Former political adviser to President Bola Tinubu, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, has dismissed suggestions that the All Progressives Congress (APC) loss in the recent Osun State governorship election was a strategic concession to secure Governor Ademola Adeleke’s backing for the 2027 presidential race.
In a post on X, Baba-Ahmed rejected what he described as a conspiracy theory linking the electoral outcome to a political Trade-off. “I am not one of those supporting the conspiracy theory that the APC’s defeat in the Osun governorship election is a trade-off for the governor’s support for Tinubu in 2027,” he wrote. “I prefer to believe Accord Party won fairly. I believe the APC can be defeated in fair Elections. Osun State will reject it in 2027.”
According to results announced after Saturday’s poll, Adeleke, running on the platform of the Accord Party, secured 511,067 votes to win a second term. The APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, polled 444,815 votes, while Najeem Salaam of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) garnered 17,180 votes.
The election took place weeks after Adeleke and his Accord Party formally endorsed Tinubu as their preferred candidate for the 2027 presidential election. That endorsement fuelled speculation that the governorship contest might have been influenced by high-level political negotiations.
Baba-Ahmed, however, insisted the electorate delivered a genuine verdict. He further predicted a repeat rejection of the APC in the state during the next general election cycle.
The former adviser also criticised the presidency’s involvement in a separate controversy involving the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and frozen Osun State funds. He described the intervention as “clumsy” and counterproductive. “PBAT, even as a maximum president, has no power to stop EFCC’s operations,” Baba-Ahmed stated, using the president’s initials. “EFCC itself has damaged itself badly. It will be difficult not to see a good cop-bad cop game here.”
The remarks highlight growing public scrutiny over the independence of anti-graft agencies and the political calculations surrounding the 2027 electoral cycle. With the Osun outcome settled, attention now shifts to how the ruling party addresses its performance in the South-West stronghold ahead of the next general elections.
