BY: Mustapha Lawal
Claim:
A Facebook user claimed that APC chieftain Akin Ogunbiyi had endorsed Governor Ademola Adeleke ahead of the Osun State governorship election.
Verdict:
FALSE & MISLEADING! FactCheckAfrica found that the image used to support the claim is from 2022, when Ogunbiyi contested the Osun governorship election on the platform of the Accord Party. Ogunbiyi has also publicly reaffirmed his support for the APC candidate, Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, ahead of the August 15, 2026 election.
Full Text
As Osun State prepares to hold its governorship election on August 15, 2026, claims about political endorsements and defections have continued to circulate across social media.
On August 14, 2026, a Facebook user (Abdulsalam Ibraheem), shared a post claiming that Akin Ogunbiyi, an APC chieftain and the party’s Osun West senatorial candidate, had declared support for Governor Ademola Adeleke.
The post was accompanied by an image of Ogunbiyi wearing an Accord party muffler. The accompanying text read: “Akin Ogunbiyi, APC Osun West Senatorial Candidate, declares support for Adeleke, says his love for Accord is unwavering.”
The claim was subsequently circulated by other social media users, prompting questions about whether Ogunbiyi had abandoned the APC and endorsed Adeleke ahead of the election. As at the time of filing this report, the claim has 138 shares and 306 comments.
Given the proximity of the claim to the election, FactCheckAfrica examined the image, the circumstances surrounding its publication and Ogunbiyi’s recent political activities.
Verification
FactCheckAfrica conducted a reverse image search on the photograph and found that it predates the current election. The image was published in connection with the 2022 Osun State governorship election, when Ogunbiyi contested the governorship on the platform of the Accord Party.
The presence of the branded “Accord Party” clothing on the photograph therefore does not establish that the image represents Ogunbiyi’s current political affiliation or that he has recently declared support for Adeleke.
FactCheckAfrica also reviewed recent reports concerning Ogunbiyi’s political activities ahead of the 2026 governorship election.
On August 7, 2026, Daily Trust reported that Ogunbiyi inaugurated a 100-member Election Monitoring and Mobilisation Committee in his hometown of Ile-Ogbo as part of efforts to support the APC’s campaign ahead of the election.
More importantly, following the circulation of the endorsement claim, Ogunbiyi’s campaign organisation issued a statement rejecting the report.
The statement said Ogunbiyi had not declared support for Governor Adeleke and had not authorised anyone to make such a declaration on his behalf.
It further stated that Ogunbiyi remained committed to the APC and to the candidacy of the party’s governorship candidate, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji (AMBO).
The campaign organisation also specifically dismissed the claim that Ogunbiyi had expressed continued allegiance to the Accord Party, describing the report as false and misleading.
The statement urged members of the public and the media to verify political claims before sharing or publishing them.
Therefore the claim appears to have been built around a genuine image of Ogunbiyi, but the photograph has been taken out of its original context.
While Ogunbiyi was indeed associated with the Accord Party when he contested the 2022 governorship election, that historical affiliation does not demonstrate that he currently supports the party or has endorsed Adeleke in the 2026 election.
Available evidence instead points to his current involvement with the APC and support for its candidate in the Osun governorship election.
Conclusion
The claim that APC chieftain Akin Ogunbiyi has endorsed Governor Ademola Adeleke ahead of the Osun governorship election is false and misleading. The image used to support the claim dates back to 2022, when Ogunbiyi contested the governorship election under the Accord Party. It does not provide evidence of a recent endorsement of Adeleke.
Furthermore, Ogunbiyi’s campaign organisation has publicly denied the alleged endorsement and reaffirmed his support for the APC governorship candidate, Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji. The claim is therefore false & misleading because it uses an old image and political context to create a false impression about Ogunbiyi’s current political position.
