By Opeyemi Bamidele
After three months of vigorous campaigning, the governorship election of Osun State has now concluded. The exercise culminated in the re-election of Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party, polling 511,067 votes.
The candidate of our great party, All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr Bola Oyebamiji, finished the race with 444,815 votes while Rt. Hon. Najeem Salam of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) obtained 17,180 votes.
With this outcome, the election ended with 51.57% voter turnout based on the total number of Permanent Voter’s Cards (PVCs) collected.
The turnout, no doubt, perfectly reflects the rapidly growing confidence that people at different levels are showing in the leadership recruitment process for our fatherland.
The summary of the entire process, again, perfectly reminds us where the final power actually lies in democracy. As shown in the recent elections across the federation, the final decision lies with the people, the true and ultimate arbiter of every democracy.
Now that the people of Osun State have spoken, all contestants must accept and respect the majority’s decision. In democracies globally, the decision of the majority is not only legitimate and supreme but also the final choice that defines public governance within the timeframe prescribed by the constitution for a government.
In Osun, the majority’s decision not only confirms the re-election of Governor Adeleke. It equally places the burden of victory on the elected candidate.
This burden requires him to develop clearly defined post-election measures that will first effectively reunite the state’s indigenes and residents across all political divides. The essence of such measures lies in promoting the enduring peace and stability that every political system requires to translate electoral victory into service delivery.
While politics is often based on partisanship for a specific political party, governance entails a collective approach that must not exclude any section of the state, as its purpose is purely to address public challenges.
To drive truly inclusive governance, Governor Adeleke must look beyond the political platform that nominated him for the contest and extend his hand of fellowship to other candidates and political parties, with a view to building a resilient state that functions in the interests of all people, regardless of their leanings.
To other candidates, we must all understand that democracy can only thrive when all key actors accept the decision of the majority in a fairly contested election. Some elements of fairness and credibility are evident in the just-concluded election, especially with the defeat of the candidate of the country’s governing party.
The election has now concluded; all other candidates should sheathe their swords and join forces with the elected candidate to drive an all-inclusive governance that will redefine the state’s future.
On this premise, I strongly encourage the candidate of our great party, Mr Bola Oyebamiji, to contact Governor Adeleke, congratulate him on his re-election, and constructively share with him innovative policy ideas that can help him better serve the interests of our people.
For me, the APC did not lose the election, given that Governor Adeleke was a member of the APC before he defected to the Peoples Democratic Party. Aside from that, he has always been committed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election, GCFR. Governor Adeleke’s re-election, therefore, is not just the victory for ACCORD, but also for us in the APC.
With a 51.57% turnout, the outcome of the Osun poll provides much clearer direction for us in the APC in the near future. Its implications are threefold, even more.
First, with synergy within our ranks, the election outcome suggests we can achieve at least 60% voter turnout across all South-west states in 2027.
Second, through strategic collaboration with all political actors, the election outcome suggests that our task of mobilising 10 million votes for President Tinubu’s re-election in the South-west alone is already within reach if we effectively leverage the gains of the Osun poll.
Now that the Osun election has been concluded, this task must now be our priority as we move closer to the 2027 elections.
Finally, the outcome of the process underscores the urgent need to review and strengthen our campaign strategy as a potent instrument for further engagement with all stakeholders in the South-west and beyond.
We must meaningfully engage all stakeholders – the artisans and marketers, farmers and entrepreneurs, youths and women, labour unions and civil society, community leaders and traditional rulers, business leaders and the private sector, the aged and all categories of Nigerians to whom we have an obligation to serve.
Our engagement approach, more than at any time in our recent history, must be all-encompassing and leave no person or interest behind.
As patriotic members of our great party, we much with a view to showcasing how President Tinubu has repositioned our Nation for global competitiveness; how he has decisively resolved our Nation’s perennial fiscal crises; how he confronted security challenges with courage and resilience; how he has been deepening public confidence in our democratic process and what he has been doing to create trans generational prosperity for our people across all strata of the federation.
I therefore congratulate the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the successful conduct of the Osun election whose outcome is not in doubt, should it be in contest for any reason.
To Governor Adeleke, your re-election reaffirms the supremacy of the people in democracy, and this comes with a huge responsibility that demands a collective approach.
To the APC and its candidate, we have competed with courage, ideas and vigour, but the people decided otherwise. The outcome of this election does not make us losers, but indeed true stakeholders in the progress and posterity of Osun State.
I finally congratulate all the sons and daughters of the state with a firm belief that the election outcome will take Osun to greater heights economically, socially and technologically.
*Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, CON, is the Leader of the Senate, Federal Republic of Nigeria, and also Chairman, National Assembly South-West Caucus
