Osun 2026: Party elders will guide choice of APC candidate — National leadership

The All Progressives Congress (APC) on Tuesday said it will defer to the Elders’ Council in Osun State in determining the outcome of the forthcoming governorship primary scheduled for Saturday, December 13, 2025.

The assurance was given by the party’s National Organising Secretary, Sulaiman Argungu, when leading gubernatorial aspirant Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji (AMBO) submitted his Nomination and Expression of Interest forms for the 2026 governorship election at the APC National Secretariat in Abuja.

Oyebamiji was accompanied by a large delegation of state and national leaders, officials, and key stakeholders, submitting his forms at exactly 5:00 p.m.

Argungu, represented by Deputy National Organising Secretary Nze Chidi Duru, said the party is determined to “get it right” in Osun by respecting the wisdom of the state’s Elders’ Council during the primary.

“Osun is important because it is in the South West and it is a state we want firmly in our fold before the 2027 general election. Also, the President has a special interest in the State; therefore, we must get it right this time. We have elders in the Osun APC, and if we heed them, we won’t lose the State and will get it right,” Argungu stated. He also urged Oyebamiji and his supporters to maintain peace as the primary approach.

Earlier, APC National Secretary, Senator Surajudeen Ajibola Bashir, who recently stepped down as an aspirant, emphasised the party’s determination to secure a decisive victory in Osun.

He urged members to remain united before and after the primary to ensure success for the APC, adding, “We must deliver massively for President Bola Tinubu in 2027. Osun is one of the key states we aim to win with a very large margin.”

After submitting his forms, Asiwaju Oyebamiji declared himself the aspirant to beat in the December 13 primary, highlighting his professional and public service record. He cited his 28-year career in banking, his tenure as Managing Director of the Osun State Investment Company Limited (OSICOL), his two terms as Commissioner for Finance in Osun State, and his recent role as Managing Director of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) as evidence of his capacity to lead.

“I dare to tell you with modesty that I am an aspirant to beat to have resigned my appointment. I worked in the private enterprise, especially in the banking sector, for 28 years, and this is the sector where I was formed, which is a target-oriented sector.

“It is a sector that you just must be profitable, you must work it, and you must know your onion. I worked there, and I have my records, and I resigned from that opportunity to join the public sector. When I joined the public sector in 2012, I was made the managing director of a state investment company, and the records are there for any of us here to verify. We did very well, and I’m proud of myself.

“After that, I was the managing director when I was appointed the Commissioner for Finance during former Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s administration, and we exceeded. I am a Commissioner for Finance without a blemish, and just like you said, I was appointed the managing director of NIWA. My two years in NIWA were fantastic. It was a record that has never been matched since the creation of that authority.

He continued, “That gives me the courage that anywhere I take a step to go, with Almighty God, I always succeed, and in this one, we will. We have prayed to God, and we are still working hard, and we are going to deliver the goodies to your party,” Asiwaju Oyebamiji stated.

Dignitaries present during the submission included the Deputy National Chairman (South), Chief Emma Eneukwu; National Vice Chairman (North Central), Muazu Bawa Rijau; National Publicity Secretary, Barr. Felix Morka, National Welfare Officer, Hon. Donatus Nwankpa, and Deputy National Secretary, Barr. Festus Fuanter, among others.

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