By Luminous Jannamike
ABUJA — Former presidential candidate, Prof. Chris Imumolen, has faulted the claim that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu offered no support to Governor Ademola Adeleke’s victory in the August 15 Osun governorship election, arguing that the President’s restraint helped create the conditions for the governor’s re-election.
Imumolen said he was not claiming that Tinubu campaigned for Adeleke or funded his campaign. His argument was that the President chose not to deploy the power of his office against an opposition governor, even though the APC had a candidate in the election.
In a statement signed by him, Imumolen was reacting to comments by Adeleke’s campaign spokesperson, Pelumi Olajengbesi, who attributed the victory to the will of Osun voters and the governor’s performance in office.
“Support in politics is not limited to standing on a campaign platform or openly mobilising votes for a candidate. Sometimes, leadership is demonstrated by what a leader deliberately refuses to do,” Imumolen said.
He described Tinubu’s conduct as particularly significant because the APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, was contesting against Adeleke.
“President Tinubu demonstrated an extraordinary level of democratic restraint in Osun. He remained neutral even when the candidate of his own party was contesting the election,” he said.
Imumolen said that restraint allowed political actors, traditional rulers, stakeholders and voters to make their choices without the election becoming a confrontation between the Federal Government and the Osun State Government.
“He did not turn the election into a personal battle. He did not deploy the power of his office to intimidate the opposition. Instead, he allowed the people of Osun to make their choice,” he said.
He also cited what he described as Tinubu’s intervention concerning the Osun State Government’s account and his reported communication with Adeleke before the result was announced as examples of the President choosing statesmanship over partisan retaliation.
“Nobody is saying President Tinubu campaigned for Adeleke. That is not the argument. The point is that the President’s conduct, restraint and democratic disposition contributed to an environment in which Adeleke was able to contest and secure support without the Federal Government turning the election into a presidential power contest,” he said.
The President later congratulated Adeleke on his re-election, while the governor visited Tinubu at the Presidential Villa after receiving his Certificate of Return.Imumolen said reducing Tinubu’s role to campaign funding or mobilisation missed the broader political point.
“Leadership is not only about what you do for your friends. Sometimes, it is about what you refuse to do to your opponents,” he said.
He urged Adeleke and his supporters to acknowledge that restraint rather than dismiss it.
“Victory should make a leader magnanimous, not revisionist. The President respected the democratic process in Osun. That fact should not be diminished simply because Adeleke emerged victorious,” Imumolen said.
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