Former Osun State Governor, Olagunsoye Oyinlola, has dismissed Governor Ademola Adeleke’s claim that he gave him a new vehicle before endorsing the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, ahead of Saturday’s election.

Oyinlola described the claim as untrue, insisting that the vehicle was provided by the Osun State Government as part of the benefits prescribed for former governors under a law enacted by the state House of Assembly.

The former governor made this known in an interview with Channels Television while reacting to Adeleke’s allegation.

“That is far from the truth and it is a bad development that a governor will continue to tell lies,” Oyinlola said.

According to him, the law provides for the replacement of official vehicles allocated to former governors every four years, among other benefits.

“It wasn’t Ademola that gave me vehicle. It was the Osun State Government, it is a law of the state enacted by the House of Assembly,” he said.

Oyinlola, who left office 16 years ago, said the provision had not been fully implemented in his case, arguing that he was entitled to vehicles that ought to have been replaced over the years.

“I’ve been out of Osun State government since the last 16 years. If you aggregate it, it means the state is still having to give up three vehicles,” he said.

He added that the legislation also covers other benefits, including security personnel and domestic staff for former governors.

“There are other things, like my security, should be taken care of. The police should be paid for, the cook should be taken care of and the drivers. Those are the requisites of that enactment,” Oyinlola said.

The clarification followed Adeleke’s comments during an Arise News town hall meeting in Osogbo on Tuesday, where the governor accused Oyinlola of turning against him and the Adeleke family despite what he described as the family’s support and generosity towards the former governor.

Adeleke said Oyinlola had not supported the Adeleke family politically despite the family’s alleged support for him over the years.

The governor recalled that Oyinlola contested against his late brother, Isiaka Adeleke, who was the first elected governor of Osun State, despite his claim that Isiaka helped bring Oyinlola into politics following his retirement from the military.

He further alleged that Oyinlola failed to support his own political ambitions during his bids for the Senate and governorship, saying the former governor instead backed other candidates, including former Secretary to the Osun State Government, Fatai Akinbade.

Adeleke claimed that candidates backed by Oyinlola suffered heavy defeats at the polls and alleged that he had consistently defeated Oyinlola’s preferred candidates, including in the former governor’s hometown and polling unit.

The governor, however, said their relationship changed after his victory in the 2022 governorship election.

According to Adeleke, Oyinlola approached him after the election and complained that he did not have a car.

“Immediately I won, he came back to me that he didn’t have a car. I gave him a new car. He collected the car, went to APM, and two days ago, he endorsed the APC candidate,” Adeleke said.

The governor subsequently questioned Oyinlola’s decision to support Oyebamiji, describing the former governor’s political alignment as part of what he characterised as a longstanding pattern of opposition to the Adeleke family.