Following the emergence of Sen. Ademola Adeleke as the next governor of Osun State, the leadership of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as well as it Presidential flag bearer, Atiku Abubakar has described the victory of the party as a referendum for the ruling party ahead of the 2023 general election.
Adeleke scored 403, 371 votes to defeat his closest challenger, Gboyega Oyetola of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who polled 375,027 votes. Kehinde Atanda of the Action Democratic Party (ADP) came third with 10,104 votes while Yusuf Lasun of the Labour Party (LP) came forth with 2,729 votes.
In his reaction, National Chairman of opposition party, Sen. Iyorchia Ayu in a statement on Sunday said that Osun people have spoken, and Nigeria will speak too.
He said that the defeated and outgoing governor did everything possible to twist the wish of the people including denying the PDP use of any public facility in the state capital for it’s mega-rally.
Ayu recalled that twelve years ago, specifically on 26th November, 2010, the PDP lost Osun state – not through the ballot-box – but via a judicial coup (ruling).
“That coup (ruling) terminated the action-packed tenure of HE Olagunsoye Oyinlola. And since then, Osun has been frozen in executive misrule and underdevelopment.
“Four years ago, the PDP won the governorship, but our Candidate, Sen. Adeleke, was robbed of victory in broad daylight. We went back to the drawing-board, and today, we have reclaimed our victory.
“Today is, therefore, not just a day of double restoration – it’s a day of redemption too. It restores PDP to power and redeems the Osun people from the scourge of mediocrity, empty promises and excuses”.
The party chairman congratulated Adeleke, the good people and residents of Osun state and every party stakeholder who stood with the PDP.
To the Osun electorate he continued, “You have kept faith with the PDP. You refused to be intimidated. You refused to be bought over with foodstuffs and 30 silver coins. You said no to thuggery and vote-fraud. You have done well.
“PDP is proud of all of you. You have helped to return PDP to power after 12 years. You have returned hope to Osun state. But beyond this, you have renewed the quit notice on the reigning APC Federal government. PDP first issued the quit notice in December last year when this present leadership assumed office.
“This election was a referendum on the disastrous APC stewardship, and proves conclusively that Nigerians want PDP back. And, indeed, PDP is coming!”
Also in his message, the Presidential candidate of the party, Atiku Abubakar said that with the victory of PDP, the journey to return good governance to the country has commenced.
“At this point in time when our country needs to take a break from the shameful effects of bad governance, it shall be on record that Osun State provided the compass into that brighter future that awaits us at the horizon.
“The referendum on the administration of the APC has commenced with the verdict of the people of Osun State in electing Senator Ademola Adeleke, while we know that the 2023 general election will be a full referendum.
“It is inconceivable that Nigerians will reward the APC for the failings of the last seven years. And in a state like Osun, for example, it’s been a long time since the people last felt the effect of good governance.
“The ship of hope is already at the harbour under the umbrella of the Peoples Democratic Party. We shall intensify the work to ensure that we uproot all vestiges of bad governance and false hopes towards the 2023 election. The Imole (light) that has started to shine from Osun shall soon have a national coverage.
“One more good thing about the victory in Osun is that it has provided a catalyst for the PDP to see the opportunity when the party works together in unity. The work to bring the PDP together is a work in progress and the good news is that we are steadily making progress”.
Also reacting, former President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, in a statement via his social media handles, @Saraki stressed that after the inexplicable loss in 2018, Adeleke demonstrated leadership by working to build stronger coalition across the state and the nation in order to ensure that the PDP remained the most popular party in the state.
The former Senate President also described the incoming Governor as the “leader that Osun needs at this crucial time,” while also commending PDP’s polling unit agents who worked to ensure that every vote was counted and that results from all polling units were uploaded to the INEC election portal.
He said, “the people of Osun State have delivered a clear, loud, and strong message: Imole De— which means that light has come.
“As we prepare for the 2023 General Election, I am optimistic that by appealing to the best interest of all Nigerians — as partners and stakeholders in the development of our dear nation — our party is well-positioned to reclaim many of our states and the federal government.
“With this winning strategy, moving forward, our objective is clear: Together, we must fix Nigeria, rescue it from the failures of the past 7-years, and work to elect our former Vice-President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, as the next President of Nigeria.”
