Chairman of the Planning Committee of the Ogun State All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential and Governorship Campaign Council, Hon. Kayode Oladele, has charged the state’s Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate for the 2027 governorship election, Hon. Ladi Adebutu, to get a clean bill of health from the court regarding his unresolved vote buying case arising from the 2023 governorship election before re-contesting the 2027 election.
Recall that Adebutu, who was also the PDP governorship candidate in 2023, is currently standing trial alongside other accused persons, over allegations of vote buying arising from the March 18, 2023 governorship election.
According to the prosecution, Adebutu allegedly ordered 200,000 prepaid Verve cards loaded with ₦10,000 each, amounting to two billion Naira and which were distributed with the intention of inducing voters.
But the PDP governorship flagbearer, Adebutu pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Oladele, however, said the controversy could not simply be swept under the carpet because Adebutu had secured another governorship ticket for the 2027 election.
According to the APC chieftain, “The political contradiction is impossible to ignore. Adebutu is asking the same people of Ogun State for another mandate while serious allegations arising from his previous governorship contest remain before the court.
“He cannot simply repackage himself for 2027 and expect 2023 to disappear from public memory. A fresh campaign poster does not erase an unresolved criminal prosecution. A new party ticket does not cancel old questions.
“The allegations are far too weighty to be wished away. The prosecution alleges that 200,000 prepaid cards loaded with ₦10,000 each were involved. That is an alleged value of ₦2 billion. Adebutu has pleaded not guilty, but Ogun people are entitled to ask what became of those allegations before being asked to entrust him with the governorship.”
Recall that in March 2024, an Ogun State High Court admitted as exhibit Adebutu’s account opening documents and statements of account after a bank official testified that he ordered 200,000 prepaid cards shortly before the election. However, the admission of those documents did not amount to a finding of guilt.
But Oladele said the existence of the case made Adebutu’s renewed governorship ambition a legitimate subject of heightened public scrutiny.
He added, “This is where Adebutu must stop behaving as though asking questions about 2023 is a political persecution.
“You cannot seek the highest office in the state and simultaneously demand that inconvenient questions about your last attempt should be forgotten. Governorship is not a sanctuary from accountability.
“The public deserves more than political reinvention. It deserves answers.”
In November 2025, an Ogun State High Court dismissed an application brought by Adebutu and five others seeking to stop the criminal proceedings and directed the prosecution to proceed to trial.
Oladele said that development made it even more difficult for Adebutu to treat the matter as politically irrelevant.
He further stated, “2027 must not become an escape route from unanswered questions about 2023. Adebutu cannot simply leap from one governorship contest to another and expect the people to suspend their memory.
“The case is there. The plea is on record. The proceedings are there. These are not inventions of Senator Yayi. They are matters already placed before the judiciary.
“If Adebutu says the allegations are false, he has every opportunity to defend himself in court, but what he cannot reasonably demand is silence from the electorate while he asks them for another mandate.”
The APC chieftain therefore maintained that the broader issue was whether Adebutu would be willing to submit himself to the same standards of accountability he demanded of his main opponent.
Oladele said, “Anybody can criticise an opponent. Anybody can issue statements. Anybody can make campaign promises. However when you are asking millions of people to entrust you with executive power, they are entitled to look beyond your blueprint and interrogate your electoral integrity.
“They are entitled to examine your record, your conduct and the controversies surrounding your previous bids for office.
“Adebutu cannot have it both ways. He cannot demand scrutiny of his opponents and pretend as if he has immunity from interrogation”.
The APC chieftain also warned that the 2027 general elections should not be reduced to money politics or temporary inducement.
He added, “Ogun people should insist on a contest of records, ideas and programmes. They should ask every candidate what he has done before, what he proposes to do and what evidence supports his claims.
“No candidate should expect voters to forget serious unresolved issues merely because another campaign has begun.”
Oladele argued that the major political question for Adebutu was therefore straightforward, stressing, “You are asking Ogun people to make you governor in 2027. Fine. Then be prepared to answer every legitimate question arising from 2023 gubernatorial elections.
“A new election does not erase an old controversy. Political ambition does not wipe the slate clean and a party ticket does not place anybody above public scrutiny, particularly when the case hanging above his head can lead to criminal convictions.”
