2026: Oyetola’s Misreading Of Osun People’s Resolve -By Sarafa Ibrahim

When relatives and political lackeys and associates gathered in Iragbiji on Friday for the 15th remembrance anniversary of the mother of the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola, Alhaja Wulemot Arike Oyetola, the expectation was to have a feel into her life, the impacts, and how much the wound of her passing is yet to heal. But that wasn’t the case as a media statement shared by some All Progressives Congress (APC) faithfuls portrayed Oyetola as making the gathering all about the upcoming 2026 governorship election in Osun state.

To some extent, the quotes attributed to Oyetola provided a rare insight into his intentions, although it was more of a misreading of the Osun people’s resolve. Oyetola is not a stranger to the Osun people, and his re-election bid was overwhelmingly rejected by the people due to the poor performance of his administration.

In a way, Oyetola’s boast of reclaiming ‘Osun State back to the progressive fold’ failed to honestly assess the misgovernance that characterised its time in power and the reality of good governance that Osun people are currently enjoying under Governor Ademola Adeleke. Osun is not some inheritance that can just be grabbed at will as contemplated, but must be earned through the will of the people by demonstrating to them how similar opportunities in the past impacted their lives positively. This is not something I am seeing with Oyetola with his boasts.

I combed through the broadcast statement and I was surprised not to see Oyetola use his time in office as the basis for his boast to win Osun for the APC. As someone who has led the state in the past, Oyetola has a golden opportunity to play up his records in governance as a basis to canvass the Osun electorate for his anointed candidate.

But seeing avoid his records tells us a story we all know and it is unpalatable for Osun people to experience such again through a proxy. If democracy is about the people, then it is certain that only a government that truly serves them will get their votes. This is something that Oyetola and his people have chosen not to accept, which is not healthy for our democracy.

Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with Oyetola wanting his choice candidate to win, but democracy entails that such a wish should not override the will of the electorate. In essence, rather than making a boast of winning an election, Oyetola should have used the platform, although not appropriate, to remind Osun people how much his administration impacted them and why they should trust his judgement on Bola Oyebamiji.

Perhaps, Oyetola does not also find his time in office inspiring enough, and is not convinced that it would be sufficient to dissuade the Osun people from sticking with Governor Adeleke. The truth, which is apparent to all, is that Governor Adeleke has recorded tremendous strides across sectors and makes the records of the Oyetola administration grossly insufficient to gain the support of the electorate.

Take, for instance, the issue of promotion given to workers under the Oyetola administration. For over a year, the promotion was mere words on paper as the Oyetola administration failed to make its financial values count, but in a matter of months of assuming office, Governor Adeleke implemented the financial benefits of the promotion and restored hopes for workers. Similarly, the Oyetola administration refused to act on the 30-month half salary owed by the APC administration, but it is Governor Adeleke who was never a part of the debt that is repaying it. Looking at the two sides, it is very clear who the workers will side with because I doubt any worker will want to return to the era of uncertainty that defined the past that Oyetola is trying to bring back.

For pensioners, the story is not any different. While the Oyetola administration, which Oyebamiji is an integral part of, paid lip service to the welfare and watched them suffer in pain, Governor Adeleke prioritises their entitlement and takes steps to ease their pain. In three years, Governor Adeleke has expended more than N50 billion on pension benefits, money that is far more than what was spent by the previous governments. For context, while a total of 2,137 pensioners received bonds in the twelve years of the successive APC administrations, a total of 2,401 pensioners have gotten their bonds under Governor Adeleke in three years.

In addition to this, Governor Adeleke provided an expansive healthcare coverage for every pensioner in Osun state, shouldering the burden of managing their health at old age. It is worthy to note that Osun is the first state in the whole of Nigeria to embark on such expansive healthcare cover for senior citizens, easing not just their worries but ensuring that they are no longer lost to avoidable death due to inability to fund their healthcare.

In terms of infrastructure, Governor Adeleke’s achievement trumps whatever record the Oyetola administration can ever lay claim to. While neglect marred infrastructural development under the Oyetola-led government, Governor Adeleke is doing the exact opposite. East bypass road, for example, left to rot by the Oyetola administration has been completed by Governor Adeleke and now serves the people’s transportation needs. Similarly, the 10.5km Osogbo-Ikirun-Ila Odo-Kwara boundary dual carriageway abandoned by the Oyetola administration has been delivered by Governor Adeleke and the third phase of that road project that touches Inisa down to Kthe wara boundary is ongoing as we speak.

In Ile-Ife, the first flyover in the cradle of the Yoruba race is at the verge of completion just as the first dual carriage road in Ilesa has been delivered. In Ede, the Akoda-Oke Gada dual carriageway has been completed and in Iwo, the first-ever dual carriageway is ongoing and as usual, being done by Governor Adeleke. Governor Adeleke is also building the first-ever dual carriageway in Ila-Orangun and the third phase of the Osogbo-Ikirun-Ila Odo-Kwara road, which will pass through Inisa is ongoing as we speak.

Talk of Osogbo, the state capital and you would be marvelled by the level of infrastructural renaissance that Governor Adeleke has undertaken in three years. Starting with the 10-span Oke-Fia overhead bridge that headlines the remarkable transformation, Governor Adeleke built the 2.2km Old Garage-Lameco dual carriageway and is on the verge of completing the four-span flyover at Lameco.

Anywhere you look in Osun state, you will hardly miss the sight of one project or the other being executed by the Adeleke administration as several road projects in each of the 30 local governments and area office embarked on simultaneously have been delivered and now serving the people. In the whole of Osun state, the Adeleke administration has constructed more than 250km of roads and this is just in three years.

Public schools’ infrastructures were upscaled compared to what was inherited from the APC administration just as the Adeleke administration has so far carried out the wholesale rehabilitation of 200 primary healthcare centres despite not getting the kind of $20.5 million grant that the Oyetola administration received but the utilisation of which has remained a source of controversy. Unlike the experience under the Oyetola administration, Governor Adeleke procured 31 new tractors to aid mechanised farming and purchased eight firefighter trucks, which never happened under the APC government.

By and large, Governor Adeleke has delivered for the people and that explains their firm support for his re-election. Except Oyetola has another idea of winning Osun for the APC on August 15, 2026, outside the context of the allot provided for in a democracy, it remains to be seen how exactly he plans to get the electorate who resoundingly rejected him four years ago to embrace the same horrible experience they did everything to avoid then at this time.

Elections, the 16th President of the United States of America, Abraham Lincoln, cautioned “belong to the people” and that “It is their decision” to make. What that clearly tells Oyetola and another person who shared his views on the upcoming governorship election is that, Osun people are the ultimate decider on who will lead them, and no matter how you look at it, the preponderance of the electorate in Osun state are firmly rooting for Governor Adeleke to continue the good works Accordingly.

• Sarafa Ibrahim is the Special Assistant to the Osun State Governor on Print Media and writes from Osogbo, Osun state. He can be reached via neyoclass09@gmail.com