Former President Goodluck Jonathan has cautioned against the involvement of governors in off-cycle elections, while FCT Minister Nyesom Wike defended President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike

Osun gov not Fubara, Momodu replies FCT minister

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, yesterday dismissed claims that the outcome of the Osun State governorship election represented a defeat for President Bola Tinubu and the Federal Government, saying the poll was conducted freely and fairly.
 
However, former presidential aspirant under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general elections, Dele Momodu, cautioned against comparing Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, with his Rivers State counterpart, Siminalayi Fubara.
 
Meanwhile, former President Goodluck Jonathan has called for the establishment of new boundaries for the conduct of off-cycle elections, warning that the growing mobilisation of serving governors and senior political office holders could threaten democratic stability.
 
Wike, who spoke at a briefing in Abuja after inspecting areas affected by flooding in the FCT, also declared that the opposition had been “crippled” ahead of the 2027 general elections, boasting that Tinubu would secure re-election with considerably less difficulty than he encountered in 2023.
 
The minister was reacting to suggestions that the victory of Accord Party’s Adeleke in the August 15, 2026, Osun governorship election, coupled with the involvement of opposition politicians, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, indicated that the opposition was gaining momentum ahead of 2027.
 
The FCT minister, however, rejected the interpretation, insisting that the Osun election could not be regarded as a contest between Adeleke and the Federal Government.
 
“I do not know the effort made by the Federal Government, but I know that parties in an election will make an effort to win elections. There’s nothing wrong in that,” he said.
 
The minister argued that if Tinubu had determined to deploy federal might to secure victory for his party, he would have been involved in the process.
 
Wike also dismissed claims that the Osun outcome demonstrated the growing strength of the opposition coalition, questioning why politicians who had contested the election separately would subsequently claim credit for Adeleke’s victory.
 
“If you know you were trying to support Adeleke, why did you field a candidate? Their candidate has lost. He’s now saying, ‘Oh, we thank God Accord Party won.’ Are you a member of Accord Party?” he asked.
 
According to him, genuine coalition-building should have taken place before the election, with opposition parties agreeing to withdraw their candidates and support a common platform.

Momodu, now a chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), while reacting, via his X handle, to an online publication entitled ‘Wike: I’d have been in Osun if Tinubu wanted APC victory at all costs’, stated: “Osun people would have demystified you mercilessly. Adeleke is not Fubara! My kobo advice: stop equating yourself to God.”

According to the publication, Wike disclosed that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) wouldn’t have lost the Osun election if Tinubu had wanted to win the Osun election at all costs.
 
“I would have been there, and we would have won it, and there’s nothing the governor can do,” Wike stressed.
 
Adeleke was re-elected into office with 511,067 votes against the APC’s Bola Oyebamiji, who had 444,815 votes.

Jonathan, in a statement yesterday on the Osun election, commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), security agencies, political parties and the people of Osun for the peaceful conduct of the poll.
 
He, however, expressed concern over an emerging trend in which serving governors, senior political office holders, party leaders and other influential government functionaries, accompanied by large numbers of aides and heavy security details from outside a state, converge on states holding elections.
 
According to him, the practice witnessed during the recent governorship elections in Osun, Ekiti and Ondo states was unusual and should not become normal in a democratic society.
 
The former president recalled that similar situations occurred during the 2013 Anambra and 2014 Ekiti governorship elections when he was in power, saying he ordered party leaders and senior government officials to leave the states after being briefed on their presence.
 
“This trend is unwholesome. If left unchecked, it could threaten our fragile democracy and have serious long-term implications for democratic stability,” he said, while acknowledging the right of political parties to campaign, mobilise supporters and deploy legitimate party structures.
 
He warned against political mobilisation that could create an atmosphere of apprehension, intimidation, bullying and undue pressure.
 
Jonathan, therefore, called on the National Peace Committee to convene a stakeholders’ engagement to examine emerging practices around elections and develop standards to protect democracy and preserve peace.