Adeleke’s Accord move without stakeholders’ input triggered our defection- Oyinlola

Former Osun State Governor, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, has explained his decision, alongside other Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stakeholders, to withdraw support for Governor Ademola Adeleke ahead of Saturday’s governorship election, accusing the governor of failing to consult key stakeholders before moving from the PDP to the Accord Party.

Oyinlola said the decision by Adeleke to join the Accord Party without a fresh consultation with stakeholders was particularly disappointing because discussions had earlier been held with the governor and his brother, Deji Adeleke, on possible alternative platforms following the deepening crisis within the PDP.

The former governor disclosed this on Tuesday during an interview on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State.

According to him, four alternative political platforms — the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Action Democratic Party (ADP) and Accord — had been considered as possible alternatives to the PDP.

Oyinlola said he personally advocated for the Accord Party, believing that the platform would have a stronger appeal among voters in Osun State.

He, however, stressed that the agreement was for Adeleke and other stakeholders to meet after the governor and his brother returned from abroad to determine the platform the group would collectively adopt.

He said he was therefore surprised when he discovered through social media that Adeleke had resigned his membership of the PDP and joined Accord without another meeting with stakeholders.

“I think I had discussions with the governor and his brother, Deji, on four possibilities. We had some understanding of which of the platforms would be attractive, not to the party alone, but to the people of the state.

“They suggested the possibilities anyway, and these are APGA, NNPP, ADP, and ACCORD. I put forward the argument that ACCORD will resonate with our people,” he said.

Oyinlola explained that the stakeholders had anticipated that the crisis rocking the PDP at the national level could eventually affect the party’s electoral prospects in Osun.

He said this was the reason they began considering an alternative platform ahead of the governorship election.

“We foresaw this problem with the commencement of the turbulent weather that hit the PDP at the national level. So, we know for sure that it will permeate downwards and that was why we discussion about would be the alternative to PDP in as far as the contest for the governorship, which is at hand, is concerned,” he stated.

The former governor said the stakeholders subsequently agreed that a meeting would be held after Adeleke and his brother returned from the United States to fine-tune the decision.

“Both of them were outside the country when we discussed. And we said, as soon as they come back, let’s have a stakeholders meeting so that we can fine-tune how we report to which of the parties we want to use.

“Surprisingly, my governor came back from the U.S. Without any discussion, without any stakeholders meeting to fine-tune things the way we have agreed, I saw on social media, like every other member, that my governor has resigned from the PDP and he has joined ACCORD,” Oyinlola said.

He described the development as another manifestation of what he called a lack of inclusiveness in the administration and political leadership of the state.

Oyinlola noted that although some stakeholders had already considered Accord a suitable platform, Adeleke’s unilateral decision to join the party without carrying everyone along was unacceptable to some members of the group.

“Even though we were all thinking of what platform would best serve our interests, it would only be nice to carry everybody along in that decision.

“So, deciding that he is going to ACCORD and not taking the whole party along is one of the non-inclusiveness of action,” he said.

He added that several political appointees and government office holders later followed Adeleke into the Accord Party, but efforts to bring all stakeholders together failed.

“Some, especially the appointees, political office holders, went with him into ACCORD. It was made to bring everybody together, but that failed,” he said.

The former governor said the failure of the consultation process was among the reasons he and other PDP stakeholders decided to support the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji.

According to him, the decision was taken based on conscience and the belief that Osun State required a different political direction.

“And we felt we should exercise our conscience as stakeholders who have served the state. I do believe that at this particular moment, Osun State will require a different direction. That was why we did what we did,” Oyinlola stated.

The former governor had earlier led a group of prominent PDP chieftains, including former Secretary to the Osun State Government, Alhaji Fatai Akinbade, and former PDP National Vice Chairman, Southwest, Alhaji Tajudeen Oladipo, to endorse Oyebamiji ahead of the August 15 governorship election.

At the endorsement event in Osogbo, Oyinlola and the other PDP leaders said their decision was not necessarily an abandonment of the PDP but a strategic political choice based on what they considered to be the best interest of Osun State.

The group said it adopted Oyebamiji’s candidature “having considered the decision necessary and out of conviction and sincere desire for the progress of the state.”

The endorsement has, however, triggered a sharp response from the Osun State chapter of the Accord Party, which dismissed the development as incapable of stopping Adeleke’s re-election bid.

The Osun Accord Party has rejected Oyinlola’s position, describing the endorsement of Oyebamiji by the former governor and his allies as politically insignificant.

In a statement personally signed by the Osun State Chairman of Accord, Victor Akande, and issued in Osogbo on Monday, the party accused Oyinlola, Akinbade and Oladipo of having worked against Adeleke during previous elections.

Akande alleged that the trio opposed Adeleke in both the 2018 and 2022 governorship elections but failed to prevent him from winning the 2022 election.

According to him, the same political actors later returned to Adeleke’s camp after his victory in 2022 and allegedly benefited from his administration.

The Accord chairman therefore dismissed their latest decision to support Oyebamiji, describing it as politically inconsequential.
Akande further accused the former governor and his allies of abandoning Adeleke after previously benefiting from his administration.

He maintained that their latest position would not prevent the governor from securing another victory at the polls.

The development has consequently widened the political battle ahead of Saturday’s election, with the Adeleke camp and opposition forces trading accusations over loyalty, consultation, inclusiveness and the direction of Osun politics.

While Oyinlola and his allies have framed their decision as a matter of conscience and a response to what they described as poor stakeholder engagement, the Accord Party insists that the former governor’s endorsement of Oyebamiji will have little impact on Adeleke’s electoral prospects.

The controversy comes as voters across the state prepare to decide the next governor, with the contest increasingly dominated by intense political alignments, defections and counter-endorsements in the final hours before the poll.