The Oyo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has failed to conduct its primary election slated for Saturday, 19th July 2025, across the various wards of the federal constituency.
According to multiple reports, the party leadership had met with stakeholders involved in the process—aspirants, party officials, electoral committee members, and others—to fine-tune a rancour-free process for the party. At the state secretariat, efforts to reach the party’s Publicity Secretary proved abortive as he was said to be out of town.
Speaking with the State Youth Leader of the party, Hon. Aremu John, he revealed that the party leadership was not leaving any stone unturned in ensuring a democratic process in Ibadan North Federal Constituency.
“Just a couple of minutes ago, the leadership of the party met with all the aspirants on the delegates congress and the primary. But it was agreed that they should meet among themselves and resolve on the mode of primary they wanted, and the leadership will ensure a due and fair process,” he said.
He further noted that, “The national body of the party has its schedule, and the window for submission is still on and valid until Monday. So, the party has not in any way failed the process,” he noted. “And it is important to also state that the party is not imposing any candidate on the members.”
Touring some wards in the federal constituency, it was observed that party members at various locations were left stranded from the 7am schedule for the commencement of the Congress for delegates and primary election exercises. As of 5pm, members were still waiting in some wards expecting officials from INEC and the party to conduct the necessary exercise.
In Ward 6 and Ward 7, party chairmen and members were seen wandering around the primary election venues, waiting for respective officials to arrive for the exercise, while members at Ward 11 have left for their various houses.
Speaking with the Press, the Ward 6 Party Chairman, Mr. Mohammed Sanni expressed his displeasure over the long wait since morning.
“Most of our members have left for their various houses when they couldn’t tolerate the endless waiting. But if we have the officials on ground now, we will re-mobilise them to come back for the process.”
He added that, “It was so disappointing to see that the party is not really taking us seriously, with no communication on the state of things. We are the strength of the party at the local level, and we deserve our own respect,” he said.
In his own reaction, the Ward 7 Chairman of Ibadan North APC Hon. Adebayo said, “It was embarrassing for us to be roaming around this place since early morning with nothing to show that the primary election is coming up or not.”
He expressed their level of preparation: “You can see security personnel on standby to ensure peaceful conduct. Even though we understand that the death of former President Muhammadu Buhari distorted some party processes at the national level, we still should have been properly briefed and updated rather than wasting the whole day waiting for officials to conduct the primary election.”
Comrade Detula, one of the Ward 7 stakeholders in Ibadan North, expressed his dissatisfaction with the entire process.
“We’ve been here since morning with nothing to show for it. I think the party should have properly communicated with us on the state of things instead of keeping us waiting unnecessarily,” he added.
In a follow-up with the aspirants, another meeting convened within the federal constituency further confirmed the stalemate. Aspirants were seen wearing unsmiling expressions, showing signs of dissatisfaction with the possible outcome of the meeting.
Chatting with some of the aspirants, it was evident that they wanted a true primary election to hold and to save the future of the party—not any other option likely being tabled before them.
“It is important to note that a true democratic process must be followed to produce the party candidate for the bye-election. We have gone too far in this process to now thwart it with unnecessary problems. I’m not going to be satisfied with anything other than a true democratic process within the party.
We must secure this party for the coming 2027 general election. This is a test for us—we must not fail,” said Hon. Wale Murphy, an aspirant.
While some other aspirants chose not to speak with the press, Hon. Olusegun Olaleye, popularly known as Radical Brother, boldly declared a stalemate in the state of APC’s primary election for Ibadan North.
According to him, “We are in a state of stalemate as far as the process is concerned in APC. And we must do everything possible to ensure that a true democratic process takes its course. We must not allow any undemocratic ideas or processes to destroy this party.”
“This is our party. This is President Bola Tinubu’s party. Our President is a lover of democratic processes. During the 2023 primary elections of the party, when it was rumoured that a consensus arrangement was ongoing, Asiwaju didn’t get carried away with it. He insisted on due democratic process and he won his ticket through it. Why should Ibadan North Federal Constituency be different?” he queried.
“This election is a litmus test for the party towards the 2027 election. We must not fail Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, we must not fail our Party Chairman in Oyo State, Alh. Olayide Abass, and we must not fail the general public by taking the wrong path in choosing our party’s candidate.”
“We all have invested in building this party, even without being in government in the state. Let us go through a true primary election process for the sake of projecting the good image of the party ahead of 2027,” he concluded.
Other aspirants in attendance include Hon. Bashorun Adekunle Oladeji Omo BAO, Hon. Aderounmu Saheed, Dr. Olamide Junaid, and Hon. Omikunle. Unconfirmed reports indicate that all aspirants were in attendance.
