•Kayode Fayemi
A former Governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi, has said the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has drifted away from the ideals on which it was founded, warning that the increasing resort to consensus arrangements could trigger an internal crisis within the party.
Fayemi stated this during an interview on State Affairs, a podcast hosted by Edmund Obilo, where he criticised the lack of internal debate in the APC and expressed concerns over the conduct of party primaries across the country.
He said that while consensus is not inherently wrong, it becomes problematic when it denies party members the opportunity to freely choose their candidates.
“I was very explicit that this is not where the party has come from; that we have lost our bearing, and we’ve lost the vision of the founding fathers of this party,” he said.
The former governor rejected allegations that he imposed a successor during his time as governor of Ekiti State, insisting that the current governor emerged through a competitive primary election involving several aspirants.
“I didn’t impose anybody. There was a primary in my state that the current governor contested against at least six other candidates,” Fayemi said.
He argued that having a preferred candidate was not the same as preventing others from exercising their democratic rights.
“I don’t think using influence or having a preference is necessarily a bad thing. What is bad is preventing people from exercising their franchise, and we did not do that,” he said.
Drawing from his own political experience, Fayemi said he had always subjected himself to party primaries despite holding influential positions.
“Even as a former governor, serving minister, who just resigned from office, I was not coronated. I went to the field with another 20 aspirants,” he said.
Fayemi maintained that genuine consensus could be acceptable if voluntarily reached by all parties involved.
“I have no objection to it. However, I am a product of a democratic process, and I would always be on the side of the primary,” he added.
Asked about the growing perception that major political decisions in the APC are increasingly determined by a few powerful figures, Fayemi acknowledged the challenge and warned of its consequences.
“You know the danger of that? So those who don’t get that consensus, what do you think will happen? You think they will be happy?” he asked rhetorically.
When told such a situation could lead to an implosion within the party, Fayemi replied: “Yes.”
