The All Progressives Congress, APC, aspirant of Osun State, Bar. Oyedotun Babayemi pledged has pledged to revive the state’s rural economy and empower youths.
He disclose this on Monday in Abuja after submitting his nomination and expression of interest forms at the party’s national secretariat.
Babayemi said submitting the forms was a crucial first step towards restoring good governance in Osun. “We’ve gone through the initial process of submitting the nomination and expression of interest form to become the candidate of APC at the Osun State 2026 election. This stage is critical because it was the first step towards ensuring that good governance can come back to Osun State,” he said.
He criticized the current government for prioritizing entertainment over governance. “With the last few years, we had a situation where we did not have a government that is focused on governance. The focus of the current government in Osun is entertainment, and Osun is full of resources natural resources, human resources,” Babayemi said.
The aspirant highlighted his extensive visits to local governments and wards to understand the people’s challenges. “I’ve had the opportunity to visit a certain local government basically to listen to the people. Subsequent to that, we have now gone to 299 as of today, out of the 332 wards in the state. This has put us in a position to have a first-hand understanding of challenges and opportunities within Osun State and what the government should address. We have fantastic human resources that are not put into usage,” he said.
Babayemi said rural areas have been neglected. “The government of the day has completely abandoned the people outside of urban areas. Their focus has been around the urban areas. There needs to be a balance between urban and rural renewal. In going to rural areas, what we have seen is that Osun is a state with incredible natural resources. The bulk of our people are farmers, almost 65 percent, yet today they are unable to transport their produce from farm to market because of lapses in infrastructure. The state government that should be concerned about them has abandoned its responsibility,” he added.
He explained that his ward visits were also to communicate President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewal Hope Agenda. “Why did we go around the wards? We did it for a few reasons. One, it was important to get the message of the president, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Renew Hope Agenda, to pass that message to our people in the language they understand. A lot of our cocoa farmers in Osun just knew things have gone well. It was when we got there, they said now we understand why things are working for you—God has answered our phone calls on Asiwaju’s network. We went out there to assess infrastructural requirements, to assess what is happening to our youth, and to ask: what is the Osun of the future we see?”
He stressed that the state’s youths and farmers are central to his vision. “Osun State should be a state that charts a dream, and our youths—we have them in abundance, intelligent youths—can achieve this, and every farmer can prosper,” Babayemi said.
Recalling the legacy of progressives in the state, Babayemi said, “Following the footsteps of the progressives, the people at the grassroots…they are the soul of the progressives, and over the last few years, they’ve been abandoned. We’re now giving them an opportunity, a sense of belonging, an opportunity to own that vision, to see a better tomorrow. We are sure that come August 8, 2026, the APC party is going to finally remove the entertainment government and replace it with a government that is focused, that is for the people, by the people.”
On his strategy to secure the APC ticket, Babayemi said, “The primaries are an internal affair of our party. One of the things I mentioned when I started was that I was the first person to go to the party secretariat to say we need to work on our party, we need to work on our people. There seemed to be a disconnect between the people of Osun and what Asiwaju Bola Tinubu has done with the Renewal Agenda. I was given permission to do so. I was the first person to visit the 30 local governments. I did not ask anybody to come to Osogbo, the capital, to contribute because I wanted to take the opportunity to assess and listen to the people.”
He highlighted his grassroots engagement as a key advantage. “When we realized, in going back to the party to give them feedback, there was a lot of work to be done, and that prompted the need to visit the 332 wards that make up Osun State. I have visited every village. I know where the issues are. I have gone to every town in Osun. There is no aspirant in the history of the Southwest that has achieved what we’ve done today. We have built trust with the people. They trust us. Now that trust translates to the party,” he said.
Babayemi emphasized the need for policy-driven governance. “If someone in APC can take the pains to see what people see, understand their challenges, and understand their needs, the essence is to put together the right policies, the right manifesto that will address and move the state forward. Osun is supposed to be the engine room, the powerhouse of the Southwest,” he said.
On his immediate priorities as governor, he said, “The first thing we do once sworn in on the 27th of November is to act on our needs assessment, ward by ward. We understand where the challenges are: portable water, roads, farmers, infrastructure. We will collate that together and put together a course of data forum that carries people along. The most immediate thing is to build a connection between rural and urban people. Seventy percent of Osun is rural. We will bring them back. That is where we expect to boost the economy.”
He outlined plans for agriculture and natural resource development. “Once we get the road networks, we can move produce from farm to market, which will boost the state’s Internally Generated Revenue. There are no farmers today paying taxes, and there is no value for gold mining in communities. Osun has some of the highest deposits of gold in the country. We have over 75,000 miners today, yet it goes into people’s pockets without benefiting the state. We will address this,” Babayemi said.
Babayemi also promised youth empowerment initiatives. “Fifty percent of our population are youths. Within the first six months of office, we will ensure that every youth is upgraded with at least one skill. We will take them off the streets and upskill them so that they can become valuable to themselves, their community, and the environment,” he said.
On defeating the incumbent governor, Babayemi said, “Osun is a different political environment. When I become the candidate of the party, I am assured that people from the old party will join us. We expect a significant number from PDP to join what we already have in APC. Our party is progressive and about the people. The people of the state believe it’s time for a new direction.”
