By Tolulope Oke

The African Democratic Congress, ADC, has admitted working with the Accord Party during the August 15 Osun governorship election in a deliberate move to prevent the All Progressives Congress, APC, from returning to power.

ADC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, disclosed this on Trust TV while reacting to the party’s performance in the election.

The ADC candidate, Najeem Salaam, polled 17,180 votes, while incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke of Accord won with 511,067 votes.

APC candidate Bola Oyebamiji finished second with 444,815 votes.

Abdullahi said the ADC leadership feared that a full-scale contest by opposition parties could split the anti-APC vote and give the ruling party an advantage.

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

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

Abdullahi said the ADC did not regard Salaam’s distant third-place finish as a defeat because the party’s broader objective was to stop the APC from winning the election.

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

“So we don’t see the fact that our governorship candidate did not emerge as an occasion of defeat or failure. The failure, the defeat of the APC, was a real victory for us.”

Asked whether ADC supporters were specifically instructed to vote for Adeleke, Abdullahi said the party had cooperated with Accord.

“We cooperated with the Accord Party,” he said.

According to him, the arrangement was deliberate and had the backing of the ADC leadership.

Abdullahi argued that the Osun outcome showed opposition parties could challenge the APC more effectively in the 2027 general election if they worked 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,” he said.

He, however, said the ADC would not claim sole credit for Adeleke’s victory.

According to him, the ultimate credit belonged to Osun voters and Adeleke, who secured re-election despite the intense contest.

“When I say 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, who, in spite of all odds, still managed to emerge as the governor of Osun State.”