A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Olatunbosun Oyintiloye has revealed that former Governor of the state, Gboyega Oyetola will contest the 2026 governorship election in the state.

Oyetola, who is the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, lost the governorship elections to Governor Ademola Adeleke in 2022.

However, speaking to journalists in Osogbo on Wednesday, October 16, Oyintiloye said the Minister would be the right person to end the administration of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2026.

The former lawmaker said: “We are more than prepared to wrestle power from PDP in 2026, and the people of the state are eagerly waiting to see that happening.

“Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola will contest and win the 2026 governorship election in Osun. He holds the right of first refusal. And he is already doing his background work.

“He has commenced consultation, looking at the strengths and challenges before us as a party. He is prepared and he is going back to Oke Fia Government House in 2026.”

Speaking on why Oyetola remains the best candidate for APC at the next governorship poll in Osun, Oyintiloye said during his four-year tenure, Osun State witnessed a steady transformation in areas of health, education, agriculture, infrastructure, and rural community development, among others.

According to him: “Despite the fact that the federal allocation at that time was meagre, Oyetola, leveraging rich experience garnered from both the private and public sectors over the years, was able to utilise the available resources in such a way that all the sectors felt positive impacts.”

He said that the achievements of Oyetola in the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy in less than two years were highly commendable through a substantial increment in revenue generation, strategic investment in port infrastructure for efficiency and accessibility, and adoption of the national single window initiative aimed at facilitating efficiency trade processing.

“This is a further testimony to his ability to perform in any given assignment,” he said.

Oyintiloye called on APC members of the state to remain united and support Oyetola in the quest to win the next governorship poll in the state.