The New Nigeria Peoples Party’s Osun State branch announced on Wednesday that it is prepared to accept former governor Rauf Aregbesola and his followers as part of its efforts to win the state’s 2026 governorship election.
Aregbesola announced his departure from the All Progressives Congress on Sunday, along with his Omoluabi Progressives supporters.
In a statement signed by Oluwaseun Abosede, its organizing secretary, the group listed a number of violations committed against it by the APC’s mainstream leadership, including continued denigration of the structure, ostracization, and the suspension and expulsion of the tendency’s leaders without a fair trial.
In order to make the state the best point of reference among Nigeria’s comity of states, Omoluabi Progressives later made it clear that the organization was willing to join any political party with progressive views.
“NNPP has proven to Nigerians that it has the capacity of correcting wrongs in Nigeria’s system of governance, using the pro-people approach to governance adopted by the incumbent Governor of Kano State, Abba Kabir Yusuf, as an example.
“Osun’s history will not be complete, without prominent mention of Aregbesola’s contributions. That is why the mainstream APC cannot stop blaming Aregbesola for its failure to retain power in 2022, having realized the enormous influence he wields in the state political space.
“Nobody can say Ogbeni Aregbesola is a political liability in Osun. He is an asset, no doubt about that. Even his former political family knows the truth. They are only shying away from it, otherwise, they wouldn’t have been shouting around that he caused their downfall during the 2022 gubernatorial election.
Odeyemi stated, “I am using this opportunity to appeal to Aregbesola to consider joining our great party, NNPP. Osun state is in the state of quagmire presently, we need a positive force to reclaim it. Having Aregbesola in Osun NNPP, no doubt will also boost the party’s chances during the 2027 general election in Nigeria.”
He added, “Our ideas are the same. We all love to see the masses happy and living comfortably. We can do it together in Osun come 2026 and the history will definitely be kind to us all. Therefore, with open arms, I wish to woo Ogbeni Aregbesola and his group to NNPP for a prosperous Osun.”