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From Lateef Dada, Osogbo
As the race for the 2026 governorship election heats up, the Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), is emerging as a formidable force, exploiting divisions within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The growing wave of anti-party sentiment within the PDP poses a serious threat to the party’s chances in the upcoming election, sources close to the party said.
Recent defections from the PDP to the APC have raised alarms among political leaders, particularly with reports of secret plans by some members to switch allegiance. The APC’s refusal to grant Governor Ademola Adeleke an automatic ticket has intensified these tensions, leading to doubts about the loyalty of certain party chieftains.
Key figures such as Dotun Babayemi, Shuaib Oyedokun, Senator Francis Fadahunsi, and others have already defected to the APC, raising fears of potential defections from the deputy governor, Kola Adewusi, and former national secretary, Prof. Wale Oladipo. The governor’s timely intervention reportedly halted a planned mass exodus from the House of Assembly, as he appealed to legislators to remain loyal to the PDP.
An insider revealed that if the governor had delayed action, several assembly members loyal to Hon. Wole Oke were poised to leave the party. This urgency was underscored in a recent communiqué from PDP leaders in Ife Federal Constituency, which passed a vote of no confidence in Adewusi, Oladipo, and the party chairman at the local government level, Hon. Olasunkanmi Makinde, amid accusations of collusion with defectors.
The communiqué expressed disappointment over the trio’s alleged connections with Hon. Bimbo Ajilesoro, a recent defector to the APC, raising suspicions about their loyalty to the PDP. Reports of thugs disrupting a scheduled meeting hosted by the deputy governor further fueled concerns about the internal discord.
A source very closed to the meeting confided in Daily Sun that the political fraternity was suspicious, alleging that the PDP leaders were planning to defect to the APC. The source further said that “we have Ife federal constituency meeting slated for that day. The deputy governor was to host the meeting. When we got there, they have populated the place with thugs and warned that nobody should be allowed to go there.
“The thugs were conveyed with three buses, according to the senatorial leader that got there. He challenged them that they had a statutory meeting and that the highest ranking position among us is the deputy governor. They told him that Prof. Wale Oladipo invited them. They wanted to cause trouble and the venue of the meeting was changed. It was changed to the house of the senatorial leader.
“The report they brought to the meeting was that people said they have the evidence that shows that they held a meeting with Ajilesoro, then they said they sacked the deputy governor’s PA, that he challenged them to be straightforward.
“The majority decided that because the deputy governor has not called a single meeting as a stakeholder and the one he called, the thugs hijacked it, so they said they passed a vote of no confidence on him. People said they were ready to come with evidence against them. The essence of the vote of no confidence is to gear them up to be straightforward,” the source said.
To manage the escalating situation, the state government immediately called for a status quo, framing the dispute as a family matter to be resolved internally. The government reiterated its confidence in Adewusi and Oladipo, insisting their positions remain secure and that they are committed to the party and the administration.
“Be that as it may, government wishes to use this medium to state without hesitation, in any form whatsoever, that the crisis has not affected the position of Prince Kola Adewusi as the Osun State Deputy Governor as he also retains his position as a strong and loyal party man whose integrity and commitment to the present administration is not in doubt.
“By whatever yardstick, the government still reposes strong confidence in him as the second in command to the governor. His position is not in any way affected by the controversy. In the same vein, Osun State Government wishes to reaffirm its confidence in Prof.Wale Oladipo, as he retains his position, not only as a member of the Board of Trustees of our party( PDP) from the state but his chairmanship position of Osun State University Governing Council Chairman,” the government added.
In an urgent reconciliation meeting attended by key party leaders, including the deputy governor and state party chairman, efforts were made to address the divisions. Governor Adeleke, addressing the media afterwards, blamed external forces for attempting to sow seed of discord within the PDP and stressed the need for unity among party members.
Governor Adeleke urged the PDP stakeholders to beware of agents of division engineered by the opposition, describing the disagreement as a product of communication gap and deliberate efforts of some external forces to sow seeds of discord within the party.
“Throughout this meeting today, I see Ile Ife PDP very truly united. I listened to all the leaders here and I see clearly a communication gap among the leaders. There is also a strong sign of an outsider plot to divide Ife PDP,” Adeleke said.
However, the APC has not shied away from criticising Adeleke, with Kola Olabisi, the party’s Director of Media and Information, accusing the governor of fostering anti-party sentiments. He dismissed claims of external interference as a diversion and emphasised that the APC is focused on reclaiming power in the next election.
Speaking with Daily Sun, Olabisi said, “blaming opposition for the anti-party is diversionary. They should find a way of settling whatever is wrong with their party. Opposition has no time for them. If it is the APC they are referring to, they are missing the point. We don’t have their time. What preoccupies us now is how to wrestle power from Governor Ademola Adeleke’s administration through the legitimate or constitutional means in the next governorship election in the state
“APC is not trying to hold brief for the deputy governor and Professor Wale Oladipo. But what anti-party is greater than that of which the governor did? They are only being selective on those who tried to single out Professor Wale Oladipo and the deputy governor for punitive measures. How about Ademola Adeleke who was trying to join our party until he met a brick wall and information still has it that he’s still going about it secretly,” Olabisi said.
As the political landscape in Osun State continues to shift, the internal conflicts within the PDP could significantly impact its electoral prospects, with the APC poised to capitalise on any weaknesses in the opposing party.
