….backs Tinubu, omits Sharafadeen Alli
APC NOMINATION PROCESS IN OYO STATE: CLOSING THE CONTEST, NOT CONCEDING THE INJUSTICE
Following the intensity and challenges of the past several months, I took a short and well-deserved vacation outside the country to rest, reflect and strategically reassess the journey ahead.
Upon my return, I met on Wednesday, 26 August 2026, with some party leaders and representatives of our loyalists and supporters from across the 33 Local Government Areas and 351 wards of Oyo State. The meeting provided an opportunity to review recent developments, listen to one another and collectively discuss the way forward following the conclusion of the APC nomination processes for the 2027 general elections.
I used the opportunity to express my profound appreciation to the thousands of loyal party members, leaders, stakeholders and supporters across Oyo State who participated in the process and stood firmly with us throughout the journey. I remain deeply humbled by the confidence, sacrifices, commitment and solidarity demonstrated by our people. The support we received across the length and breadth of the state will forever remain one of the most treasured experiences of my political journey.
At the meeting, we carefully reflected on the concerns raised by party members, aspirants and stakeholders following the conclusion of the various primary elections and the subsequent actions of the National Leadership of our great party.
We reiterated our concern that the actual results of the primary elections, including the votes reportedly scored by individual aspirants at the ward and Local Government levels, have not been formally and transparently declared to party members and the public. Rather, names of selected individuals were subsequently entered on the INEC electronic portal as the party’s candidates for the 2027 general elections.
This development has effectively produced candidates without the transparent publication of the actual results upon which such nominations were supposedly based. The concerns arising from this process cut across the governorship, senatorial, House of Representatives and State House of Assembly nominations.
We agreed that the absence of publicly declared and verifiable results has understandably generated serious concerns about the transparency, credibility and integrity of the nomination process. We also affirmed that substantial documentary materials, authenticated collation records and video evidence exist which, in our considered view, raise serious questions about aspects of the process and the eventual outcomes.
However, I informed the meeting that, after extensive consultations and careful consideration, I have decided, as a loyal and committed member of the All Progressives Congress, not to pursue an appeal within the party or institute legal proceedings over the process at this time.
This decision is not because of a lack of evidence, confidence or conviction. Neither should it be interpreted as an act of surrender or an indication that my aspiration to serve as Governor of Oyo State is a do-or-die affair.
Rather, I have chosen, in the interest of peace, party stability and the larger future of the APC in Oyo State, not to further escalate the matter through avenues that may deepen existing divisions and undermine the cohesion of our great party.
More importantly, our respected National Chairman, during his recent visit to Oyo State, openly acknowledged that there were errors, unfairness and injustice associated with aspects of the primary election process. We believe that an acknowledgement or apology, though important, cannot and should not substitute for the necessary correction where the opportunity to address the grievances still exists.
The honourable and sustainable path is for the party to take the necessary steps to correct the errors and restore confidence in the process. This, in our view, would be far more effective than constituting reconciliation mechanisms whose sole purpose may appear to be persuading those who feel aggrieved to simply accept and move on without addressing the underlying issues.
We also agreed that it is important to distinguish between the aspirants who participated in the process and the thousands of party members and supporters whose disappointment and anger arise from what they believe was a disregard for the choices they expressed during the primaries.
Across Oyo State, many loyal members have invested years of their lives, enormous personal resources, time, energy and political capital in building the APC. Many of them now feel that their sacrifices, votes and preferences have been disregarded and that candidates who do not necessarily reflect the popular choices of party members have emerged without a transparent declaration of the results of the primaries.
Their grievances are genuine and must not be dismissed as merely the product of the influence or persuasion of any particular aspirant. Indeed, many party members are deeply convinced that their own votes, sacrifices and preferences were disregarded, and some may not readily accept appeals from the aspirants they supported.
The National Leadership of our party must therefore appreciate that the responsibility for reconciliation cannot simply be transferred to aspirants. The APC has important work to do to restore confidence, rebuild trust and return cohesion and unity to the party in Oyo State.
In our considered view, the most meaningful path to genuine reconciliation is to address the issues that have given rise to the grievances in the first place. The party must demonstrate, through concrete actions, that justice, fairness, transparency and the wishes of its members remain the foundation of its democratic processes.
We therefore urge the National Leadership of the APC to urgently initiate a comprehensive, sincere and credible reconciliation process that covers all categories of nominations and genuinely engages all affected stakeholders. Members who feel wounded, betrayed or alienated must be deliberately engaged and reassured—not merely through appeals, but through concrete actions that demonstrate that their loyalty, sacrifices and contributions still matter.
The implications of the present situation must not be underestimated. Electoral victory cannot be secured merely by entering names on an electronic portal or announcing candidates. Elections are won through the trust, enthusiasm, commitment and active participation of party members and supporters, particularly at the grassroots.
These were the strong and consistent views expressed by members present at the meeting.
I also reiterated that my aspiration to serve as Governor of Oyo State has never been, and will never be, a do-or-die project. By the grace of Almighty God, I have been privileged to serve at the highest levels of both the private and public sectors, and for these opportunities, I remain profoundly grateful.
My aspiration to serve as Governor is driven by a genuine desire to contribute more directly to the development, prosperity and progress of Oyo State and its people.
However, as human beings, we may propose, but Almighty God ultimately disposes according to His divine will and perfect timing. While recent developments may have delayed the realisation of this aspiration, I remain firmly convinced that what may be delayed by human actions cannot be denied by Almighty God. God’s time, indeed, remains the best.
We are therefore still hopeful and optimistic that our great party will ultimately do the right thing, correct whatever needs to be corrected and create the unity and enthusiasm required to make the task of winning the 2027 general elections easier.
Let me also state unequivocally that I remain a faithful, loyal and committed member of the All Progressives Congress. I am not leaving the party, and my commitment to its progress remains unwavering.
However, loyalty to a political party does not require members to pretend that everything is perfect when genuine concerns exist. True loyalty demands the courage to speak honestly, constructively and responsibly when the need arises.
To my supporters, loyalists and party faithful across Oyo State, I appeal for continued peace, restraint, maturity and civility. You gave a good account of yourselves and pursued an honourable cause in support of your choices within the ambit of the law.
I understand your disappointment, your frustrations and the enormous sacrifices many of you have made throughout this journey. However, I urge you not to allow disappointment to destroy the values of democratic engagement, discipline and responsible political conduct that have always defined our movement.
I leave you with a simple but profound lesson from the wise teachings of my late grandmother:
“Revenge doesn’t heal; it only creates another wound.”
We must therefore resist the temptation to respond to perceived injustice with actions that may ultimately injure the very political family and democratic ideals we have spent years building.
Finally, while we shall continue to advocate for the proper correction of the errors and concerns arising from the nomination process, I wish to make it absolutely clear that I do not support, encourage or condone any form of anti-party activity by any of my supporters, loyalists, associates or political structures.
Any such action is unacceptable, condemned and does not have my blessing.
I remain in the APC, and my loyalty to the party and to the administration and leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu remains unwavering, notwithstanding the genuine concerns and perceived injustice arising from the nomination process.
To every supporter who stood with us throughout this journey, I express my sincere and profound gratitude for your loyalty, sacrifices and unwavering belief. Your dedication has not been in vain.
We may be closing this particular contest, but we are not conceding the injustice. We are choosing the path of peace without surrendering the principles of fairness, transparency and democratic justice.
Our political journey continues. Our commitment to Oyo State remains firm. Our faith in God remains unshaken, and our belief in a better future for our state and our people remains stronger than ever.
May God bless Oyo State.
May God bless the All Progressives Congress.
May God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
