By Yusuf Danjuma Yunusa
In a significant political move ahead of the August 15 governorship election in Osun State, the state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has endorsed the re-election bid of Governor Ademola Adeleke. This endorsement comes even though the governor is contesting the poll under the banner of the Accord Party.
The decision was announced on Monday during an enlarged stakeholders’ meeting of the PDP in Osogbo. Governor Adeleke, who was present at the meeting, explained that his resignation from the PDP was a strategic decision to safeguard his political future and prevent his re-election ambition from being jeopardized by internal party crises.
Addressing the gathering, the Osun State PDP Chairman, Sunday Bisi, lamented that the protracted crisis at the national level of the party had hindered the possibility of fielding a candidate for the upcoming election. He framed the party’s endorsement of Governor Adeleke as a strategic move to protect the interests of the people of Osun State.
“Let me say this clearly, boldly, and without apology: The PDP in Osun State will not allow a national leadership dispute to truncate the destiny of our people,” Chairman Bisi stated. “We will not allow ego and technicalities to reverse the progress of Osun.”
He elaborated on the decision-making process, emphasizing the party’s commitment to the state’s welfare over internal party politics. “That is why, after wide consultations with our elders, stakeholders, and leaders across the three senatorial districts, and after careful consideration of the overriding interest of Osun people, the Osun State Chapter of the PDP hereby directs all our structures… to move en masse and give total, unalloyed, and uncompromising support to the re-election of Governor Ademola Adeleke under the platform of the Accord.”
Chairman Bisi rejected any notion that this decision was a compromise of values, instead describing it as a strategic move for the state’s progress. He lauded Governor Adeleke’s performance in office, citing his administration’s achievements in infrastructure and healthcare as justification for the endorsement.
“Your Excellency, in just over three years, you have rewritten the governance narrative of this state,” Bisi said, pointing to “massive road infrastructure transforming our cities… to the comprehensive primary healthcare revolution that has attracted global recognition and cumulative one million dollar cash awards.”
In his remarks, Governor Adeleke expressed his continued affection for the PDP and detailed the reasoning behind his departure. He stated that the decision was made to avoid being “trapped” in his re-election bid due to the party’s national crisis.
“I confided in some of our leaders that I trust; we started consulting and praying to God over it. We were guided to the Accord Party,” Adeleke explained, adding, “You see that the party is first on the ballot.”
He expressed gratitude for the PDP’s endorsement and urged his supporters to rally behind his new platform. “I want to urge all of you that by August 15, you should vote massively for the Accord Party, then victory is guaranteed for us. I thank the PDP family because I am part of it. I thank you all for the endorsement of today and accept it wholeheartedly. I also want to thank the Accord Party for accepting me.”
The joint endorsement by the PDP, despite Governor Adeleke running for a different party, sets the stage for a united front in the upcoming gubernatorial election.
