Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has praised President Bola Tinubu’s democratic credentials, saying the outcome of the recent Osun State governorship election showed that a ruling party can lose an election under his administration without the “sky falling”.

Sanwo-Olu made the remark on Thursday at the seventh annual lecture organised by Freedom Online at the Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, where he spoke on Nigeria’s democratic development and the 2027 elections.

The governor cited the August 15 Osun governorship election, won by incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke, as evidence of Tinubu’s commitment to democratic principles.

Adeleke, who contested on the platform of another party, defeated the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, by more than 60,000 votes.

Tinubu subsequently congratulated Adeleke, describing his re-election as a “fitting assurance” that democracy would continue to flourish under his administration.

A few days after the election, the President also held a closed-door meeting with Adeleke at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, where he urged the governor to work towards uniting the state.

Sanwo-Olu said the development marked a departure from the past when opposition parties often struggled to defeat the ruling party in elections.

“There was a time in this country when ‘federal might’ was a phrase that a ruling party used without irony,” he said.

“Under this President, the ruling party can lose a state in the South-West in an election year, and the sky does not fall. That is what a maturing democracy looks like.

“This President is a lifelong democrat, and he means to leave behind a stronger democracy than he inherited, not only for Nigerians but as an example to a continent that badly needs one.”

The Lagos governor also said Nigeria’s electoral process had recorded significant improvements, citing the Electoral Act of 2022, the newly enacted Electoral Act of 2026 and the deployment of technology for voter verification and result transmission.

He, however, stressed the need for further measures to ensure the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was fully prepared for the 2027 elections.

“INEC must be ready in every polling unit on the 16th of January and again on the 6th of February, and each of us has a duty to help it be ready,” Sanwo-Olu said.

He also warned political parties and candidates against undermining the electoral process, insisting that no political victory was worth the life of any Nigerian.

“A mandate is only as strong as the process that produced it. No office in this land is worth the life of a single Nigerian and no victory won by the wrong means is a victory at all,” he said.

According to Sanwo-Olu, governors will play a crucial role in the 2027 elections, with voters expected to assess state governments based on their performance in office.

“Voters may not be economists, but they are excellent accountants. They know whether their State built the road it promised. They know whether the primary health centre has a nurse in it. They will bring that ledger with them to the polling unit,” he said.

Sanwo-Olu also charged the media to remain independent, rigorous and willing to hold political actors accountable, including members of his own party.

“I am not asking for a compliant press. A compliant press is of no use to a democracy; it flatters the powerful and abandons the public,” he said.

“I am asking for a rigorous press. Check the facts, mine included. Call out disinformation wherever it comes from, including from my own side.

“In the weeks ahead, the most dangerous lies will not come from newspapers. They will come from anonymous accounts and doctored videos and you are the institution best placed to answer them.”