The fears of anti-party activities have griped All Progressives Congress (APC) as the party’s National Working Committee(NWC) appears to have requested some of the party’s candidates for the 2027 general elections to submit names of their proposed party agents directly to the national secretariat.
The NWC was said to have taken the decision to prevent any possible sabotage of the party’s chances in the forthcoming general elections, particularly chances of candidates approved by the NWC, reports Daily Independent.
Though the measure was a departure from the usual practice whereby state secretariats of the party are responsible for the compilation and submission of party’s agents’ names to the national secretariat.
According to a reliable source within the party, the new arrangement is only applicable in states where the NWC suspected that some governors were surreptiously sponsoring candidates on the platforms of other political parties against APC candidates.
A socio-political group,the Oodua Progressive Youths League (OPYL), had severally alleged that some governors had directed their preferred candidates who lost in the National Assembly primaries of APC to pick tickets for same positions in other political parties to contest against APC candidates in general elections.
In a statement signed by the General Secretary of the group, Wale Abdulwaheed, the said governors had allegedly reached agreements with some opposition parties on who to be selected as polling agents for the elections.
OPYL further alleged that the aggrieved governors had directed their candidates sponsored on other political parties to nominate their loyalists within APC as agents for the ruling party.
The names of the agents were planned to be subsequently submitted to APC national secretariat as the party’s officially recognised agents in their respective states.
The new development was confirmed by a member of the National Assembly from Ondo State, who is also the party’s candidate for the 2027 elections, though subscribed to anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.
According to the lawmaker, the APC NWC had allegedly bypassed the governor of Ondo State and directed the party’s candidates to submit the names of their agents directly to the national secretariat.
The lawmaker revealed that all the candidates are already in possession of the forms for the agents.
He said: “The national body instructed the State Chairman to give us our forms directly and the chairman himself alluded that he was under instruction not to hand over the agents forms to anyone except the candidates. He confirmed that Ondo State was specifically told to follow that route.”
Moreover, the lawmaker disclosed that the national leadership of the part was monitoring the activities of APC governors across the country and might adopt a similar approach when disbursing election funds.
He said the NWC could also bypass governors suspected to be sponsoring opposition candidates and channel election funds directly to APC candidates in their states to prevent possible sabotage.
The lawmaker alleged that “It is not hidden that Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa directed some of the aspirants who contested the APC primaries but lost to seek tickets on other political platforms and contest against the party’s candidates.
“The evidence is there. We all saw some of his political appointees, including party executive members, at the declaration of Hon. Matthew Oyerinmade (MATO) for the PDP, the platform on which he has now emerged as the party’s candidate for the Ondo South Senatorial District.
“We also know that the governor is the financier of Prince Idowu Mafimisebi, who is contesting for the Ilaje/Ese-Odo Federal Constituency seat on the PDP platform.
“Recently, when Hon. Tajudeen Adefisoye, popularly known as Small Alhaji, who is now the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate for the Idanre/Ifedore Federal Constituency, held a rally in Idanre Local Government Area, the majority of the SSAs and SAs recently appointed by the governor from the area were physically present.
“So, how do you expect the party to trust such a governor to work for its success in the 2027 general elections?”
However, Governor Aiyedatiwa has at different times denied directing any aspirant or candidate to contest against APC candidates on the platform of any other political parties.
The governor had described those behind the allegation of anti-party activities as “naysayers, blackmailers and slanderers.”
He had declared point blank that “I have zero tolerance for anti-party activities. I have never engaged in anti-party activities in my life.”
