ADC Reveals It Worked With Adeleke’s Accord Party To Defeat APC In Osun | Sahara Reporters

Abdullahi 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 African Democratic Congress (ADC) has revealed that it deliberately worked with the Accord Party during the August 15 governorship election in Osun State to prevent the All Progressives Congress (APC) from winning the election and returning to power in the state.

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

Abdullahi 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 Ademola 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.

Abdullahi noted that the Osun election has wider implications for Nigeria’s opposition ahead of the 2027 general elections, saying opposition parties could defeat the ruling APC if they were willing to put aside individual ambitions and collaborate.

“It’s something that was deliberate, and we are glad that the outcome has justified the confidence that everyone has put in the process, and it has proved that the opposition working together can actually defeat this incumbent, no matter how awesome they are,” he said.

The ADC spokesperson, however, rejected the idea that his party should claim responsibility for Adeleke’s victory.

He said the people of Osun State deserved the credit for the outcome, while also acknowledging Adeleke’s performance in securing another term.

“When I say that we are not taking credit, we are saying that the credit belongs to the people of Osun state,” Abdullahi said.

“The victory belongs to Ademola Adeleke, who, in spite of all odds, still managed to emerge as the governor of Osun state.”