National Publicity Secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Bolaji Abdullahi, has said the party deliberately worked with the Accord Party during the August 15 Osun State governorship election to prevent the All Progressives Congress (APC) from reclaiming power in the state.

Abdullahi made this known on Trust TV on Monday while explaining the ADC’s strategy and performance in the election.

The ADC’s governorship candidate, Najeem Salaam, finished third with 17,180 votes, far behind incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party, who secured 511,067 votes to defeat the APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, who polled 444,815 votes.

Despite Salaam’s performance, Abdullahi said the ADC considered the election a success because its primary objective was to stop the APC from returning to power in Osun.

He explained that the party had anticipated that a strong performance by multiple opposition candidates could split the anti-APC vote and create an opportunity for the APC to win.

He said, “We saw the possibility of collaboration. We saw the possibility earlier on that if we decided to go full throttle, the possibility that the opposition would divide the votes and APC would take the victory was there.

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“And that was why we saw the opportunity to work together. And that was what happened.”

According to Abdullahi, the decision to cooperate with Accord was therefore based on the need to consolidate opposition support behind Adeleke and prevent the APC from benefiting from a divided opposition.

He said the ADC did not view its candidate’s failure to win the governorship as evidence that the party had lost the election, stressing that defeating the APC was its main target.

“That is why we can confidently celebrate what is going on in Osun, because for us, victory means that APC was defeated.

“So we don’t see the fact that our governor did not emerge as an indication of defeat or failure. For us, the failure, the defeat of the APC, was a real victory for us,” he said.

Asked specifically whether the ADC had asked its supporters to vote for Adeleke, Abdullahi said, “We co-operated with the Accord Party.”

He said the collaboration was authorised by the party’s leadership and was part of a deliberate strategy rather than an informal arrangement between individual politicians.

Abdullahi further argued that the Osun election had provided evidence that opposition parties could pose a serious challenge to the APC in the 2027 presidential election if they were able to overcome their differences and work together.

“It’s something that was deliberate, and we are glad that the outcome has justified the confidence that everyone has put in the process, and it has proved that the opposition working together can actually defeat this incumbent, no matter how awesome they are,” he said.

The ADC spokesman, however, declined to attribute Adeleke’s victory solely to the party’s support, saying the people of Osun State were ultimately responsible for determining the outcome.

“But I’m saying that we are not taking credit. We are saying that the credit belongs to the people of Osun State,” Abdullahi said.

“The victory belongs to Ademola Adeleke. And in spite of all odds, he still managed to emerge as the governor of Osun State.”

Abdullahi also rejected claims that the ADC’s poor showing was caused by opposition to its National Secretary and former Osun State governor, Rauf Aregbesola.

He argued that the party’s leadership had been present in the state before the election and had witnessed the level of support Aregbesola still enjoyed.

“That is not true. That is not true. Anybody saying that is not being charitable, because the entire leadership of the party was in Osun in the days leading to the election.

“And we saw the kind of overwhelming support that Rauf Aregbesola still controlled in Osun State,” he said.

He also dismissed allegations concerning Aregbesola’s treatment of civil servants during his tenure as “oppositionality”, insisting that such claims did not accurately reflect his political standing in Osun.

Abdullahi maintained that the ADC’s decision to work with Accord was a calculated political move aimed at achieving a specific electoral objective and was not driven by hostility towards Aregbesola or any other political figure.

“It’s something that was deliberate, and we are glad that the outcome has justified the confidence that everyone has put in the process, and it has proved that the opposition working together can actually defeat this incumbent, no matter how awesome they are.”