2026 Guber: Why Osun Yearns for AMBO -By Lanre Olasunkanmi

Of all the contenders for the Osun governorship seat in the upcoming off-cycle election, slated for August 8, 2026, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji (AMBO) stands out as a model of good governance, having been tested and trusted over time. The Ìkirè, Osun State-born finance-expert-turned-politician is a technocrat of no mean repute, with a track record of excellence in both private and public sectors spanning decades.

Permit me to mention in passing that Oyebamiji is one person in whose veins flows freely the milk of kindness. He is a towering influence whose posture sees to the joy and fulfillment of others, even as a private individual. Investigations revealed that, within his Ikire ancestral source in particular, and throughout the length and breadth of Nigeria in general, AMBO has influenced so many lives that should earn him high electoral value. The ace politician is one who derives joy in seeing others, especially the less-privileged and downtrodden, smile. His empowerment and human improvement programmes and mass welfare packages are broad-based.

Oyebamiji’s efforts to improve the lives of the people of Osun are well-justified. Having been an integral part of two consecutive administrations, he has had a significant and positive influence on the lives of the people. With a clear track record as the longest-serving Commissioner for Finance in the state, he laid the foundation for a higher internally generated revenue (IGR), which helped shake off the long-standing stigma of Osun being viewed as a ‘civil service state’.

The state that was formerly stereotyped as dependent solely on the monthly statutory allocations from the Federation Accounts now proudly earns tens of billions of revenue monthly from its own means. Kudos to the efforts spearheaded by Oyebamiji and his bosses during his tenure as Finance Commissioner. It was his counsel that helped restore the profiles of workers from modulated scales to full status, and his tenure marked the very best in terms of workers’ welfare in the state.

During his time in office, he successfully cleared the backlog of pensions and gratuities owed to retirees from before November 2010. He also kept up with the growing needs of both retired and active workers. For example, he addressed the large number of employees who retired around 2012. Thanks to his and his administration’s leadership, worker welfare was fully met without neglecting the state’s infrastructural development.

As the state’s finance commissioner, he oversaw the systematic payment of backlogged pensions and other financial commitments through a bond-based, staggered payment plan. This strategy successfully alleviated the state’s debt burden and provided financial stability to beneficiaries facing economic uncertainty. Under his leadership, and across the administrations he served, a robust road network was developed. This infrastructure was crucial for connecting rural, food-producing communities to markets, demonstrating a proactive commitment to rural development that complemented federal projects like the Rural Access Mobility Project (RAMP).

Again, permit me to return to the afore-cited revenue-generation outlook of the state under Oyebamiji’s finance superintendence. It was Oyebamiji’s era that provided proper oversight and accountability for mineral exploration and resource conservation. In terms of mining and forest resources utilization, the Rauf Aregbesola and Gboyega Oyètólá administration saw significant improvements in Osun’s revenue status – making it ‘Better By Far’.

Prior to the arrival of the progressive governments, Osun – historically the commercial center of the South-West – had experienced a period of economic decline. As a key figure, Oyebamiji helped the administration revitalize the state’s commercial sector by overhauling its markets and introducing new trade and commerce strategies. His tenure is also notable for the creation of organized cooperatives and the provision of interest-free loans and other financial aid to local traders and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The administrations in which AMBO served provided extensive support to vulnerable groups, such as women, youths, the elderly, and widows. This was achieved through the formation of clusters for loans and credits, targeted intervention training, skill acquisition programmes, welfare packages, and rehabilitation initiatives. These efforts established Osun as a model state in Nigeria, with its welfare initiatives for the needy being used as a reference database by the Federal Government and international organizations seeking to replicate the state’s success nationwide.

The Oyetola administration’s intervention efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic were a major undertaking that required strategic financial leadership. As the state’s finance arrowhead, Oyebamiji was instrumental in ensuring the success of these critical initiatives.

Oyebamiji is a giant in public administration and a politician with a human face. A true lover of his people, he is the best choice to uplift Osun State to the heights it deserves. Supporting him will bring the high-level progress and development the state has long sought.

The road to the Osun governorship election is not as long and stretchy as it may appear. By late November/early December this year, political parties should be getting through with selecting the most marketable candidate to slug it out for them in the upcoming contest for the soul of Osun. The APC is not an exception in this regard. Instructively, in this dimension, the state’s chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) will do well to organize well its arsenals and sit up to the onerous task of making the right selection that will serve the party in proper stead at the polls.

The party appears to have a wide array of choices. However, only one contender represents a viable path to victory; the others, whether considered individually or collectively, are little more than a diversion.

From the foregoing, AMBO is clearly the real choice the party should embrace, being the most widely acceptable man for the job. Up to this point, lots have happened across the state. State-wide familiarization-cum-consultation tours embarked upon by aspirants have brought to fore who could move mountains and whose statue could move the spirits amongst the teeming aspirants.

Against this background, the instructive nature of making the right choice at party level points to who the people pitch their tent with when the time is ripe to separate men from boys. Oyebamiji’s track record – career-wise, in public office, and his stout political personality – should speak loud above all possible sentiments. APC should choose right. The time is now. The entire Osun electorate will pick their proper cues from there in the fullness of time.

Olasunkanmi wrote from Ode-Omu, Osun State.