Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has claimed that Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party emerged victorious in the recent Osun State governorship election because President Bola Tinubu allowed the process to remain free and fair.
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Wike made the claim on Tuesday while inspecting areas affected by flooding in the FCT, where he also dismissed claims that the Federal government manipulated the August 15 election.
According to the minister, Adeleke’s victory demonstrated that the Tinubu administration did not use federal influence to prevent the opposition from winning.
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“The President called him… congratulating him (Adeleke). What does it tell you? If Tinubu did not allow a free and fair election, would they have won? No!” Wike said.
The former Governor of Rivers State also refuted claims that the Federal government deployed its influence, commonly referred to as “federal might”, to determine the outcome of the poll.
Drawing from his own political experience, Wike said such claims should not be accepted without evidence.
“When you say force of the federal government… ask those who have survived it, though—people like me who survived federal might. It’s not by saying ‘they say, they say.’ It’s not true,” he said.
Wike urged political analysts and observers to avoid treating the outcome of an off-cycle governorship election as a direct indication of what could happen during a presidential election.
Adeleke defeated the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, in the keenly contested election.
The incumbent secured 511,067 votes, while Oyebamiji polled 444,815 votes, giving Adeleke a winning margin of 66,252 votes.
Adeleke won in 19 of Osun State’s 30 local government areas, while Oyebamiji secured victory in the remaining 11.