In the wake of the 2026 Osun State governorship election, the media space has been flooded by noisy, uninformed commentators seeking to pin the outcome of the poll on the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Alhaji Adegboyega Oyetola.
Most shocking is the commentary from good Egbon Babajide Otitoju , who erroneously referred to Oyetola as the “greatest loser.”We must ask these analysts: How is Oyetola the loser when his name was not even on the ballot?
As Governor of Osun State for four years, Adegboyega Oyetola achieved what no other leader in the state’s history ever did, he ran the state progressively for four years without borrowing a single Naira.He successfully paid back a staggering ₦97 billion of inherited debt.He handed over power while leaving billions of Naira intact within the state’s coffers.
Oyetola has not lost face; rather, his profile as a serving minister shines brighter. His impact as the federal representative of Osun State is historic and visible across every local government, he has secured over 200 federal jobs for Osun indigenes, prioritizing party members and ordinary citizens over his own family.
He has facilitated an unprecedented number of top-tier federal appointments for Osun APC members.
He successfully influenced critical unprecedented federal road projects running close to a trillion Naira which includes the Osogbo–Iwo–Ibadan, Ibadan-Ife–Ilesa, and Gbongan–Akoda–Osogbo roads. He brought new Federal University and a Federal College to the soil of Osun State.
If votes are the measure of political strength, Oyetola stands tall. While the APC candidate, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, secured the largest winning margin in his local stronghold, Oyetola’s zone delivered the next highest winning margin for the APC compared to all other party leaders in the state.
Despite an intense, multi-layered conspiracy, the APC still garnered over 444,000 votes. This massive turnout proves the party remains loved and resilient under Oyetola’s leadership.
No political party could easily survive the massive undercurrents faced by the Osun APC. Recent revelations by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, alongside the Nasarawa State Governor, Abdulahi Sule exposed a deep-seated “Abuja” gang-up against the state chapter.
Furthermore, Atiku Abubakar’s faction and the Osun ADC worked secretly to prop up Governor Ademola Adeleke.
This external pressure was compounded by internal betrayal, as certain APC stalwarts in Osogbo and Ife subtly sabotaged their own party due to selfish calculations over the 2030 Ife/Osogbo governorship agenda.
Informed political analysts agree: Adeleke did not win this election based on performance, but purely on the back of this massive, unnatural coalition.
The election was marred by video evidence of widespread irregularities, over 20,000 voided votes, and reports of voters being forced to swear to oaths to vote for the incumbent.
It is laughable that an Ife born elder political actor—who has failed in his own 35-year ambition to become governor—is now mocking Oyebamiji, this same leader openly admitted his happiness at working against the APC, despite a delegation of APC governors pleading with him before the election.
Critics mock Oyebamiji as a political novice, conveniently forgetting that he was Rauf Aregbesola’s preferred successor eight years ago. He remains a stellar, unifying figure, and he is the only candidate who could have galvanized such a massive, resilient vote count for the APC under these hostile conditions.
What more could the party ask of Oyetola? When he was asked by some haters not to re-contest the ticket, he humbly stepped aside without a fight. For four years, he continued to heavily fund the APC from his personal resources.
When he was asked to stay away from the active campaign frontlines to defuse tensions, he complied gracefully. He never turned his back on the party.
It is quite unfortunate that before now the Osun APC had been presented as the aggressor, while the election is over, sponsored violence continues, the Osun APC has been vindicated, Innocent citizens are still being targeted, including a recent tragic shooting of a civilian around the Ataoja’s palace , this what you get when thugs are being aided to let loose from the hook of law.
Should Adeleke scale through the hurdles of the election tribunals, Osun people may likely be at the receiving end of bad governance and the renewed violence of the likes of “small rugged”, “Emir” and other well known freed thugs of Adeleke.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must be wary of these fair-weather politicians who are currently grandstanding about the fate of the APC in Osun. Their loyalty is transactional; Oyetola’s loyalty is absolute.
Let it be written clearly in the annals of Nigerian politics: Adegboyega Oyetola did not lose. He gave his resources, his time, his influence, and his quiet compliance for the peace and survival of the party.
No matter what short-sighted commentators say today, history will be incredibly kind to him.Adegboyega Oyetola remains the true hero, the ultimate builder, and the undisputed leader of the progressive fold in Osun State
Engr Remi Omowaiye writes from Ikoti o Lane, ilesa .