Dalung: Osun defeat shows Tinubu can be beaten in 2027

By Musa Baba Adamu

A former Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Solomon Dalung, has declared that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027 could be derailed despite the strength of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the support of powerful political figures.

Dalung, a chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), made the assertion on Wednesday during an interview on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief, monitored in Abuja, citing the outcome of the recent Osun State governorship election as evidence that incumbency and federal influence do not guarantee electoral victory.

According to him, the Osun election has provided an early indication of what could happen in the 2027 presidential election, particularly where voters become determined to resist what they perceive as excessive political influence.

“What happened in Osun is a confirmation of what I said two years ago, that even if Tinubu appointed his wife, Remi Tinubu, as Chief Justice of Nigeria and appointed Seyi, his son, as INEC chairman, he is going to be defeated woefully in 2027,” Dalung said.

He argued that the APC’s control of the federal government, its political structures and what he described as “federal might” could not automatically translate into electoral success.

Dalung pointed to the large number of APC leaders and political office holders who reportedly mobilized for the Osun election, saying their presence failed to prevent the party from suffering defeat.

“Despite the federal might, despite the 30 governors, 45 members of the National Assembly, national chairman, Senate president, Speaker, all congregating in Osun, APC suffered a humiliating defeat,” he said.

The former minister also dismissed suggestions that the ADC was responsible for the APC’s poor performance in Osun, accusing FCT Minister Nyesom Wike of attempting to shift attention away from the ruling party’s own campaign efforts.

Dalung questioned why the resources deployed by the APC and its supporters during the election were not being discussed, insisting that the final outcome reflected the choices of Osun voters.

Turning to 2027, he said the presidential election would ultimately be determined by Nigerians and not simply by the strength of either Tinubu or the opposition.

“2027 is not going to be an issue of Tinubu; it is not even going to be an issue of opposition. No. But the man Nigerians are going to be electing in 2027,” he said.

Dalung identified regional considerations and the performance of the Tinubu administration as major factors that could influence the presidential contest.

He also rejected the notion that governors who have moved into the APC would be able to secure Tinubu’s victory, maintaining that the Osun election had already demonstrated the limitations of relying on political structures.

“But on the overall, the President will be defeated woefully because he has assembled the people who have also abandoned the people. The governors whom he has brought to his party can never bail him out. It has been established in Osun. Their gatherings were gatherings of mourners,” he said.

Beyond the 2027 contest, Dalung criticised the quality of governance in the country and urged political leaders to focus more on protecting lives, improving citizens’ welfare and leaving behind a positive legacy.

He warned that political leaders who concentrate on accumulating wealth at the expense of the people risk being remembered for what they failed to accomplish rather than for the positions they occupied.