The ruling All Progressives Congress has maintained that its emerging political partnership with Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke to support President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid will not compel the party to sacrifice its own candidates in separate electoral contests.
The position comes amid questions over how the APC intends to manage competing political interests after naming prominent politicians from outside its ranks to the revised Presidential Campaign Council.
Adeleke, who won his re-election on the Accord Party platform, has been named a coordinator of Tinubu’s presidential campaign in Osun State, despite the APC’s established political structure and its recent contest against the governor’s party.
Speaking on TVC News’ Beyond the Headlines, APC National Secretary and Deputy Secretary of the Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Ajibola Bashiru, said the understanding with Adeleke was limited to securing Tinubu’s victory in the presidential election.
“Our agreement, our understanding is for us to work together for the emergence of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Then let us contest the space among the electorate for our candidates at other levels,” Bashiru said.
He explained that the arrangement would not compel APC members to support Accord Party candidates seeking seats in the Senate, House of Representatives or Osun State House of Assembly.
Bashiru acknowledged that he had personally campaigned against Adeleke during the governorship election but said political differences would not prevent them from working towards a shared objective at the presidential level.
He said he had made his position clear during a visit to the governor, adding that the outcome of an election must ultimately be respected.
“Notwithstanding that we are entrenched against each other, to the extent that we see eye to eye on the question of the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, irrespective of personal sentiment that I may have against that arrangement, I’m bound as a party bureaucrat who is committed to the success of his leader to work together with Governor Ademola Adeleke,” he said.
The APC official also rejected suggestions that Adeleke’s appointment would automatically put him in control of the party’s entire political structure in Osun.
He said former Osun Governor Gboyega Oyetola and other APC leaders retained roles in the campaign, alongside party figures responsible for zonal coordination, mobilisation and other functions.
According to Bashiru, the campaign structure is designed to accommodate different political interests rather than place all responsibilities in the hands of one individual.
He said the APC leadership was working to reconcile differences and position the party for the 2027 general election.
The strategy reflects the distinction the ruling party is attempting to draw between a coalition built around Tinubu’s presidential ambition and the separate contests for governorship and legislative seats.
Bashiru said the APC would continue to mobilise voters for its own candidates, even while working with politicians from other parties to secure the President’s re-election.
The arrangement will test whether the APC can convert cross-party support for Tinubu into additional presidential votes without weakening its own candidates in states where its coalition partners remain political rivals.
For now, Bashiru says the objective is cooperation at the presidential level, with the contest for other offices left open to voters.
What You Should Know
The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has drawn a clear line between supporting President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid and competing for lower-level political offices in Osun State. While the party has brought Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke—who belongs to the Accord Party—into the presidential campaign fold, APC National Secretary Senator Ajibola Bashiru insists that local party members are still fully expected to contest against the governor’s loyalists for Senate, House of Representatives, and state assembly seats.
- Positive Impact: This pragmatic political arrangement aims to build a broad, cross-party coalition dedicated to securing presidential victory while still maintaining democratic competition for local legislative seats.
- Potential Concerns: Voters and local party members may experience confusion or friction on the ground as leaders campaign together for the presidency while aggressively opposing each other in local legislative races.
