- A faction of elders within the Kwara State All Progressives Congress, operating under the Kwara State APC Elders Caucus, has openly rejected the emergence of House of Assembly Speaker Yakubu Danladi-Salihu as the party’s 2027 gubernatorial flagbearer.
- The state chapter of the APC swiftly dismissed the elders’ assertions, labeling the group an unrecognized body of interlopers and maintaining that the primary election was transparent, credible, and fully supervised.
- A rival group of party stakeholders, led by the Renewed Hope Agenda Ambassadors, has strongly defended the primary outcome, asserting that Danladi-Salihu holds overwhelming popularity among the state’s youthful demographic and core local government areas.
A major political storm has hit the Kwara State chapter of the All Progressives Congress following a sharp division among party stakeholders over the choice of Speaker Yakubu Danladi-Salihu as the official governorship candidate for the 2027 elections.
Eko Hot Blog reports that the brewing crisis escalated on Monday when a prominent group of elders, led by James Ayenioye, held a press conference in Ilorin to demand an immediate review of the primary election results.
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The elders petitioned President Bola Tinubu and the APC National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, warning that upholding Danladi-Salihu’s ticket could alienate critical voters and trigger an embarrassing electoral defeat for the ruling party in Kwara State.
The aggrieved Elders Caucus alleged that a credible governorship primary did not actually take place on May 22, 2026, despite official declarations.
They criticized Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq for quickly endorsing the Speaker and presenting him to the national leadership without conducting extensive consultations with other key aspirants and foundation stakeholders across the state’s three senatorial districts.
According to Ayenioye, the Speaker lacks the broad statewide appeal required to defeat a rapidly strengthening political opposition, accusing certain influential aides within the Presidency of attempting to foist an unpopular candidate on the state for personal patronage.
Hours after the critical press conference, the Kwara State APC leadership issued an aggressive counter-statement via its state Publicity Secretary, Alhaji A.O. Babatunde, to nullify the elders’ claims.
The party insisted that the governorship primary was fully valid, transparent, and strictly supervised by a national committee led by Senator Musiliu Obanikoro alongside state security apparatuses.
Dismissing the Ayenioye-led group as an illegitimate, unrecognized entity within the party structure, Babatunde affirmed that Danladi-Salihu is a tested administrator with deep roots across Kwara who secured a resounding 94,990 votes in a free and fair contest.
Adding another layer to the internal struggle, a separate influential group of party elders under the Renewed Hope Agenda Ambassadors, coordinated by Abdullateef Alakawa, organized a solidarity brief to support the Speaker’s candidacy.
Flanked by Kwara Central APC Elders Caucus coordinator Alhaji Razaq Lawal, Alakawa stated that the primary process was highly peaceful and that major competitors, including Amb Yahaya Seriki, had already mobilized support for the winner.
The group emphasized that Danladi-Salihu’s ticket represents a strategic victory for youth inclusion and regional balance, assuring the national secretariat that Kwara remains securely unified behind the governor to deliver a clean sweep in 2027.
