Adelabu Distances Self From Former Aide’s Defection to APM

Former Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has distanced himself from the defection of his former aide, Ajiboye Akande, from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) in Oyo State.

Akande led a group of APC supporters into the APM during the Boye Nation/JAF Movement Mega Concert held at the Lekan Salami Sports Complex in Adamasingba, Ibadan, on Monday. The event attracted supporters from different parts of the state.

In a statement issued by his media office in Ibadan on Tuesday, Adelabu said Akande was no longer his Personal Assistant and had no official, political or representational relationship with him.

He explained that their working relationship ended following differences in their political alignments, particularly after Akande chose a political path different from his.

Adelabu said Akande’s defection, statements and political activities were his personal decisions and should not be linked to him.

“I remain a member of the APC and have no intention of leaving the party,” Adelabu said, adding that his disagreement with aspects of the Oyo governorship nomination process was about transparency, documentation and legitimacy rather than a decision to leave the APC.

The former minister also said he would not abandon the party or President Bola Tinubu, whom he described as his political mentor and benefactor.

Adelabu said he had been seeking the proper documentation and release of the results of the APC governorship primary, arguing that the process should be supported by signed documents and other verifiable evidence.

His position follows an earlier statement in July in which he denied reports that he was planning to defect to the APM and reaffirmed his membership of the APC.

Adelabu also said his governorship ambition was not a “do-or-die affair” and that he remained engaged in his private businesses, including real estate, hospitality, farming and financial securities.

He stressed that he had neither defected from the APC nor authorised anyone to defect on his behalf, adding that Akande’s political activities had no connection with him.