News, Politics

APC, The Three Wise Men and the Future of Osun

Published by Akinwale Fakinlede on November 19th, 2025.

*APC, The Three Wise Men and the Future of Osun*

By Kolade Ismail

In Osun politics today, the air is thick enough to cut with a knife. The All Progressives Congress (APC), long regarded as the party to beat, is marching steadily toward its December 13, 2025 governorship primary, and every political thermometer in the state is reading “tension.”

The stakes are high, the expectations even higher, and the room for error is absolutely zero. One misstep in the choice of candidate, and the party may as well be digging its own pit.

Yet, despite the anxiety, something is clear as daylight: the people of Osun State are ready, almost impatient, to hand APC the keys to Abere on a platter of gold. What they are waiting for is not the party logo, not empty promises, not the usual political razzmatazz, but the right candidate, the one whose face, experience, competence, and credibility align with their hunger for good governance.

Perhaps in recognition of the delicate moment, the party in its wisdom appointed three wise men, Professor Olu Aina, Professor Isaac Adewole and Honourable Omolaoye, to serve as screeners of the 13 aspirants. Not just screeners, but custodians of fairness, integrity, and the party’s destiny. These men are no pushovers; their names carry weight. Their reputations are stainless. Their records, both in academia and national service, speak louder than any political endorsement. When men like these are handed a task, you know the party is serious.

Still, as this writer must humbly remind them, this screening exercise is more than ticking boxes. It is a spiritual, moral, and political litmus test. A wrong judgment now will echo through the election and possibly cost the party the trophy already within reach. The elders of APC, the Igbimo Agba, must also be reminded that Osun people know every aspirant by name, history, antecedents, and political smell. All attempts must be made to put a square peg into a square hole.

So, let us look at the aspirants who matter most , the real front-runners. And rate them honestly, without fear or favour.

*THE RATINGS (SCALE OF 10)*

1. Bola Oyebamiji — 5/10

Oyebamiji is no stranger to governance. He has served in important capacities, and he represents a faction with strong internal influence. But influence is not competence, and power blocs do not translate to popular acceptance.

The civil servants, the backbone of Osun politics, still associate him with the “half salary era,” a nightmare they are not willing to relive. Beyond that, many believe he will not be an independently minded governor. Too many strings, too many puppeteers, too many shadows around him.

Osun people want a governor, not an errand boy for political godfathers. And that perception significantly drops his rating

2. Senator Iyiola Omisore — 6/10

Omisore is not a lightweight, far from it. He is a political heavyweight, a man whose résumé stretches from Deputy Governor to Senator to National Secretary of APC. He knows politics the way a pilot knows the cockpit.

But therein lies the dilemma.

His brand comes with baggage, heavy baggage. There are lingering perceptions about his overbearing style, his uncompromising political instincts, and several political burdens still hanging around his neck. Many party faithful fear that his ambition may reopen old wounds and reawaken old battles.

Omisore is experienced, battle-tested, and formidable. But at this moment, his candidacy may pose more questions than answers for APC.

3. Dotun Babayemi — 7/10

Dotun Babayemi is, without question, a formidable contender. Nobody can take that away from him. He has deep pockets, and in Nigerian politics, money is not just power. It is the petrol, the engine oil, the battery, and sometimes even the spare tyre. He has the financial muscle to run a statewide campaign without blinking, and he carries himself with charisma, boldness, and the unmistakable hunger of a man who truly wants the office.

But let us speak plainly: the same money that makes him politically attractive is the same reason many people are worried. Osun is not looking for a governor who will treat the state as a business venture. Campaign funds don’t fall from heaven; they come from pockets, and pockets have expectations. Anybody who invests heavily will want to recover heavily. And that is not the kind of sentiment Osun needs at this delicate moment.

Beyond that, the truth still stands like a stubborn mountain: Babayemi is new in APC. New to the culture. New to the house rules. New to the inner circuitry of the party. He has not paid the dues, fought the internal battles, or earned the emotional loyalty of the grassroots. Many party members still view him like a guest in their sitting room respected, welcomed, but not yet given full access to the inner rooms of the household.

If winning elections were strictly about money, he would easily score 10 out of 10. But politics in Osun is not a simple cash-and-carry affair. It requires deep party roots, internal trust, long-term loyalty, and a history of shared sacrifice. Babayemi has the ambition and the resources, but his integration into APC is still a work in progress.

For now, based on the balance of factors, he stands comfortably in second place, strong, capable, but not yet the man who carries the party’s heartbeat.

4. Kunle Rasheed Adegoke (KRad) — 9/10

KRad stands tall, not just in intellect but in preparedness. For over 20 years, he has remained a loyal, consistent party man, never jumping ship, never wavering, never belonging to the “any weather” politicians who blow wherever the wind blows.

He is arguably the best-prepared aspirant in the race. He has studied how entities countries and sub-national entities rose from poverty to prosperity. From Singapore to Rwanda, from developing states in India to thriving regions in Europe, he understands the playbook. And more importantly, he has crafted his own.

KRad is not coming to Osun to rehearse; he is coming to execute.

He is one of the few aspirants who can confidently say he has a workable blueprint for internally generated revenue. He is not the “wait for Abuja alert” type. He knows where the money is, how to get it, how to grow it, and how to deploy it.

Politically, he carries the blessing of geography. He comes from Osogbo, the largest voting bloc in the state, a city where he enjoys massive goodwill and broad acceptability.

The whole of Osogbo is like dry gunpowder waiting for a single spark, and that spark is the announcement of KRad as the APC candidate. The moment his name drops, the capital city will erupt in jubilation. This is not ordinary excitement, it is a desire that has been simmering since the very creation of Osun State.

For years, the sons and daughters of Osogbo have waited patiently for their moment in the sun. They have watched other zones produce leaders while they held the line, loyal and committed to the party. Now, they are standing on tiptoe, ready to march to the polls in overwhelming numbers once the ticket finally comes home.

Everywhere you turn, Oke Fia, Isale Osun, Alekuwodo, Oja-Oba, Testing Ground, the message is the same:

“Give us KRad, and watch the next wonder. Give us KRad, and see how Osogbo will light up this election.”

It is not just support; it is a movement.

It is not just sentiment; it is conviction.

Osogbo is ready and KRad is their rallying point.

If APC is truly looking for a candidate with grassroots energy, intellectual firepower, administrative competence, and party loyalty, then KRad sits comfortably at Number One.

*TO THE THREE WISE MEN*

Prof. Olu Aina, Prof. Isaac Adewole and Honourable Omolaoye stand at a crossroads, not theirs, but Osun’s. Their decision carries the weight of the party’s future, the people’s hopes, and the destiny of a state yearning for real transformation.

The APC must not gamble with its chances.

The three wise men must be guided not by sentiments, pressure, or political godfatherism, but by truth, competence, acceptability, and the candidate who can actually win the general election and govern effectively afterward.

Osun’s future is not a game of trial and error.

The party cannot afford to pick with emotion and regret with bitterness.

If APC wants to win, the choice is clear.

If APC wants to govern well, the path is obvious.

And if APC wants to avoid mourning after rejoicing prematurely, then wisdom, not politics, must lead.

May the three wise men choose right, so that Osun will rise again.

*Kolade Ismail, a politician, writes from Ode-Omu in Ayedaade Local Government Area of Osun State*