A political pressure group, the G-100, has described Governor Ademola Adeleke’s re-election in Osun State as a template for opposition parties ahead of the 2027 general elections, urging opposition leaders to put aside individual ambitions and unite around a common political objective.
In a statement issued on Sunday by Salihu Lukman on behalf of the group, the G-100 congratulated Adeleke and commended the people of Osun State for their determination and courage in the governorship election.
The group said the significance of the election went beyond Adeleke’s return to office, arguing that the outcome demonstrated what opposition parties could achieve when they overcome divisions and consolidate their support behind a single candidate.
“The significance of what has happened in Osun goes far beyond the re-election of one Governor. Osun has provided a template for 2027,” the G-100 said.
According to the group, the opposition’s major weakness ahead of the 2027 elections is not a lack of popular support but fragmentation among political parties and their leaders.
“For weeks now, the G-100 has argued that Nigeria’s opposition does not suffer from a shortage of popular support. Its greatest challenge is fragmentation,” it said.
The group noted that several opposition candidates and political leaders in Osun had recognised the broader implications of the election and set aside their individual ambitions to support Adeleke.
It described their decision as an important demonstration of political maturity and a willingness to subordinate personal interests to what it called the larger democratic interest.
“Their decision was an affirmation that there are moments when the greater democratic interest must come before the ambitions of any individual or political party,” the group added.
The G-100 argued that the Osun experience had provided a practical example of how opposition forces could combine their structures, supporters and political strengths to challenge the ruling party.
It said the opposition candidates who stepped down in favour of Adeleke were each entitled to pursue their own ambitions but instead chose to consider what outcome would best serve the electorate.
“The governorship candidates who stepped down and supported Governor Adeleke were each entitled to pursue their own ambitions. They chose instead to ask a more important question: what outcome best serves the people and strengthens the democratic cause?” the group said.
The organisation urged opposition leaders seeking to challenge the All Progressives Congress in 2027 to ask the same question at the national level.
It said Nigeria’s political future should take precedence over the ambitions of individual politicians and parties, stressing that no candidate or political organisation was bigger than the country.
“Nigeria is bigger than any candidate, any ambition and any political party,” the statement further read.
The G-100 further challenged opposition leaders who believe Nigeria needs a different political direction in 2027 to demonstrate the same “courage, restraint and willingness to compromise” displayed by opposition actors in Osun.
The group said the Osun election had shown that cooperation among opposition forces could produce a viable alternative when political leaders were prepared to make compromises.
“Osun has shown the pathway. The task now is to take that spirit of cooperation to the national stage,” it said.
The statement comes after the Independent National Electoral Commission declared Adeleke the winner of the August 15 Osun governorship election.
Adeleke, who ran on the platform of the Accord Party, defeated Bola Oyebamiji of the APC in 19 out of the 30 Local Government Areas in the State.
Oyebamiji, popularly known as AMBO won in 11 Local Government Areas.
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