House of Representatives member James Faleke has denied allegations by Afrobeats star David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, that he pressured the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to alter the outcome of Saturday’s Osun State governorship election.
As collation of results proceeded in Osogbo on Saturday, Davido, who is a nephew of Osun Governor Ademola Adeleke, posted on X accusing Faleke of putting pressure on INEC to change the election result. “Hon. James Faleke, stop putting pressure on INEC to change Osun election result. Respect the wishes of Osun people. We don’t want Oyetola and AMBO,” Davido wrote, referring to former Osun governor Gboyega Oyetola and APC candidate Bola Oyebamiji, popularly known by his initials AMBO.
The allegation came amid a wave of similar accusations Davido levelled during the collation process, in which he separately called out Senate Majority Leader Opeyemi Bamidele and Ogun State Senator Olamilekan Adeola, alleging in another post that the trio were “making extra moves to upturn the results” while in Osogbo. Davido, who served as head of youth mobilisation for his uncle’s re-election campaign, had been an active and vocal presence throughout the collation period, at one point also declaring in a separate post: “I CAN NEVER SUPPORT APC IN MY LIFE!!!”
Also read: Davido, lawmaker James Faleke trade barbs over Osun election result
Responding in a post on X on Sunday, Faleke who represents the Ikeja Federal Constituency of Lagos State and had travelled to Osun to support APC candidate Oyebamiji rejected the allegation outright. He argued that his presence in the state was no different from Davido’s own involvement in campaigning for Governor Adeleke and the Accord Party.
“I came to Osun to support my party’s candidate, while you supported your uncle’s party (Accord). INEC is a body that can’t be influenced by me or anyone else,” Faleke wrote.
He went further, denying any history of electoral interference and telling the singer to focus on his own profession: “I have never influenced or rigged before, and I don’t plan to start now. Face your music while we face our politics.”
The tone of the exchange shifted once INEC formally declared Adeleke the winner of the election, with the governor polling 511,067 votes against Oyebamiji’s 444,815. Faleke followed up with a more conciliatory post, congratulating Adeleke on his re-election and describing Oyebamiji’s performance in the contest as a “very good outing,” while praising the APC candidate for his commitment and sportsmanship during the race.
Faleke also commended INEC for the conduct of the election and security agencies for maintaining what he called a peaceful and orderly process, describing the outcome as evidence that democracy remained vibrant in Nigeria.
The dispute unfolded against a backdrop of heightened political tension throughout the collation process, with Governor Adeleke separately alleging attempts to disrupt or bypass proper collation procedures and raising concerns directly with President Bola Tinubu. Davido’s allegations against Faleke, Bamidele and Adeola have not been independently corroborated, and none of the reports reviewed indicated any confirmation from INEC that its process had been improperly influenced.
