The Presidency stated on Sunday, August 23, 2026, that Governor Ademola Adeleke’s explicit support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid has effectively shattered opposition attempts to use the Osun State governorship election as a springboard for a broader anti-APC coalition.
Speaking to State House correspondents at the Press Gallery of the Presidential Villa in Abuja, Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, emphasized that opposition elements had intended to utilize the Osun poll as a tactical launching pad. However, Governor Adeleke’s political stance disrupted those plans.
The statement followed a high-profile courtesy visit on Thursday, August 20, 2026, at 4:30 PM, when Governor Adeleke met with President Tinubu inside the Executive Council Chambers at the State House, Abuja. During the meeting, Governor Adeleke, who recently secured his re-election following the August 15, 2026, Osun governorship poll, formally presented his Certificate of Return to the President and reaffirmed his endorsement of President Tinubu’s second-term ambition.
Addressing reporters, Onanuga declared; “The opposition’s grand strategy was to turn Osun State into ground zero for an anti-APC alliance ahead of 2027. By endorsing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and prioritizing regional development over partisan rancor, Governor Adeleke has pulled the rug from under their feet. This realignment demonstrates that regional stability and national progress supersede opportunistic political unions.”
The Presidency maintained that Governor Adeleke’s public declaration, stating that his support for the President is rooted in the collective development of the South-West region and national cohesion has left opposition strategists without a viable footing in the geopolitical zone.
Responding to the developments, Olawale Rasheed, Chief Press Secretary to the Osun State Governor, issued a statement from the State Secretariat in Osogbo at 5:15 PM on Sunday. Rasheed clarified that Governor Adeleke’s endorsement of President Tinubu is built on mutual respect, national interest, and governance performance rather than partisan maneuvering.
The Presidency concluded that the alignment between the Osun State Government and the Federal Executive underscores a growing consensus behind President Tinubu’s economic and political agenda heading into the 2027 general elections.
