Osun Election Shows Nigeria’s Democracy Is Maturing – Sanwo-Olu

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has said the outcome of the recent Osun State governorship election demonstrated growing democratic maturity in Nigeria, particularly the willingness of the ruling party to accept electoral defeat.

Sanwo-Olu stated this while speaking at the Freedom Online 7th Annual Lecture, themed “2027 ELECTIONS: ECONOMY, SECURITY, & NIGERIA’S FUTURE,” held at the Sheraton Lagos Hotel, Ikeja.

He cited the August 15 Osun governorship election, where the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the ruling party at the federal level, lost to the incumbent governor, Ademola Adeleke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), by more than 60,000 votes.

“About 19-20 days ago, on the 15th of August, the people of Osun State elected a governor. The candidate of my party, the President’s party, lost. The incumbent, Governor Ademola Adeleke, of a different party, won by more than sixty thousand votes,” Sanwo-Olu said.

He said President Bola Tinubu accepted the outcome without hesitation, congratulating Adeleke and appreciating the electoral and security agencies for conducting what he described as a peaceful and transparent election.

“The President did not sulk and he did not equivocate. He picked up the telephone the following day, congratulated the winner, urged him to unite the State, and thanked INEC and the security agencies for a peaceful and transparent election,” he said.

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According to the Lagos governor, Adeleke’s subsequent appreciation of the President further demonstrated that the election had provided a level playing field for all contestants.

“Governor Adeleke has since publicly thanked the President for ensuring a level playing field,” Sanwo-Olu said.

He argued that the development represented a departure from an era when the influence of the federal government was routinely associated with the electoral fortunes of the ruling party.

“Think about what that means. There was a time in this country when ‘federal might’ was a phrase that a ruling party used without irony,” he said.

“Under this President, the ruling party can lose a state, in the South-West, in an election year, and the sky does not fall. That is what a maturing democracy looks like.”

Sanwo-Olu described Tinubu as a “lifelong democrat”, saying the President’s ambition was to strengthen Nigeria’s democratic institutions and leave behind a democracy stronger than the one he inherited.

“This President is a lifelong democrat, and he means to leave behind a stronger democracy than he inherited, not only for Nigerians but as an example to a continent that badly needs one,” he said.

With Nigeria already looking ahead to the 2027 general elections, the governor said the country must build on the lessons from recent elections by strengthening preparations for credible polls, protecting the independence and effectiveness of electoral institutions, and ensuring that security agencies provide a safe environment for voters and candidates.