Osun APC Faces Crisis After Election Loss

The defeat in the August 15 governorship election has caused a new crisis in the Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress. Party leaders and supporters are blaming each other for the loss.

Governor Ademola Adeleke won the election with 511,067 votes while Oyebamiji got 444,815 votes. Since then, the blame game has spread on social media and in national newspapers, with different groups accusing each other of sabotaging the party's chances.

Some party members want to remove Adegboyega Oyetola, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, as the leader of the APC in Osun. They accuse him of helping the party lose the election. Supporters of Oyetola, however, blame Ajibola Basiru, the National Secretary of the APC, and Iyiola Omisore, his predecessor, for working against the party's interest because of their own ambitions for the 2030 governorship.

Those blaming Oyetola say that imposing Bola Oyebamiji as the APC governorship candidate was a major mistake in his leadership. Critics also pointed out that federal appointments were not balanced, and national and state assembly tickets favored only Oyetola's group.

Critics added that Oyetola's unpopularity affected the party's performance in the election, even with billions of naira spent on the campaign. Despite this, some party officials argue that Oyetola played a background role and did not actively campaign for Oyebamiji. They say his absence from the campaign was a strategy to distance Oyebamiji from him.

Oyetola's supporters, like Olalekan Badmus, Executive Director at the Nigerian Port Authority, praised his leadership. They claim Oyetola has kept the party united and funded its activities to achieve success. They say those calling for Oyetola's removal are hypocrites who undermined the party during the election.

Kayode Oduwoye, a key APC member, called Oyetola the only one capable of leading the party. He urged party members to work together and be sincere, emphasizing that no single person could win elections alone.

Oduwoye, also known as Superkay, said, "I don’t find any genuineness in any allegation against a man who has sacrificed almost everything to keep the party stable and strong. If leadership is about sacrifice, what else do you want? Who among us has Oyetola's capacity and leadership skills? We need unity and sincerity to win elections."

The blame game has escalated. The absence of key party leaders from Oyetola’s stakeholders’ meeting on August 29 highlighted the divisions. Prominent members who did not attend included Basiru, Omisore, and former deputy governors Titilayo Laoye-Ponle and Benedict Alabi.

The APC chairman in Osun, Tajudeen Lawal, former deputy speaker Akintunde Adegboyega, and Osun Central Senatorial leader Adeoye Adelakun also skipped the meeting. Despite this, APC spokesperson Kola Olabisi insisted there was no crisis in the party.

Olabisi said the party remains united and explained that the short notice for the stakeholders’ meeting might have caused the absences. He said, "There is no crisis in our party. The election has come and gone, and we remain united. The notice for the meeting was very short, so that must have been the reason for their absence."

A petition against Adeleke’s win, supposedly filed by the APC, shows the disagreement within the party. The petition was signed by Oyebamiji’s running mate, Benjamin Adereti, and filed by lawyer Seyi Oyagbile at the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal on August 5.

The petition became known after it was mentioned alongside another petition by the Peoples Democratic Party's candidate, Adebayo Adedamola. Both were posted at the tribunal to start hearings on disputes from the August 15 poll. The APC later withdrew its petition after backlash.

Sources say Adereti returned from Canada on August 4 to submit the petition. But the APC's legal team and Oyebamiji distanced themselves from it, saying they did not authorize it and were not challenging Adeleke's victory.

A member of the APC legal team, who wished to remain anonymous, said, "We’re not interested in challenging Adeleke’s victory because it would distract us. We have elections in less than six months. Some lawyers, like Kunle Adegoke, SAN, who will lead the legal battle, are also campaigning. How can he do both?"

Contrarily, Oyagbile, who filed the petition, claims APC leaders approved it. He said, "The APC is not aware of the petition is a lie. Many functionaries spoke with me about it. The party chairman and secretary discussed it with me."

He added that Adereti signed the petition because he could not reach Oyebamiji, who was unavailable. An APC official said many party leaders were involved in the petition process.

They had 21 days to file the petition, but the APC's legal team was not interested. They thought there was no basis for a case. Meanwhile, a young lawyer saw problems in the INEC results and got approval from some leaders to act.

Adereti was asked to quickly return from Canada to sign the petition. Oyebamiji was on lesser hajj and could not return. Before signing, Adereti tried to call Oyebamiji many times but could not reach him. An official confirmed that the party leaders were involved in the petition.

When contacted, APC Secretary Alao Kamoru said the party would make an official statement soon. He said, "The state working committee will meet tomorrow (Wednesday) to make a decision and our comment will be known."

Kamoru later sent a message saying, "The petition was withdrawn yesterday (Wednesday) and is ready to be struck out by the tribunal. Thanks."

The state APC Chairman did not respond to calls, and messages sent to him were not delivered. Sunday PUNCH could not confirm with Adereti if he informed Oyebamiji before signing the petition. Attempts to reach him were unsuccessful.

Olabisi also declined to comment on the petition, saying, "It is outside my purview. Reach out to the legal team. I’m not competent to speak on it."

Layoonu, linked to the petition, did not confirm or deny his involvement. Instead, he asked for an official comment from Oyagbile. He said, "As far as I am concerned, it is a rested matter. Let Oyagbile come out and say so, then I will respond."

A human rights lawyer, Alfred Adegoke, also distanced himself from the petition, calling it an error. He said, "I am not part of their lawyers. The lawyer who signed the petition said he made a mistake and apologized. I am not a counsel to the APC."

With accusations flying and the disputed petition revealing deeper rifts among leaders, the APC must resolve its internal issues before they affect future elections.