Jamiu Olawumi, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, has alleged that Governor Ademola Adeleke made moves to defect from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC but was rejected. Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief, Olawumi claimed Adeleke sent emissaries to both state and national APC leaders, but internal resistance, especially from civil servants who felt marginalised under his administration, led to a firm rejection.
He stated, “The reasons for our rebuffing them are the results of our findings — civil servants who were being made second-class citizens against their counterparts from Ede were all pleading that we should not allow Governor Adeleke to come to the APC.” He insisted the PDP’s recent statement confirmed Adeleke’s lobbying efforts.
Olawumi also argued that Adeleke would not be accepted as a party leader in the APC if he ever joined, saying, “Leader of whom? In the PDP, a governor might be the party leader; in the APC, it might not be the same.”
He dismissed comments from Adeleke’s media aide, Hezekiah Bamiji, who claimed recent defectors to APC had walked into a trap. According to Olawumi, Senators Francis Fadahunsi and Olubiyi Fadeyi, who recently left the PDP, did so to avoid what he called “a mess.” He added, “This is a governor of almost three years in Osun State, who has lost a high degree of integrity in public governance, and those senators and House of Reps members will not wait to be part of the mess.”
The allegation has further intensified the political rivalry between the PDP and APC ahead of the 2026 governorship election in Osun.