The All Progressives Congress (APC) has rejected Ademola Adeleke’s victory in the Osun governorship election, disputing INEC’s declaration of the incumbent as winner.
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The party said it believes Adeleke did not obtain the highest number of valid votes recorded during the election.
Oluwole Oke, Director-General of the APC Osun Governorship Campaign, disclosed the party’s position during an interview with Arise News.
According to Oke, the APC has begun reviewing the election results and will not take a final position until its agents’ documents have been examined.
“We disagree with INEC’s declaration at this stage because we believe the valid votes do not support Adeleke’s victory,” Oke said.
The party has instructed its polling and collation agents to submit copies of Forms EC8A, EC8B and EC8C for a detailed review.
Those documents contain key polling-unit, ward and local government results used in determining the final outcome of the election.
Oke said the APC would compare the electoral records with the events surrounding the poll before deciding its next move.
He explained that the party’s review would also consider alleged irregularities and whether the conduct of the election complied with the Electoral Act and other relevant laws.
“We have to examine the records, assess the process and establish the facts before reaching a conclusion,” he said.
The APC campaign chief also indicated that the party was examining issues that arose before election day, suggesting that its review would not be limited to the results announced by INEC.
He said the party would make its position known after completing the assessment.
Meanwhile, Oke dismissed concerns over alleged divisions within the APC, arguing that disagreements are common in political organisations.
He pointed to developments involving the Accord Party as an example, saying political differences do not necessarily prevent members from working toward a common electoral objective.
On the controversy surrounding the freezing of Osun State Government accounts by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Oke defended the agency’s action.
He said the anti-graft agency was entitled to carry out its statutory responsibilities if it had grounds for the decision.
However, Oke praised President Bola Tinubu for directing that the state government’s accounts be unfrozen.
He maintained that the account-freezing controversy was separate from the APC’s position on the governorship election.
The campaign director-general also rejected claims that the APC benefited from federal influence because it controls the Federal Government.
According to him, the presence of APC governors and senior party figures in Osun during the campaign was intended to support the party’s candidate rather than deploy federal power to influence voters.
“Elections are decided at the local level. Political support from party leaders should not automatically be interpreted as federal interference,” he said.
Oke further described voter participation as one of the notable features of the election.
He argued that the turnout reflected greater awareness among citizens about the importance of participating in the electoral process.
The APC official, however, used the opportunity to criticise the Adeleke administration, particularly its performance in education, healthcare and agricultural support.
He argued that the party’s assessment would also consider whether the state government had adequately addressed the needs of residents.
For now, the APC has stopped short of announcing whether it will challenge the election result in court.
The party said it would first complete its examination of the electoral materials and relevant events before determining its next course of action.
Oke urged Nigerians to await the outcome of the review, stressing that the APC would announce its findings once it had established its position from the available records.
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