Aregbesola Had Deep Affection for Tinubu, Says Adeyeye

A former senator from Osun Central, Prof Olusola Adeyeye, has said that no one loved President Bola Tinubu as much as former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola when they were in politics together.

Adeyeye spoke on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Sunday. He said the bond between Tinubu and Aregbesola was very strong before they had their issues. He added that the President likely misses their partnership but might not say it publicly.

Adeyeye made these comments while appearing on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Sunday.

When asked if Tinubu misses Aregbesola in his political circle, the former senator said the President might not admit it. But he argued that the bond between the two former allies was very special.

“I don’t think he (Tinubu) will admit it, but I am sure he does. I say this because I don’t know anyone who loved Asiwaju as much as Rauf did, and I don’t know anyone who would go to any extent for Rauf as Asiwaju did. That is the truth.

“They were meant for each other. Nobody told me this. When I came back from the US, I had a relationship with Asiwaju while he was in exile.

“When I returned, I saw that this relationship was such that I told myself I would never go outside of Rauf to see Asiwaju because I didn’t want Rauf to feel threatened. I also didn’t want Asiwaju to think I was trying to undermine Rauf.”

Adeyeye served in the Senate during Aregbesola’s time as Osun governor. He said he kept a close political relationship with the former governor and often sought his approval on political issues.

“In fact, whatever I did as a Senator, Rauf knew. I took his permission for many things. And I will say this, Rauf is now in the ADC as secretary and guess who the chairman is, David Mark. I know both of them well. I also know how Rauf felt about David Mark and how Mark felt about Rauf back then.

“I knew when 17 out of 18 South-West senators rejected a nominee for a ministerial position and how Mark ensured that the same nominee was passed, going against the norm. I was in the Senate.

“So if Rauf and Mark are now best political allies, that’s just how life goes. Politics makes strange bedfellows,” he said.

Aregbesola, who was once the Minister of Interior, is now the National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress. The National Chairman is former Senate President David Mark.

Looking back at the troubled relationship between Tinubu and Aregbesola, Adeyeye said he had tried to bring the two former allies back together.

He said, “I did my best to resolve any crisis of confidence that arose between the two of them. I have never met anyone in politics who holds the current President in higher esteem than Rauf Aregbesola. He truly loved him.

“Rauf believes that the only one above him is God himself. But the Yoruba also say that 20 children do not play for 20 years. Things happen in life; friends part ways, sometimes they come back together.”

Aregbesola was very close to Tinubu’s political camp in Lagos. He served as Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure when Tinubu was governor of Lagos State.

He later won the All Progressives Congress governorship ticket in Osun and became governor in 2010 after a long legal battle.

Their relationship later soured due to political disagreements in Osun, especially regarding Aregbesola's succession.

Tinubu backed Gboyega Oyetola, Aregbesola’s former Chief of Staff, in the 2018 governorship election.

The disagreement grew ahead of the 2022 Osun governorship election, leading Aregbesola and his supporters to distance themselves from the APC structure in the state.

Aregbesola later joined the ADC as the party prepared for the 2027 general elections.