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The spokesperson for the Osun State African Democratic Congress, (ADC) Gubernatorial Campaign, Honourable Nurein Adebisi, has said the party’s chances in the August 15 governorship election in Osun State are very bright, despite the perceived influence of federal and state might.
Speaking in an interview on ARISE NEWS on Tuesday, Adebisi insisted that the Osun ADC’s governorship candidate, Najeem Salam, is the best candidate to deliver good governance and development to the people of the state.
“Our chances are very bright. Our chances are very bright simply because we are from Osun. We know and understand the terrain, and we are not strangers or greenhorns in the game. Whether it is federal might, state might, local might, or any other kind of might, we are not bothered or concerned. We are focused and determined to be in the contest and win the election,” he said.
“I can proudly say that the only person among the contestants who is speaking to issues, who has what to offer, and who can deliver, is our candidate, Honorable Najeem Salam. That makes him stand out among the other contestants,” he insisted.
Speaking further, Adebisi said Salam’s campaign is anchored on a clearly defined manifesto, which he described as a ten-point “Agenda for a Better Osun,” designed to address the needs of the people of Osun state.
“We have a prepared agenda in the form of a manifesto containing about ten key items, which we call the ‘Agenda for a Better Osun.’ It is not just oral; it is well-laid-down and properly documented. As we move from one place to another, we speak from this manifesto, and we even make submissions to the people we visit. We have done this with traditional rulers, market women, and the student body,” he said.
Speaking on the political strategy the ADC intends to adopt to augment for the popular scale of Dr Salam’s strong footing in Ejigbo, which is not among the top three voting populations, Honourable Adebisi said the party is relying on popular acceptance across Osun State, rather than geographical strongholds alone. He maintained that the governorship election is a state-wide contest and not a race that can be won solely on the strength of support from a particular zone or locality. According to him, the party is confident that Salam’s agenda, track record and message will resonate with voters across the state and translate into widespread support at the polls.
“The coming election is about who becomes the next governor of Osun, which we are confident our candidate, by the special grace of God, has all it takes to occupy that seat. It’s not a contest for a local government chairmanship seat or a State Assembly constituency seat.
“Going by political calculation, I don’t think any candidate—whether they belong to a large party, a medium-sized party, or whatever size of party—can say, ‘Simply because I’m from this place or zone, that is enough for me to win the election.’ None among the contestants can say that.
“As far as we are concerned, this is about what you have to offer, your agenda, and how well people are able to identify with you. Yes, Honorable Najeem Folasayo Salam is from Ejigbo, which is in Osun West. But nobody can say, ‘Simply because I have the entire vote from Osun West, that is enough and I won’t need any other vote from any other town or location in the state.’ We are not relying on geographical size alone; we are relying on popular acceptance and acceptability by the people of Osun,” he maintained.
On the key priorities of the proposed ADC administration, Adebisi said the party would focus on infrastructural development, particularly power generation, transmission and distribution, alongside education, security, agriculture and workers’ welfare. He added that the party’s agenda was developed through wide consultations and was designed to harness Osun’s untapped economic potential beyond its traditional dependence on the civil service.
“The manifesto contains ten key items, starting from workers’ welfare, agriculture, security, education, health, youth empowerment, women empowerment, and economic development. All of them are very key developmental items, and all of them are receiving his attention because our manifesto and agenda are a product of human thinking after wide and reasonable consultation. Is this thing achievable? Is it realizable? Yes.
“He has been saying this, and I will say it as well: the issue of infrastructural development—especially power generation, transmission, and distribution for Osun—is very key and dear to our mind as a prospective government. Next is education, security, agriculture, and workers’ welfare, among other items in the manifesto.
“There is this wrong notion that Osun is strictly a civil service state. But we are saying no; Osun has a lot of potential that, if properly tapped and harnessed, will take Osun beyond where some people have narrowed it to. Considering our agenda on security, so far, there has been nothing like a comprehensive security policy for Osun. Honorable Najeem Folasayo Salam is coming up with a well-laid-out, properly thought-out security policy that will form the basis for securing and managing the state,” he said.
Addressing concerns over Salam’s promise of 24-hour electricity across Osun State, if elected governor, Adebisi said the commitment was achievable under the legal and technical frameworks provided by the 2023 Electricity Act. He explained that the law empowers state governments to participate in electricity generation, transmission and distribution, giving the proposed ADC administration the legal basis to pursue its power agenda for Osun.
“That may sound impossible to people looking at this from the surface. But as far as we are concerned, like I told you, our manifesto was not just a product of putting words down or arranging letters; it was a product of sound human thinking after deep consultation.
“The 24-hour power supply to Osun is possible. Thankfully, the Federal Government, through the Electricity Act of 2023 signed into law by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on June 5, 2023, empowered states to embark on the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. Some states have seized that opportunity to embark on the process.
“We studied the law and discovered that these things are achievable and realizable because it rests on two frameworks: the legal framework and the technical requirements. Now with the law empowering states through those frameworks as stated in the 2023 Electricity Act, we have all it takes to embark on that. Since Honorable Najeem Folasayo Salam mentioned these issues, even competitors without it in their own manifesto launched their own strategic power ideas, which we laugh at because having an idea is different from execution,” Adebisi explained.
On how the proposed administration would fund and implement its social programmes, the ADC spokesperson cited the state’s previous experience with school feeding and youth empowerment under former Governor Rauf Aregbesola.
He said the school feeding programme also supported local agriculture by sourcing food supplies from within the state, while the OYES youth empowerment scheme created livelihood opportunities for thousands of young people. Adebisi maintained that these precedents demonstrate that Salam’s promises are achievable and realizable.
“Like the school feeding program—as a party, we have antecedents and precedents. We have precedent on this from what happened during the administration of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola. To God be the glory, it was one of the successes of that administration. The moment Ogbeni started the school feeding program, even the federal government under the late President Muhammadu Buhari sent a delegation from Abuja to come and understudy Osun on how it was made successful. These items are achievable and realizable going by our antecedents and the precedent our leader set for us.
“The same thing goes for the youth empowerment program. Before Ogbeni came to office, he emphasized the employment of 20,000 youths within his first 100 days. That sounded unrealistic then, but it was accomplished, and the effect is still there today. There are youths in Osun who started earning their living through the OYES program. We are determined to repeat some of these laudable feats. To people analyzing from the surface, these seem unrealistic, but to us, we know they are realizable,” he maintained.
Responding to concerns over the financial implications of the proposed projects, Adebisi said the ADC had looked beyond conventional revenue sources and carefully assessed the cost of implementing its agenda. He maintained that the party’s plans were realistic and achievable within Osun State’s economic, technical and legal frameworks.
“On that, we have done a lot of thinking, calculations, and arithmetic. We have been thinking outside the box. It’s not going to be the usual prototype way of generating revenue or income. If you have an enlarged family that you have duties and responsibilities toward, the next thing is to think of how to expand your revenue base.
“Before coming up with this, we studied the cost implications. We know what will be involved, and that was why we outlined these specific items. All those items are realizable and achievable within both the economic, technical, and legal frameworks,” he assured.
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