The simmering political tension in Osun State took a provocative twist on Tuesday night as a senior aide to Governor Ademola Adeleke, Olalekan Badmus, openly accused President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of planning to rig the 2026 governorship election in favor of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
In a post made via his verified X (formerly Twitter) account, Badmus, a Special Assistant to Governor Adeleke, alleged that opposition elements were banking on President Tinubu to manipulate the state’s electoral outcome in their favor ahead of his own re-election bid.
“They were waiting for the President to ‘rig’ them in next year because they know he will want to win the state ahead of his own election,” Badmus tweeted late Tuesday.
The tweet, laced with sadness from him and pointed political undertones, did not stop there. In what appears to be the new reality of his principal as political orphan in the state at the moment, Badmus added,
“The twisted reality has sent them to early depression so much they are now threatening not to ‘stay on the mandate’ anymore.”
The controversial post was in reaction to another X user, @Ade_dapo__, who observed:
“An average Osun APC member doesn’t want the governor to join their party and I totally understand them.”
Political observers have described the comment as a reflection of the mindset within the Adeleke government and its inner circle, where aides and loyalists now feel emboldened to openly call into question the electoral integrity of President Tinubu—a sitting Commander-in-Chief and national leader of the APC.
The development is expected to spark outrage within the ruling APC at the federal level, as it suggests growing hostility and mistrust from PDP power players in Osun towards the federal presidency.
“This isn’t just political banter,” said Akeem Adediran, a political analyst based in Osogbo. “When a Special Assistant to a sitting governor goes online to say the President is expected to rig an election, it’s a direct challenge to the credibility of the nation’s electoral process. It’s deeply irresponsible and inflammatory.”
As the state gears up for what promises to be a fiercely contested 2026 governorship race, tensions are rising between the camps of former Governor Rauf Aregbesola, incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke, and the federal APC hierarchy.
Already, Governor Adeleke’s camp has come under fire for allegedly trying to infiltrate the APC through backdoor defections, a move grassroots members of the opposition have vocally resisted.
With aides like Badmus fanning the flames of division, the political climate in Osun is set to get even more volatile in the months ahead—especially as national attention begins to turn toward the role President Tinubu may play in regional power struggles.
Neither the Presidency nor the APC national leadership has responded to the allegations at the time of filing this report.
