Wike: I Would Have Delivered Osun for Tinubu if He Wanted Victory ‘At All Cost’

FCT Minister Nyesom Wike has reignited debate over the political influence of the Federal Government after saying he could have helped President Bola Tinubu secure victory for the APC in the recent Osun governorship election if the President had been determined to win “at all cost.”

Wike made the comment on Tuesday while inspecting flood-affected areas in Abuja, arguing that the Federal Government deliberately chose not to deploy its full political influence in the August 15 election. According to the minister, had Tinubu wanted an APC victory badly enough, he would have personally gone to Osun and helped deliver it, insisting that Governor Ademola Adeleke would have been unable to stop such an effort.

The remark comes just days after Adeleke, the Accord Party candidate, defeated APC flagbearer Bola Oyebamiji to secure another four years in office. Adeleke polled 511,067 votes, while Oyebamiji recorded 444,815, giving the incumbent a margin of 66,252 votes. Adeleke won 19 of Osun's 30 local government areas, while the APC carried 11.

Wike's interpretation of the result is notably different from the idea that the election represented a political setback for Tinubu's administration. He argued that the President's willingness to allow the contest to proceed without what he described as the full force of federal political influence was evidence that the poll was allowed to remain free and fair.

“The President called him… congratulating him,” Wike said, referring to Tinubu's call to Adeleke after the election. He argued that such a gesture would not have happened if the Federal Government had intended to manipulate the result.

The minister's comments are particularly significant because of his own political history and his continuing position within the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) while serving in Tinubu's administration. Wike has remained one of the President's most outspoken political allies despite not formally joining the APC, making his assessment of the Osun result politically consequential.

His comments also offer a glimpse into the calculations already beginning to shape Nigeria's political environment ahead of 2027. Wike has argued that elections are won through political structures, mobilisation and preparation long before voters arrive at polling stations. He has also predicted that Tinubu's re-election campaign will face a much easier contest than the 2023 presidential race.

Yet his statement about what could have happened had the Federal Government chosen to deploy its full political strength is likely to attract particular attention. Elections are constitutionally meant to be decided by voters, while the role of federal institutions is expected to be governed by electoral law rather than partisan objectives.

That makes Wike's choice of words important, even though he was speaking hypothetically rather than alleging that the Federal Government actually interfered with the Osun election.

The comments also come after Adeleke publicly thanked Tinubu for what he described as ensuring that democracy prevailed and congratulating him on his victory. That exchange, coupled with Wike's interpretation, has produced an unusual political picture: a governor who defeated the ruling party's candidate while publicly acknowledging the President, and a senior federal minister arguing that the same President could have stopped that victory had he chosen to do so.

For the APC, the Osun result is therefore more complicated than a simple defeat. The party lost the governorship despite winning 11 LGAs, but Wike's argument suggests that the bigger question may be whether the party can build enough grassroots strength to win competitive elections without relying on the influence of federal power.

As Nigeria moves towards 2027, that distinction could become increasingly important.

The Osun election may have settled who governs the state for the next four years, but Wike's explosive claim has opened a much bigger conversation about political power, electoral independence and just how much influence the Federal Government should wield over the outcome of an election.