I support Tinubu because he is Yoruba, not over any agreement

Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has said his support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not based on any agreement reached with the Federal Government, but partly because the President is a Yoruba man.

Adeleke stated this in his live interview on Sunday Politics, while explaining his relationship with the President and his position ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Earlier on the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, congratulated the governor on his victory in a post on his X page, describing him as a man of integrity and honour. “Agreement is agreement,” Keyamo said.

Asked whether he had reached any agreement with President Tinubu, Adeleke said: “No, I did not reach an agreement with Mr President.”

The governor said his support for Tinubu was influenced by his belief that the President, as a Yoruba man, should be given the opportunity to continue with his development agenda.

“My support is just based on Mr President being a Yoruba man and his projects. And I believe that all the federal roads that he has started, I want to encourage him not to forget Osun too,” Adeleke said.

He added that many federal roads link Osun with other parts of the country, urging the President to extend his development projects to the state.

“I feel like, since a Yoruba man has won for the first time, maybe I will give him another chance to develop his reforms,” he said.

Adeleke also indicated that he would be willing to work with political allies of the President in Osun State, provided their activities were in support of Tinubu.

“As long as they say, ‘I’m doing it for Mr President,’ I don’t mind. I will work with them,” he said.
The governor further said he had no intention, at the moment, of returning to the All Progressives Congress (APC), despite his willingness to support Tinubu.

“As I’m talking to you right now, I’m not even thinking about that. It’s not on my agenda,” Adeleke said when asked whether he would return to the APC.

He, however, stressed that remaining outside the APC would not prevent him from supporting the President.

On the political disputes surrounding his administration, Adeleke said he was prepared to put the 2026 election-related battles behind him and seek political solutions to outstanding issues.

He said the local government dispute was being handled through political discussions, while other issues were also being resolved.

On the legal issues involving the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Adeleke said he had been directed to drop the matter following an intervention by President Tinubu.

“Mr President has told me. He called me. What more do I want?” he said.

The governor also disclosed that his administration was working on measures to address the detention of some of his supporters, whose release he had previously demanded.