Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barr. Nyesom Wike, has revealed that he asked Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, to publicly thank President Bola Tinubu after winning the August 15 governorship election.
Wike said he also directed Adeleke to reaffirm his support for Tinubu and present his Certificate of Return to the President after the election.
The minister made the revelation during a media parley on Wednesday, while explaining his relationship with Adeleke and his position during the Osun governorship election.
According to Wike, his major concern was whether Adeleke would remain committed to his support for Tinubu if he won the election.
He said he contacted Adeleke while he was in Croatia and asked him to confirm whether he would continue supporting the President after the poll.
“My concern: if Adeleke wins, will he still support Mr President? And I called him, because that’s my own interest. I called him, I said, ‘Listen, you have told me you support Mr President. Are you going to keep to it?’ He said he was going to keep to it,” Wike said.
The minister said he wished Adeleke good luck and did not need to travel to Osun for the election.
Wike disclosed that after Adeleke emerged victorious, he contacted him again and asked him to issue a public statement reaffirming his support for Tinubu and thanking the President for what he described as a free and fair election.
“Now you have won, issue a statement. Issue a statement that you still will support Mr President, and thanking him for a free and fair election,” he quoted himself as telling Adeleke.
He added that he also instructed the governor to present his Certificate of Return to Tinubu.
Wike said his actions were part of a political strategy aimed at frustrating the opposition coalition seeking to expand its influence ahead of the 2027 general elections.
According to him, Adeleke’s public declaration of support for Tinubu helped to weaken the opposition coalition’s efforts to win him over.
“I don’t need to call Mr President. I don’t need to tell anybody. It is my job. What was that strategy? To knock off these people you call coalition coming to curry favour,” Wike said.
Adeleke, who contested the election on the platform of the Accord Party, defeated the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, according to results declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Adeleke polled 511,067 votes against Oyebamiji’s 444,815 votes. The incumbent won 19 of the state’s 30 local government areas, while the APC candidate won 11.
Shortly after his victory was declared, Adeleke thanked Tinubu and disclosed that the President had called to congratulate him.
He also commended Tinubu for what he described as his role in ensuring that democracy prevailed during the election.
