Former Osun State Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola has said his endorsement of President Bola Tinubu for the 2027 presidential election has expired.
Recall that Oyinlola was among the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, stakeholders in Osun State who endorsed Tinubu for a second term on July 20, 2025.
However, during an interview on Channels Television, the former governor was asked whether he still stood by the endorsement. He responded, “It has expired.”
Oyinlola, a PDP member, went on to explain the circumstances that led to the endorsement, saying it was motivated by the political situation in Osun State at the time.
“Reason being that if you need to catch a monkey, you have to behave like one. We have a problem in Osun State. The local government funds are missing. The issue of who the rightful occupants of the local government offices are is not settled, and we believe that it’s within the purview of Mr President to resolve that. But that is not coming.
“So, if we are in that kind of situation, we need to find out how to wriggle out of the problem, so that our people…, because local government is the closest arm of government to the people,” he said.
He described the endorsement as a political chess move intended to address the challenges facing the state, but said it failed to produce the desired results.
“We did not achieve anything, and I exited it almost immediately,” Oyinlola added.
The former governor has since declared his support for Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, who is reportedly seeking the presidency in the 2027 general election on the platform of the Allied Peoples Movement, APM.