Osun State Governor and winner of the August 15 governorship election, Ademola Adeleke, has thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his role in the electoral process, saying he expects his closest challenger, Bola Oyebamiji, to congratulate him on his victory.
Adeleke spoke in a video interview shortly after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared him the winner of the election on Sunday.
The governor, who contested on the platform of the Accord Party, said he was ready to extend an olive branch to his opponents, stressing that the election should not be viewed as a contest that produced winners and losers.
“Yes. This is no victor, no vanquished. I want them to come over. I am expecting Oyebamiji to even, as a civilised person, to call me and congratulate me,” Adeleke said.
Adeleke was declared winner at about 7:24am by the State Returning Officer, Professor Joshua Ogunwole, the Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti.
He polled 511,067 votes to defeat Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress, who scored 444,815 votes.
The governor won 19 of the state’s 30 local government areas, while Oyebamiji secured victory in 11. The African Democratic Congress candidate, Najeem Salaam, finished third with 17,180 votes.
The result secured Adeleke a second term in office after he was first elected governor in 2022 on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party. He later defected to the Accord Party ahead of the 2026 election.
Adeleke praises Tinubu
The governor also expressed appreciation to President Tinubu, revealing that the President had called to congratulate him on his victory.
“And of course, I want to seize this opportunity to thank Mr. President. Mr. President has called me and he has congratulated me,” Adeleke said.
He commended Tinubu for what he described as his commitment to democracy, adding, “I thank you, Mr. President, for making sure democracy lives on, because you fought for it, Mr. President.”
‘God who never fails’
Asked whether he had at any point feared that he might lose the election, Adeleke attributed his confidence to his faith.
“No, no, no. You know, I have an answer to that. I have a God who never fails. I have a God who never fails. I have a God who never fails. He never fails. Jesus never fails forevermore,” he said.
With his re-election now confirmed, Adeleke is expected to begin the process of consolidating his administration while reaching out to political opponents and other stakeholders across the state.
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