Okpebholo, Uzodimma and Adeleke: When governors forget they are colleagues
August 12, 2026 12:15 am
A few days to the governorship election in Osun State, political campaigns are becoming increasingly toxic, with key players throwing courtesy into the wind in their utterances and behaviours. Though people often argue that politics is a dirty game, political actors must not drag one another in the mud in the name of playing politics. This is why I found the exchange involving the Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, and the Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, over their Osun State counterpart, Ademola Adeleke, ahead of the August 15 governorship election very troubling.
Elections should not necessarily destroy relationships. Political competition is expected, but there should be limits to what political leaders say about one another. It is even more worrisome when the negative rhetoric is coming from governors against a governor like them. Governors are colleagues who occupy the same constitutional position, regardless of their party affiliation. Do they overlook the concept of esprit de corps—the sense of solidarity, camaraderie and mutual respect that should exist among people who occupy similar offices?
The matter with Okpebholo, to me, is the worst of the two. Unprovoked, he fired a salvo at Adeleke, claiming that the governor keeps dancing before signing any document. In a trending video, Okpebholo himself kept dancing, but this time to the gallery, when he said, “Before somebody signs paper, he will dance. Are you not tired? For four years, this man has been dancing. Before he takes breakfast, before he drinks tea, he will dance.” These were the words of a governor about a fellow governor in a video that circulated widely.
For Uzodimma, he did not personally make the statement in the manner Okpebholo did; it came through his aide. But this does not completely remove responsibility from the governor. Political aides speak in their principals’ names and are often presumed to reflect their principals’ positions. If an aide crosses the line, the governor has a responsibility to correct or caution him. Silence can sometimes be interpreted as approval, particularly when the statement concerns another governor.
Uzodimma responded to comments made by Afrobeats star, David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, over the governorship election, telling the singer to prepare to sign his uncle, Adeleke, as a dancer after the poll. Davido had, during a press conference, appealed to an unnamed politician from Imo State to allow a free and fair election in Osun State. Reacting in a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Electronic and Creative Media, Ambrose Nwaogwugwu, Uzodimma said, “Perhaps, Davido should also begin making preparations to officially sign his uncle as a dancer in his musical band, because judging by the mood of the electorate, he may well be out of a political job after the August 15, 2026, governorship election.”
I do not believe that there was anything inherently abusive in what Davido said to warrant the level of reaction that followed. Politicians should learn to separate legitimate disagreement from unnecessarily inflammatory responses. State governors are colleagues before they are political opponents. Adeleke, Okpebholo and Uzodimma may belong to different political camps, but they are all state governors. In fact, with the way politics is played in Nigeria, they may still belong to the same political party tomorrow, even outside the All Progressives Congress. By that time, I can bet that Okpebholo and Uzodimma will still praise Adeleke to the high heavens for his dancing steps, the same thing they are currently abusing him for.
Why destroy a relationship because of an election that will last only one day? In this case, where is esprit de corps? This does not mean governors must support one another politically. It means there should be a minimum level of respect among people occupying comparable constitutional offices. A governor can disagree with another governor without ridiculing, belittling or abusing him. Political differences should not erase institutional courtesy.
Osun’s election, like any other election, will eventually be over, and only one person will be declared the winner while the remaining contenders will lose. Campaign posters will come down, political rallies will end, and the candidates and their supporters will return to their normal lives. But the relationships among political leaders will continue. What then becomes of all the harsh words exchanged today?
Political actors often behave as if losing an election means losing everything. Language from senior political leaders reinforces this mentality. When governors and other political leaders use extremely combative rhetoric, supporters receive the message that victory must be secured at all costs. Supporters then interpret political contests as battles in which everything is permissible. This contributes to intimidation, political violence and the dangerous belief that the end justifies the means.
Political leaders cannot preach peace to their supporters after spending weeks or months using language that suggests the opponent is an enemy who must be destroyed. Supporters watch what their leaders say. A governor’s words carry considerably more weight than those of an ordinary party supporter. When a governor attacks another governor, supporters can feel justified in escalating the attack. When political leaders demonstrate restraint, supporters are more likely to follow. Leadership, therefore, includes responsibility for the tone of political discourse.
Let me make it clear that the purpose of this piece is not to defend Adeleke. In fact, it is within the right of Okpebholo and Uzodimma to campaign for their preferred candidate. They are also entitled to criticise Adeleke’s administration if they wish. They can tell Osun voters why they believe their preferred candidate is better. They can point out what they consider to be his failures and promise the electorate a better alternative. But there is a difference between political criticism and personal denigration. If their candidate is truly better, the right way to go is to sell his programmes, achievements, vision and competence instead of abusing the opponent. The blind argument that all is fair in politics will not work here.
The Osun election must not become a war. The voters should be allowed to decide. Security agencies must ensure that nobody intimidates voters. Political parties must restrain their supporters. As I wrote here earlier, reports of violence, political killings and alleged attacks on electoral institutions make inflammatory political language particularly dangerous. At such a delicate moment, political leaders should be cooling tensions, not adding fuel to them.
What happens after August 15? Will Okpebholo still need to interact with Adeleke after the election? Will Uzodimma and Adeleke stop being governors because they belong to different political camps? Will their states stop having common interests? Will the issues of security, development, federal allocations and the welfare of their citizens suddenly disappear? The obvious answer is that politics is temporary, but relationships and institutions endure.
When those who occupy the highest political offices speak recklessly, their supporters often hear a licence to do worse. The people who throw the first verbal punches may not be the ones who suffer the consequences when political rhetoric eventually translates into violence on the streets. If Nigeria truly wants to move away from the culture of do-or-die politics, the change must begin with those who lead it.
Elections should produce winners and losers, not permanent enemies. The August 15 election in Osun State will come and go, but the relationships among those who govern our states will remain. There must be room for disagreement without hatred, competition without destruction and political ambition without the loss of basic human and institutional respect. After all, elections will end, but relationships will remain.
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