Osun Under Fire: Ghost Workers, 962 Salaries in One Account, and the Infrastructure Push That’s Rewriting the Adeleke Narrative
In recent months, a flurry of negative campaigns and politically charged narratives has dominated conversations about Osun State and the administration of Governor Ademola Adeleke. Social media platforms, particularly X (formerly Twitter), have become battlegrounds where allegations, counter-allegations, satire, and outrage circulate at high velocity.
Yet beyond the noise, Osun State continues to record visible infrastructure progress under Governor Adeleke’s leadership.
The critical question for observers, voters, and political stakeholders is this: Are the viral allegations a reflection of systemic governance failure, or are they part of an intensifying political struggle ahead of the 2026/2027 election cycle?
Adeleke Flags Off Major Infrastructure Projects in Obokun
In what the administration describes as a renewed commitment to grassroots development, Governor Ademola Adeleke recently flagged off the reconstruction of the Ilahun–Ere Ìjèsà Bridge and the Ibokun/Ilahun/Ere Ìjèsà–Iwoye Ìjèsà and Otan-Ile–Esa Odo–Iwoye Ìjèsà Roads, covering a total distance of 18.5 kilometers in Obokun Local Government Area.
These projects are strategically significant. Obokun and Oriade Local Government Areas sit within the Ijesa North Federal Constituency, a region historically known for agricultural activity, small-scale trade, and cross-community commerce. Road infrastructure in this corridor is vital for transporting farm produce, facilitating market access, and improving rural-urban connectivity.
According to the state government, the reconstruction of these roads and the bridge will:
Improve economic activity across Ijesaland
Enhance transportation safety
Reduce travel time between communities
Stimulate local employment during construction
Increase property and commercial value in the affected areas
Community leaders, including the Obaala of Otan-Ile, High Chief Isiaka Ayeni, publicly commended the governor’s initiative, describing the projects as long overdue interventions that will positively impact residents.
Governor Adeleke reiterated that his administration remains committed to completing all ongoing infrastructural projects across Osun State, emphasizing that the welfare and development of the people of Ijesa North and the entire state remain top priorities.
Infrastructure, in political terms, is not merely about concrete and asphalt. It is about optics, economic signaling, and governance credibility. And that is precisely why the contrast between visible projects and viral allegations has intensified public debate.
The Ghost Worker Controversy: 962 Salaries, One Account?
While infrastructure flags are being raised in Obokun, a different kind of narrative has been trending online.
A viral allegation claims that one bank account was allegedly receiving the salaries of 962 individuals under the Adeleke administration.
Nine hundred and sixty-two.
Not two. Not twenty. Not two hundred.
Nine hundred and sixty-two individuals allegedly tied to a single account.
The claim spread rapidly across social media, accompanied by satire and incredulous commentary. The imagery practically wrote itself: 962 human beings allegedly sharing one bank account “like a family Netflix subscription.”
The controversy touches on a broader and historically sensitive issue in Nigerian public administration: ghost workers.
Ghost workers refer to non-existent or fraudulent entries on government payroll systems through which salaries are siphoned. The issue has plagued multiple states and federal agencies over the years, leading to payroll audits, biometric verification exercises, and the adoption of digital salary systems.
According to defenders of Governor Adeleke, the administration has been paying approximately ₦13 billion yearly in salaries tied to ghost workers allegedly recruited during the tenure of former Governor Gboyega Oyetola of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The claim further alleges that about 12,000 workers were recruited toward the end of the previous administration and injected into the state payroll.
“Injected.”
At this point, satire found fertile ground.
Is this a payroll system or a vaccine rollout center?
The Timeline Problem
The controversy becomes more complex when placed against the timeline of events.
On November 28, 2022, shortly after assuming office, Governor Adeleke reportedly disengaged approximately 12,000 workers employed during the closing phase of the previous administration.
Here lies the arithmetic puzzle that critics have amplified:
If 12,000 workers were disengaged immediately upon assumption of office, and those workers were allegedly ghost workers, how then do ghost salaries allegedly continue?
Are these the same workers?
Were they reinstated?
Were payroll audits incomplete?
Or does the controversy reflect deeper systemic payroll irregularities that transcend political transitions?
And what of the now-infamous account allegedly collecting 962 salaries?
Is it an administrative aggregation error?
A mischaracterized internal control account?
Or evidence of a sophisticated payroll manipulation scheme?
At this stage, without an officially published forensic audit report accessible to the public, speculation thrives.
Political Context: 2026/2027 Elections Loom
To understand the virality of these allegations, one must situate them within Osun’s political climate.
Governor Adeleke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) defeated incumbent Governor Oyetola of the APC in the July 2022 Osun governorship election. The election was closely contested, legally challenged, and politically polarizing.
Political rivalries in Osun remain intense.
As the 2026/2027 election cycle approaches, narrative warfare has predictably intensified. Social media has become a central theater of political engagement, perception shaping, and reputational attacks.
For supporters of Governor Adeleke, the concern is clear: if positive governance achievements are not amplified, opposition narratives may dominate digital space and shape public perception.
For critics, the payroll controversy symbolizes deeper accountability questions that must be addressed transparently.
Governance vs. Optics: Who Controls the Narrative?
In today’s political ecosystem, governance performance alone is insufficient. Narrative management matters.
Governor Adeleke’s administration has highlighted achievements in:
Road construction and rehabilitation
Payment of salary backlogs inherited from previous administrations
Local government infrastructure upgrades
Educational and healthcare facility improvements
Yet, in the digital age, perception often travels faster than policy outcomes.
When allegations trend, silence can be interpreted as guilt. When rebuttals lack documentation, skepticism persists. When political satire dominates timelines, serious governance discussions get drowned out.
At this point, Osun’s political discourse resembles an arithmetic class where “mathematics is crying in the corner.”
Because either:
1. Ghost workers are astonishingly organized and operate like a cooperative society.
2. Someone failed to log out of a deeply flawed payroll system.
3. Or Osun’s payroll has achieved artificial intelligence before Silicon Valley.
Defending the situation without transparent data is like attempting to explain how a single plate of rice is feeding 962 people.
Eventually, common sense raises its hand and asks to be excused.
What Osun Needs Now
Osun does not need satire alone. It needs clarity.
If ghost workers exist, publish the audit.
If irregular accounts were discovered, disclose the forensic findings.
If the allegations are false, provide documentary evidence.
Transparent governance is the strongest antidote to viral misinformation.
Simultaneously, infrastructure delivery must continue consistently and visibly. The reconstruction of the Ilahun–Ere Ìjèsà Bridge and the 18.5km road network in Obokun demonstrates that development activity is ongoing.
For residents of Ijesaland, passable roads may matter more than trending hashtags.
For political strategists, however, perception may decide the next election.
The Digital Battlefield Ahead of 2027
There is a growing belief among supporters of Governor Adeleke that his administration requires stronger digital engagement — an “army” of online voices willing to amplify developmental achievements and counter opposition narratives.
But digital mobilization must be grounded in facts. Flooding social media with slogans without documentation can backfire.
The most effective communication strategy combines:
Verified data
Visual evidence of projects
Independent media coverage
Timely responses to allegations
Consistent grassroots engagement
Ultimately, Osun’s electorate will judge governance not only by memes and viral threads but by lived experience — roads driven on, salaries paid, schools renovated, hospitals functioning.
Conclusion: Beyond Ghosts and Hashtags
The Osun payroll controversy — particularly the sensational claim of 962 salaries linked to one account — demands transparent clarification. Satire alone cannot resolve it. Political loyalty cannot erase it. Only verifiable documentation can settle the debate.
At the same time, infrastructure progress under Governor Ademola Adeleke is visible in multiple communities, including the newly flagged-off projects in Obokun.
Osun stands at a crossroads between governance reality and narrative warfare.
If arithmetic truly needs therapy, then the cure is transparency.
If ghosts are haunting the payroll, then daylight is the solution.
And if development is happening, then evidence — not emotion — should tell the story.
As the road to 2027 approaches, one thing is certain: In Osun State, politics is no longer just about policies.
It is about perception, performance, and proof.
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