ADC had specifically instructed its members and supporters to vote for Adeleke, Abdullahi clarified that the arrangement was based on cooperation with the Accord Party.

“We cooperated with the Accord party,” he said, describing the decision as a deliberate political strategy supported by the leadership of the ADC.