The Travails Of Gov. Ademola Adeleke, And The Mud Of Osun Politics -By John Oyebanji

It is often said, borrowing from Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, that “when beggars die, there are no comets seen; the heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes.” Today, Osun State watches not the death of a prince, but the political travail of its own governor, Ademola Nurudeen Jackson Adeleke, as he navigates a treacherous and confusing terrain, reminiscent of Machiavelli’s The Prince, where loyalty is fluid, betrayal is currency, and power is everything.

One cannot help but ponder, how did the soil of Osun’s politics become so muddy, so soon? The air is thick with uncertainty, shifting loyalties, and unspoken ambitions. In this unfolding drama, the most riveting scene is the one in which a sitting governor, the people’s choice, seeks shelter in another party, only to be met with the cold rejection of the same house he tried to enter.

Defection is not alien to Nigerian politics; indeed, it is as common as the harmattan dust that coats our roads. Yet, rarely does it wear the face of desperation so plainly. Governor Adeleke, a man once celebrated for breaking the tides of political dynasties and dancing his way into the hearts of the masses, now finds himself dancing on unsure ground. His recent bid to align with the Osun chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has been met not with applause, but with a slap of silence and rebuff, rejection as loud as thunder in a dry sky.

Let us not feign ignorance, this rejection isn’t rooted in principle but politics. The same APC that once branded Adeleke unfit now finds itself split between welcoming a new power broker and preserving internal dominion. But even more unsettling is the possibility that this political chess move may have the fingerprints of the presidency all over it. For what other force can bend the will of structures this way?

In truth, this moment exposes not only the travails of a governor but the naked ambition of a system. The presidency, it seems, plays the puppeteer. But for whose benefit? Certainly not the APC faithful in Osun, many of whom find themselves sacrificed at the altar of a bigger game. Their loyalty, once fierce and unyielding, is now bartered for proximity to federal power. And here lies the bitter irony, those who have toiled the soil, shouted the slogans, knocked on doors, are now but pawns, discarded without thought.

“On your mandate, we shall stand”, a phrase once uttered with conviction, now feels like a recycled hymn sung in a sanctuary that has forgotten its god. The truth is painful, you have been used. And perhaps worse, you will be used again.

Meanwhile, the PDP is no better off. Once the umbrella under which Osun sought political refuge, it is now tattered and leaking. The house is divided, the leadership shaky, and unity only exists in press statements and hastily convened solidarity meetings. There is noise but no direction. Only a few days ago, news broke that Senator Francis Adenigba Fadahunsi, my own representative in the National Assembly, is considering crossing over to the APC. What first seemed like political fiction has now taken on the texture of looming truth.

Less than a month ago, the PDP state chairman thundered with righteous indignation against defectors, calling them out by name, calling them traitors to the cause. Yet now, as Governor Adeleke flirts with the same defection, will the same verbal lashes be applied? Or will silence do the talking? Politics, after all, has no permanent enemies, only interests.

The tragedy, though, is not the defection itself, it is what it reveals. Osun is not only muddy; it is drenched in political confusion. We see a governor in travail, navigating storms he helped stir. We see party members gripped by uncertainty, some reactive, others disillusioned. And we see a people caught in the crossfire, watching, waiting, weary.

History reminds us, whether in ancient Rome or 18th-century France, that revolutions are not only about power; they are also about betrayal. What we witness now is not just political maneuvering, it is a betrayal of the people’s mandate, a flirtation with personal ambition over public good.

And so, we must pray, not just for Osun, but for the soul of our politics. That in our search for greener pastures, we do not salt the soil of our own gardens. That in chasing acceptance outside, we do not destroy the sanctity of home. That we do not wake up one morning, like Esau, to find that our birthright has been sold, not for bread and pottage, but for power and a handshake.

Mr. Governor, your dance captivated a generation, but this is not the time to sway to the rhythm of chaos. The people are watching, history is writing, choose wisely.

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John Oyebanji is a Public Affairs Analyst, Media/PR Specialist, Educational Administrator, and Clergy, among many other things he represents. He writes from Modakeke, Osun State, and can be reached via +2349032201075, thejohnoyebanji@gmail.com