2027: Tinubu’s re-election beyond party lines, says Oyewumi

Chinedum Ukaegbu

Senator representing Osun West Senatorial District and Deputy Minority Leader of the Senate, Senator Olalere Oyewumi, has said his support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027 is non-negotiable, stressing that the decision was reached long before the recently concluded Osun State governorship election.

Oyewumi, who served as Director-General of Governor Ademola Adeleke’s campaign organisation during the governorship election, said the decision by Adeleke and other political stakeholders in the state to support Tinubu for a second term was not a post-election arrangement designed to secure political advantage.

The senator disclosed on Wednesday during an interview on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State.

He spoke on the outcome of the Osun governorship election, the relationship between the Osun State Government and the Presidency, alleged political intimidation, the role of security agencies and preparations for the 2027 general election.

Oyewumi dismissed comments credited to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, suggesting that President Tinubu merely allowed the Accord Party to win the Osun governorship election.

According to him, the outcome of the election should be determined by the votes cast by the people rather than post-election political arguments.

“As the DG of that campaign, from beginning to the end, our prayer was to win that election. We worked tirelessly and prayed to God Almighty to grant our efforts success, and now we have won,” he said.

He added that the people of Osun State had demonstrated their preference through the ballot.

“The important thing is that Governor Ademola Adeleke has won the election. Whatever anybody says, that is not the issue. The issue is we have contested, and we have won, and we won convincingly.

“Everybody saw that the people of the state stood their ground. They are resilient. They showed what they wanted. They defended what they wanted. They went for what they wanted. And they got what they wanted.”

Adeleke’s Performance

Oyewumi attributed Adeleke’s victory largely to what he described as the governor’s performance in office, saying the election had demonstrated that citizens were increasingly interested in tangible results from government.

He said the governor’s achievements across different sectors played a major role in securing the confidence of voters.

“We saw what brought success to Governor Adeleke. It was his superlative performance. He touched everywhere, every sector,” Oyewumi said.

He urged politicians in government to see the outcome of the election as a lesson that good governance and service delivery remain critical to electoral success.

“Those of us in the office, we are learning lessons. And the only thing that pays off now is to deliver. Senator Ademola Adeleke benefited from his immense performance. And people decided to show it to him that he has done well.”

The senator thanked the people of Osun State for supporting Adeleke and commended institutions involved in conducting the election.

“The people of our state have done very well. They promised us that they would stand by us. And they did exactly that. And we are very grateful to them,” he said.

Why We Support Tinubu

On the decision by Adeleke and other political stakeholders in Osun to support Tinubu in 2027, Oyewumi said the position had been agreed upon more than a year before the governorship election.

He stressed that the decision was not a sudden political arrangement following Adeleke’s victory.

“You know, we started it. It’s not just about I’m keying into it. We started it together,” he said.

According to him, political stakeholders in the Southwest had previously met and agreed to support Tinubu’s second-term bid.

“Even before we went to our Accord Party, even before we left PDP, the governor summoned all of us, all the leaders in the Southwest, to a meeting. And so then we decided that we are going to support Mr. President for a second term.”

Oyewumi insisted that the support was not based on ethnicity or the fact that Tinubu is from the Southwest.

“It is a long-term matter. Over a year ago, we decided that we are going to support Mr. President, not because he is a Yoruba man, but because, as politicians, some of us have been in this game for a long time,” he said.

The senator, who said he first became a federal lawmaker in 1992, argued that his political experience had enabled him to assess successive administrations.

“I was a member of the House of Representatives in 1992. That was almost 34 years ago. So we have interacted with so many people. This man has started well, admittedly, with a heart. But what he has started has affected us,” he said.

Federal Projects in Osun

Oyewumi cited federal infrastructure projects in Osun State as part of the reasons for supporting Tinubu’s re-election.

He mentioned the Ibadan-Iwo-Osogbo Road, Gbogan-Osogbo Road and the Ibadan-Ikire-Ife-Ilesa Road as projects he said would improve connectivity and economic activities in the state.

He particularly highlighted the Ibadan-Ikire-Ife-Ilesa Road, which he said had previously become a major safety concern for commuters.

Oyewumi recalled raising the matter on the floor of the Senate after a fatal accident involving students of Osun State University.

“There was a day when five students of Osun State University died. Three of them belong to the same family on that road. And I went to the floor of the Red Chamber, and I raised that motion that this is terrible,” he said.

He said he raised the issue on several occasions before the Senate eventually supported his position.

“I raised the motion the first time. I raised it the second time. But the third time, the whole Senate stood behind me, and it was passed as a resolution of the Senate.”

According to him, the Federal Government subsequently assured lawmakers that work would commence on the road.

“If you get there now, you’ll be happy. You see, the only thing that we felt for is performance. Forget about who is in government,” he said.

He also cited the establishment of a university in Osun State as another development that informed his support for the President.

“We are convinced that he has given us a university in Osun State, and that university has commenced operation, which is a parallel university of our culture and our language,” he said.

Oyewumi maintained that political differences should not prevent states from benefiting from federal government projects.

“We are not losing as a state. And what the governors wanted, and those of us following, is that Osun State was going to develop from day to day,” he said.

Development Above Party Politics

The senator called for cooperation between the Federal Government, state governments and lawmakers, irrespective of political party affiliation.

He said the focus should be on delivering development to citizens rather than rejecting projects because they originated from a government controlled by an opposition party.

“The government alone cannot do it. The federal government alone cannot do it. But we are seeing a synergy in terms of development for the state. We will not play politics of saying we don’t want good things because they are coming from the opposition,” he said.

Oyewumi said the decision to support Tinubu was also informed by a desire to sustain ongoing reforms and avoid constantly changing direction with every election.

“We are convinced of what he’s doing. And we know that all this, when completed, will make Osun State better. And that’s why we are going behind it. It’s all of us. That is our position in the Accord Party in Osun State,” he said.

‘Nigerians want good life’

The lawmaker also called on politicians to place the welfare of Nigerians above personal political ambitions.

He said Nigerians were more concerned about electricity, water, roads and other necessities than the ambitions of individual politicians.

“Nigeria needs everybody’s hand now. Enough of unnecessary politics. Nigerian people want a good life. They want stable electricity. They want to see water. They want to see good roads. They are not so much interested in who governs them now,” Oyewumi said.

He added, “People are hungry. Let us face the people first and stop talking of I want to be, I want to be, I want to be.”

Allegations over Osun APC

Oyewumi also spoke about the relationship between the Osun State Government, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state and the Presidency.

He alleged that some political actors had used President Tinubu’s name to create confusion during the election period.

“What is happening now confirms what we have been saying during the pre-election matter, that people are just dropping Mr. President’s name to perpetrate illegality, to cause so much confusion in the electoral space in Osun State,” he alleged.

He further alleged that political influence was being used to interfere with security operations in the state.

According to him, there were instances where political actors allegedly attempted to influence security decisions.

Oyewumi also alleged that security deployments were used to intimidate political actors and voters ahead of the election.

He recounted an incident in which he claimed that several military vehicles were stationed around his residence shortly before the election.

“On the two days of the election, Thursday night, about nine Hilux full of soldiers were in front of my house for two hours,” he alleged.

“From 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. in my house. So I just sat down there. I was looking at them, and they were looking at me. After two hours, maybe somebody called them. They left.”

He alleged that the deployment was intended to intimidate voters and political actors, but said the people of Osun State resisted what he described as attempts to influence their electoral choices.

Oyewumi also criticised the leadership of the APC in Osun State, alleging that some party members relied excessively on the name and influence of the President.

He further alleged that the party had lost some experienced political figures who could have provided strategic political leadership.

The allegations could not be independently established from the senator’s comments.

2027 Campaign

Looking ahead to the 2027 presidential election, Oyewumi said the outcome of the Osun governorship election had settled the immediate political contest and that attention should now shift to governance and the presidential election.

“What we wanted was to win the election, and we have won the election. We move forward,” he said.

He argued that Adeleke and other groups supporting Tinubu did not necessarily have to operate through the APC structure.

Oyewumi pointed to political figures from different parties who he said had expressed support for Tinubu, arguing that the President’s support base would extend beyond the APC.

“There are so many doors that lead to the presidency. We have our own line. We do our own work. There is no crisis at all,” he said.

According to him, different support groups would eventually be incorporated into the broader structure for the 2027 presidential campaign.

“The President has a very big organisation. He has a youth organisation, women’s organisation. This is one of the groups that the President is working for,” he said.

‘We can’t go back’

Oyewumi stressed the need for continuity in government, arguing that Nigeria should not repeatedly abandon reforms whenever there is a change in political leadership.

“We are not going to be drifting from one place to another. We are not going to be test-running everybody. No. Let us stay put,” he said.

“We have started all these reforms. We are on course. We can’t go back. Then we have to make it work.”

He said the objective of supporting Tinubu was to ensure that ongoing reforms and projects were given sufficient time to produce results.

“So that by the time the President is leaving, things will have stabilised. We will not be test-running anything again. So that is why we are supporting him,” he said.

The senator maintained that there was no contradiction between Adeleke’s political position in Osun State and his support for Tinubu at the presidential level.

He argued that political actors could belong to different parties at the state level while cooperating on national issues where their interests converge.

As preparations for the 2027 general election gather momentum, Oyewumi said his priority would remain governance, development and policies capable of improving the welfare of Nigerians.

“We are in the game, and the people will see the outcome. What is important is ensuring that governance continues to deliver meaningful benefits to the citizens,” he said.