‘He Still Owes Me Three More Vehicles’ — Oyinlola Fires Back At Adeleke Over Car Claim
The controversy over the vehicle at the centre of a political feud between Governor Ademola Adeleke and former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola has taken a fresh turn, with Oyinlola insisting that the car he received was not a personal gift from Adeleke but an entitlement under Osun State law.
Oyinlola, who governed Osun State from 2003 to 2010, dismissed Adeleke’s claim that he requested and received a new vehicle before endorsing the All Progressives Congress governorship candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, ahead of Saturday’s election. Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Thursday, Oyinlola described the allegation as untrue and accused the governor of misleading the public.
“That is far from the truth and it is a bad development that a governor will continue to tell lies,” Oyinlola said. “The Osun State House of Assembly enacted a law whereby some benefits will accrue to whosoever has governed the state. One of the things that is accrued to a former governor is that for every four years, his vehicle should be changed. It wasn’t Adeleke that gave me a car but Osun State government. It is a law”.
According to the former governor, the legislation passed by the Osun State House of Assembly prescribes specific benefits for former governors, including the replacement of their official vehicles every four years. He said the vehicle was therefore not a personal gesture from Adeleke but a statutory entitlement provided under state law.
Oyinlola, who has been out of office for 16 years, argued that he was entitled to vehicles that should have been replaced during the period since he left office. “I’ve been out of Osun State government since the last 16 years. If you aggregate it, it means the state is still having to give up three vehicles,” he said. He also explained that the legislation provides other benefits for former governors, including security personnel, a cook and drivers. “There are other things, like my security should be taken care of. The police should be paid for, the cook should be taken care of and the drivers. Those are the requisite of that enactment,” Oyinlola said.
The former governor rejected the suggestion that he had approached Adeleke to ask for a vehicle, saying he had no reason to do so. “I did not walk to his place when he said I was begging for a vehicle. By the grace of God, I had started buying cars since I was 21. When I was going to the Government House, I went with my entire convoy,” he said. “So, how will he paint it as if I went to beg? That is a sad development. He should say it the way it is in the law. It is my entitlement, and he still owes me three more vehicles”.
The dispute emerged after Oyinlola announced on Sunday that he and other Peoples Democratic Party stakeholders would support the APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, while maintaining that he remained a member of the PDP. The endorsement came as a surprise to many political observers, given the relatively cordial relationship Oyinlola had appeared to maintain with Adeleke in recent months.
Speaking at a town hall event on Tuesday, Adeleke had accused Oyinlola of repeatedly opposing his political ambitions, including during his 2007 Senate bid and the 2018 and 2022 governorship elections. The governor said Oyinlola later approached him for reconciliation after he won the election, which he accepted because of his “forgiving spirit”. Adeleke also claimed that Oyinlola complained about not having a vehicle, prompting him to provide one. The governor subsequently dismissed Oyinlola’s political influence, describing him as a “paperweight” and insisting that his decision would not affect the outcome of Saturday’s election.
Oyinlola, however, said his decision to back Oyebamiji was based on his concerns about the lack of inclusiveness in Adeleke’s administration. He cited the Peoples Democratic Party’s national crisis and what he described as a lack of consultation by Adeleke before leaving the party for the Accord Party. He also accused Adeleke’s administration of concentrating major government projects in Ede, the governor’s hometown.
“First, when the political party was hit by serious turbulence at the national level, we foresaw that it would eventually affect us at the state level. So, we thought of a way out. And that was why we were thinking of an alternate platform for our candidate to run with,” Oyinlola said. “Though we started the discussion with … and the governor with the agreement that when they return from Atlanta, we will have a stakeholders’ meeting. Surprisingly, that did not come up. We only just saw on the social media that Mr Governor had resigned from our party and he had ported to the Accord Party”.
On the issue of project distribution, Oyinlola said: “If you have to go back in history, the policy thrust of the founding fathers of Osun State was that there should be even and equal development of the state all around. What we have witnessed under the regime of Governor Adeleke is different. As of today, government has executed about 20 major projects around the senatorial districts. Out of the N362 billion spent altogether, N260.5 billion was spent in Ede. When you skew things in preference to your own area it does not augur well”.
Oyinlola also cited what he described as the weakening of the PDP’s structure in Osun State as another reason for withdrawing his support for Adeleke. “As the party, the engine oil that services a political party is a constant meeting. Today, anything pertaining to the party, you have to head to Ede. Our party headquarters in Osogbo has never for a long while held any meeting. And that is the arena through which politicians will rub their minds,” he said.
The controversy comes just days before Saturday’s governorship election, in which Adeleke is seeking re-election on the platform of the Accord Party, while Oyebamiji is the candidate of the All Progressives Congress. The election is expected to be closely contested, with 15 candidates vying for the governorship. According to the Independent National Electoral Commission, Osun State has 2,339,233 registered voters, of whom 1,906,390 Permanent Voter Cards, representing 81.50 per cent, have been collected ahead of the poll. The remaining 426,842 PVCs, representing 18.50 per cent, have been deposited with the Central Bank of Nigeria. INEC also noted that 6,101 voters who applied for replacement due to damaged, defaced or lost PVCs were able to print downloadable copies of their cards.
The three leading contenders in the race are Adeleke, Oyebamiji and former House of Assembly Speaker Najeem Salaam of the African Democratic Congress. The election has been marked by heightened political activity, with last-minute alignments and endorsements reshaping the political landscape. The All Progressives Grand Alliance candidate, Adesina Adeyemi-Doro, recently stepped down for Oyebamiji, while the Allied Peoples Movement candidate, Simon Adewale, withdrew from the race and endorsed Adeleke.
Amnesty International Nigeria has warned that threats, political violence and inflammatory remarks ahead of the election could discourage many eligible voters from turning out to cast their ballots. Civil society organisations have also called on political stakeholders to protect democracy ahead of the poll.
As of Thursday, INEC had assured stakeholders and residents of the state of its readiness to conduct a free, fair, credible, transparent and inclusive election. “The Commission reassures political parties, civil society organisations, media, and the good people of Osun State of its total readiness to conduct a free, fair, credible, transparent, and inclusive election on Saturday, 15th August 2026,” INEC National Commissioner Mohammed Kudu Haruna said in a statement.
The outcome of Saturday’s election will determine whether Adeleke secures a second term or whether Oyebamiji, backed by Oyinlola’s endorsement, succeeds in unseating the incumbent.