James Faleke, the Representative for Ikeja Federal Constituency in Lagos, on Sunday denied attempting to influence the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over the outcome of the Osun State governorship election.
Faleke, who supported the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate Bola Oyebamiji, made the clarification in a post on X in response to a comment by Nigerian singer David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido.
Davido had accused Faleke of putting pressure on INEC to alter the result during the collation of votes in Osogbo on Saturday. “Hon. James Faleke, stop putting pressure on INEC to change Osun election result. Respect the wishes of Osun people. We don’t want Oyetola and AMBO,” Davido wrote.
Responding on X, Faleke said his presence in Osun was solely to support his party’s candidate and stressed that INEC could not be influenced by him or anyone else. “I came to Osun to support my party’s candidate, while you supported your uncle’s party (Accord). INEC is a body that can’t be influenced by me or anyone else,” he wrote. “I have never influenced or rigged before and I don’t plan to start now. Face your music while we face our politics.”
Following INEC’s declaration of Ademola Adeleke as winner, Faleke posted a separate message congratulating the governor on his re-election. He also praised Oyebamiji for a “very good outing,” commending the APC candidate for his commitment and sportsmanship during the election.
“I would also like to congratulate the Governor and candidate of the Accord Party, Governor Ademola Nurudeen Adeleke, on his re-election as Governor of Osun State. I wish him a successful tenure and urge him to continue to work for the peace, progress, and development of the state,” Faleke wrote.
He described the election as evidence that democracy remained vibrant in Nigeria, and commended President Bola Tinubu’s administration for its commitment to democratic values. Faleke also praised INEC for the conduct of the election and security agencies for ensuring a peaceful and orderly process.
INEC declared Adeleke the winner after he polled 511,067 votes, defeating Oyebamiji, who scored 444,815 votes.
