The Serving Orerseer of Citadel Global Community Church (CGCC), Pastor Tunde Bakare, has disclosed that it was the intervention of the Awujale and Paramount Ruler of ljebu Land, Kabiyesi Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, that brought together the leaders of the then Congress of Progressive Change (CPC) and defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) to form the All Progressive Congress (APC).
Bakare made this disclosure yesterday in his tribute to the late Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, which was titled “Tribute to a Patriot, Mentor and Elder Statesman – The Awujele and Paramount Ruler of Ijebu Land.”
The Awujele joined his ancestors on Sunday, July 13, 2025.
Bakare said: “What many Nigerians may not know is that without the Awujale’s pivotal intervention, the All Progressives Congress (APC) might not have emerged as a political party.
“After the 2011 general elections–in which I served as running mate to then-General Muhammadu Buhari under the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), I approached Kabiyesi in London.
“I urged him to speak with Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who was then the leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), about the possibility of a merger between our political platforms to form a united and formidable opposition to the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
“Upon his return to Nigeria, Kabiyesi convened a key meeting at the Oriental Hotel in Victoria lsland and brokered the agreement that led to the formation of the APC.”
The pastor of CGCC, however, added that “even at that, Kabiyesi was non-partisan, supporting any course he thought would facilitate good governance, strengthen the national interest, foster peace and further the course of building a united Nigeria.
“He remained, to the very end, an elder statesman, a patriot, a mentor, a loyal friend, and a rare gift to this nation.
“He was a man of uncommon wisdom and a strong sense of justice. I will never forget my first personal encounter with him-an experience that revealed his extraordinary fairness and discernment.
“It is with profound gratitude to God for a life well lived-and yet with deep sadness at the loss of a father figure that I pay tribute to who departed this earth on July 13, 2025.”
Bakare said that he found “it necessary to honour his legacy and reflect on the weight of his contributions to nation building from my unique perspective.
“I am especially moved by the fact that Kabiyesi passed on the same day as former President Muhammadu Buhari. This coincidence is deeply significant to me -not only because of the Awujale’s untold contributions to the former president’s political success, but also because July 13 is the same date I left Abeokuta for Lagos many years ago. That day now bears a deeper resonance.”
Bakare also described the late Kabiyesi as open-minded monarch that had a heart for God and a fan of his television broadcast “The Moment of Truth,” which the monarch watched without fail, almost throughout life. He would often call to appreciate my commitment to speaking truth to power.
“There was nothing I asked Kabiyesi for-on behalf of others that he did not graciously grant to ‘his Grcat Pastor.’ In one of our final meetings last year, speaking to the guests I brought along. Kabiyesi said that ‘there is nothing pastor can ask me that I will not give. Even if he asks for my soul, I will ask to spend three more months, and then give it to him.” That was the depth of our relationship,” Bakere said.
He also said that Ijebu Land truly prospered under his reign, and his contributions to education–particularly to the development of Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ogun State -and to the preservation of decent culture through the Ojude Oba ceremony can never be forgotten.
Bakare said: “May the noble soul of Kabiyesi rest in perfect peace. May God strengthen and comfort Olori Adetona, their children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and the extended royal family he leaves behind. May his legacy endure.”
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