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For OSUN APC Guber Primaries
The Osun APC governorship primaries is a few days away. The date has been fixed for December 13. And as it is, all eyes are on Sen. Iyiola Omisore and Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji. They are the 2 leading aspirants for the ticket. There are about 7 other contenders.
But over the last few days, Oyebamiji has been in the news. He seems to be the favoured candidate of Minister Adegboyega Oyetola, the leader of the party in the state and members of the Elders Council.
Everything points to that. Many of the followers of the former governor, Oyetola have queued behind Oyebamiji and Oyetola’s political structure has been put behind him.
But Omisore, a seasoned politician has continued to mobilise support from Ward to Ward.
A few days ago came the news that the Screening committee set up by the All Progressives Congress (APC) has disqualified former deputy governor, Senator Iyiola Omisore and 6 other aspirants from participating in the party’s primary for the Osun State off-cycle governorship election.
The committee in the report submitted to the national leadership of the party, the National Working Committee (NWC) last Friday, hinged its decision on the outcome of the petition written by the Stakeholders of the party in the state.
The committee also explained that the disqualified aspirants also failed to meet up with the mandatory nomination requirement of being sponsored by 5 fully registered and financially up-to-date members from each local government area, contrary to the APC Constitution and Guidelines for the 2025.
According to the report, the disqualified aspirants include Senator Omisore, Babatunde Haketer Oralusi, Oyedotun Babayemi, Akinade Akanmu Ogunbiyi, Benedict Olugboyega Alabi Adegoke Rasheed Okiki Adekunle, and Senator Babajide Omoworare, noting that it is left for the party’s national leadership to take the final decision.
The committee cleared the duo of former Managing Director of National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, and Mulikat Abiola Jimoh to contest the primary election.
Titled: ‘Report of the screening committee for the Osun State governorship primary election, it noted that its mandate was to assess aspirants’ eligibility and compliance with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution, Electoral Act, APC Constitution, the Party Guidelines, and other relevant regulatory instruments.
Defending the disqualification, it noted: “The Committee received a petition from Osun APC Renewal Group, urging the disqualification of the two aspirants who were identified as falling short of the mandatory nominator requirements prescribed under the APC Constitution and the Party’s Guidelines for the governorship primary.
“Upon careful review, the committee found the issues raised in the petition to be weighty, substantial, and germane to the integrity of the screening process. In the interest of fairness, transparency, and uniform application of the party’s rules, the committee resolved that the concerns highlighted should not be applied selectively.
“The Committee found that two aspirants, Mulikat Abiola Jimoh and Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, satisfactorily met all constitutional and guideline requirements of the APC, including proper nomination by the requisite number of fully registered, financially up-to-date party members from each Local Government Area.”
Before this was the news that the party’s apex Elders’ Council, (Igbimo Agba Osun), had unanimously endorsed the former Commissioner for Finance, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji (AMBO), as its consensus candidate.
The Elders’ Council is led by Engr. Sola Akinwuni, former Chairman of the Odu’a Group of Companies.
With just a few days to the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship primary in Osun State, the party’s apex Elders’ Council, Igbimo Agba Osun, unanimously endorsed former Commissioner for Finance, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji (AMBO), as its consensus candidate.
The Elders’ Council, described Asiwaju Oyebamiji, the immediate past Managing Director of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), as the preferred flag-bearer of the party for the 2026 governorship election.
The endorsement followed a comprehensive screening exercise conducted by the council, during which no fewer than 12 gubernatorial aspirants were assessed.
Speaking on the development, a member of the council said the decision was informed by Oyebamiji’s outstanding leadership records across both the private and public sectors, as well as his clean and verifiable credentials and his popularity in the state.”
The council gave significant consideration to the recommendations of the APC Repositioning Committee, submitted in 2024, which emphasised that the long-standing agitation for power shift to Osun West Senatorial District should be a major factor in selecting the party’s candidate.
The Elders’ Council reportedly also considered previous communications from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, signaling the President’s preference for a candidate from Osun West in the spirit of fairness and equity.
To this end, a former national executive of the party was said to have been asked to step down, with assurances of an ambassadorial appointment in the coming weeks.
It was further learnt that the decision of the Agba Osun played a major role in the public declaration of support for the AMBO project by a prominent member of the council from Iwo Federal Constituency, Professor Deremi Abubakar, who openly flagged off the governorship movement days ago.
Similarly, a former National Chairman of the APC, reportedly informed aspirants of President Tinubu’s decision to support Oyebamiji’s candidature for the 2026 poll.
Also during the week, the National Secretary of the APC, Senator Ajibola Basiru pulled out of the contest.
The former Senate spokesperson announced his withdrawal in Osogbo, saying his decision followed careful reflection on his responsibilities and engagements with key stakeholders.
“Considering the enormous responsibilities of my current office as National Secretary of our great party and after due consultations with our esteemed leaders and stakeholders, particularly the Leader of our party and President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, it has become necessary to emphatically state that I shall not be contesting the 2026 Osun State governorship election,” he declared.
However, reliable sources also disclosed that the AMBO campaign structure is already reaching out to supporters of other aspirants in an effort to build a united and formidable front ahead of the election.
Although the APC governorship primary is scheduled for December 13, 2025, political observers believe that the coast is steadily clearing for Asiwaju Oyebamiji to emerge as the party’s consensus candidate ahead of the August 8, 2026 governorship election, where the APC hopes to unseat the incumbent governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke.
But Omisore is not deterred. His team says they are still in the race.They are opposed to any consensus candidate.
