Bayo Adelabu, the immediate past Minister of Power, has dismissed reports suggesting that President Bola Tinubu has chosen or endorsed any All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirant for the 2027 election in Oyo State.
Adelabu, who was appointed minister in August 2023 following Senate confirmation, recently resigned from his position. He said the decision was in compliance with the Electoral Act and to enable him fully focus on his governorship ambition.
Speaking with journalists in Ibadan on Thursday after returning to the state, Adelabu addressed rumours claiming that the president had already backed a particular aspirant in the Oyo APC.
He insisted the claims were false and maintained that Tinubu, as president of a large and diverse country, does not favour any individual in such contests.
“Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria with 36 states, 774 local governments and almost 9,000 wards… he will not endorse or have special interest in anybody,” he said.
He added that if the president had made any such decision, he would have been informed personally.
Adelabu also referenced his long-standing political relationship with Tinubu, saying they have worked together across several election cycles.
He recalled their collaboration during the 2019 elections, where Tinubu supported him up to the Supreme Court, and also their involvement in the 2023 polls before he briefly moved to another party.
According to him, Tinubu later appointed him as minister despite political differences, after which he eventually returned to the APC, which he described as his true political home.
