Baba OBJ Pulled Up Unannounced, and Adeleke Broke Into Praise-Singing on the Spot
Osun’s election drama finally has its victory lap, and it came with one of the most entertaining moments of the entire cycle. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo paid a surprise visit to Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke on Sunday, hours after Adeleke was declared winner of Saturday’s governorship election. The moment Obasanjo, dressed in white native attire, was led into the house, Adeleke emerged from the room and both men immediately began to dance. The unexpected visit reportedly caught Adeleke completely off guard, prompting the governor to break into dancing and singing a praise song as soon as he sighted the former President.
The Numbers Behind the Celebration
Let’s be clear about what exactly Adeleke was celebrating. He polled 511,067 votes as the Accord Party candidate, well ahead of his closest challenger, APC’s Bola Oyebamiji, who received 444,815 votes. Adeleke won in 19 of the state’s 30 local government areas, while Oyebamiji took the remaining 11. INEC’s Returning Officer, Prof. Joshua Olalekan Ogunwole, declared Adeleke the winner at 7:49am on Sunday. A total of 15 political parties participated in the poll, and results were monitored in real time by observers via INEC’s IReV platform.
It was, by every measure, a hard-fought and closely contested race which makes the celebratory mood at Government House land even harder.
Obasanjo Wasn’t the Only One Showing Up
A video making the rounds on social media showed Obasanjo dancing with Adeleke during the visit, adding to the wave of celebrations already sweeping through Osogbo. But the elder statesman wasn’t the only heavyweight reaching out. President Bola Tinubu personally called Adeleke to congratulate him, with Adeleke telling reporters, “Mr President has called me and he has congratulated me, and I thank you for making sure democracy lives on because we fought for it.” In his own statement, Tinubu said Adeleke’s victory “confirmed the confidence the people of Osun State have in him,” while urging the governor to reach across the political divide and unite the state. Even Davido, Adeleke’s nephew who campaigned hard for his uncle throughout the race, had his own emotional moment reportedly telling the governor “come give me hug” after the win was announced.
Adeleke’s Response: Peace Over Politics
Still riding the celebratory mood, Adeleke used the moment to appeal for the restoration of peace and unity among Osun people, promising to widen the net of good governance and correct any unintended errors from his first term.
That message of unity is landing in a genuinely tense atmosphere. The APC has said it’s still studying the outcome of Saturday’s election across the state’s 332 wards, with a view to exploring constitutional windows for redress over what it called “anomalies observed in the process.” The party’s Osun spokesman confirmed the team was consulting its lawyers before deciding on next steps, with legal action at the tribunal reportedly on the table.
Wahala Network Take
Baba OBJ showing up unannounced just to dance with a sitting governor is exactly the kind of only-in-Nigeria moment that makes this election cycle memorable beyond the numbers. Whether APC’s legal review changes anything down the line is a story for another day for now, Osogbo is dancing, and honestly, who can blame them.
Congratulations to Governor Adeleke on the fresh mandate.
