Osun poll: APC claims internal wrangling caused defeat — Says party took Adeleke for granted

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By Dayo Johnson, Dapo Akinrefon, Shina Abubakar & Cynthia Alo

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THE All Progressives Congress, APC, has admitted that internal wrangling, disagreement over its candidate and complacency contributed to its defeat in the 2026 Osun State governorship election, describing the outcome as a wake-up call ahead of the 2027 general election.

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A chieftain of the party, Farouk Aliyu, made the admission yesterday during an interview on ARISE Morning Show, saying the APC “defeated itself” in Osun State despite deploying enormous resources and efforts to win the poll.

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Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party won the election with 511,677 votes to secure a second term.

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Aliyu said disagreements among party members over the choice of candidate affected the APC’s performance, with some members allegedly refusing to work for the party because they were unhappy with the candidate.

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“We did everything humanly possible to win the election. There is a lot of internal wrangling among our members in Osun State. There are people who were not happy with the choice of our candidate,” he said.

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According to him, the party must ensure in future elections that its candidate commands broad support among its members.

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“Some members of our party did not do what they were supposed to do out of anger because they didn’t like our candidate. That is the major internal problem we had; APC defeated itself in Osun State,” Aliyu said.

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He declined to publicly identify party leaders responsible for the loss, saying the matter should be resolved internally.

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Aliyu also faulted the APC for taking the Osun electorate for granted, saying some members assumed federal influence “would guarantee victory.

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“Some thought the federal government would just come in and write the results. Our members and supporters took Adeleke and his movement for granted. What we ordinarily ought to have done in certain places, we didn’t do, thinking we would win the election regardless. That didn’t happen,” he said.

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He also criticised comments made by APC National Secretary, Senator Ajibola Basiru, during the campaign, saying they contributed to the party’s defeat.

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Aliyu, however, commended President Bola Tinubu for not deploying federal might to influence the election and praised the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, for transparently uploading results on its IReV portal.

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Meanwhile, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Olabode George, Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, and pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, congratulated Adeleke on his re-election.

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Obasanjo, who paid a congratulatory visit to Adeleke at his country home in Ede, charged him to sustain good governance and continue meeting the needs of the people.

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“Continue to deliver good governance. Continue to meet the needs of your people,” Obasanjo told the governor.

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Responding, Adeleke thanked the former President and promised not to disappoint the people of Osun.

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“Baba, I thank you for this surprise visit. I promise never to disappoint God, Osun people and all lovers of democracy who made our victory possible,” he said.

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Soludo said Adeleke’s victory reflected the confidence of Osun voters in his administration, while urging political actors to embrace peace and unity.

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Afenifere described the election as free, fair and credible, commending INEC and Osun voters for ensuring that the will of the people prevailed.

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The group, however, said the country must continue to strengthen the electoral system ahead of the 2027 general elections.

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Also, the Inter-Party Advisory Council, IPAC, urged Adeleke to run an inclusive administration and ensure equitable distribution of appointments,

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Intrigues that cost Oyebamiji, APC victory

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Meanwhile, the All Progressive Congress, APC, in Osun state, on Saturday lost the governorship election with over 66,000 votes to the Accord Party’s Ademola Adeleke after an intense battle for the seat.

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Vanguard’s checks showed that high-wire intrigues and behind the scene of campaigns led to the failure of the party and its governorship candidate, Mr Bola Oyebamiji.

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The biggest factor, Vanguard gathered is the intense battle for 2027 general elections and the need to save the APC from losing the Presidency. It was gathered that while the party chairmen were busy campaigning and calling for votes in the state, the APC strategists in the presidency were looking at means of uniting the incumbent Governor Adeleke with the APC structure to secure the state ahead of the general election.

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Recall that during the peak of the PDP crisis, Governor Adeleke made moves to join the APC but he was blocked by powerful forces from the state on the ground that the party will defeat him at the governorship poll. Also some APC forces within and outside the state were hell-bent on bringing him to the APC owing to his popularity and street credibility specially among the workers and the youths.

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While the party and stakeholders were finalizing strategy to deploy for the election success in the morning of the election, it was gathered that some persons in the Presidency were discussing with the Adeleke dynasty on joining forces to deliver bulk votes for President Bola Tinubu in 2027.

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Reliable source with the APC told Vanguard that many of the party’s strategist left the State early hours on Saturday before the commencement of the election in line with the directives of the Presidency. It was gathered that the party’s candidate and some of his kitchen cabinet got wind of the development hours before the poll but had to proceed with the process.

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According to a source inside the APC secretariat in Osogbo, who pleaded anonymity, the presidency is looking at the possibility of joining forces with the Adeleke dynasty to deliver over one million votes to the APC in the 2027 Presidential election.

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