Fresh tension has emerged within the Ondo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as aggrieved party members staged a protest in Akure, the state capital, over the revised list of candidates released after the party’s primary elections.
The development follows the decision of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC to review and alter the outcomes of several Senate and House of Representatives primaries conducted across constituencies in Ondo State.
The protesters, carrying placards with different inscriptions, marched through major roads in Akure to express dissatisfaction with what they described as an attempt to overturn the will of party members.
Some of the placards displayed during the protest bore messages such as: “Ondo State Is on Fire,” “Ondo State Says No to Abuja Result,” “No to Corner-Corner Appeal,” “We No Go Gree,” and “Let Our Votes Count.”
The controversy stems from the decision of the APC National Working Committee to approve a revised list of candidates after reviewing reports submitted by its Primary Election Appeal Committees.
The revised list reportedly resulted in the replacement of several senatorial and House of Representatives candidates who had earlier emerged from the party’s direct primaries.
However, supporters and loyalists of the affected aspirants rejected the adjustments and called for the release and recognition of what they described as the authentic results obtained from the direct primary elections conducted across the state.
Speaking during the protest, the Ondo State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Seun Osamaye, dismissed the revised list being circulated, describing it as inconsistent with the outcome of the exercise conducted across the state’s 203 wards.
According to her, party members participated actively in the process and were fully aware of those who emerged through the direct primary system.
She maintained that the revised candidates’ list did not reflect the mandate freely given by APC members during the exercise.
Osamaye appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene in the matter, expressing confidence that his administration would uphold fairness, justice and democratic values.
Also addressing protesters, APC youth leader, Bright Ojo, described the revised list as a direct attack on internal democracy within the party.
According to him, the results generated during the primaries represented the wishes of members at the grassroots level and should not be altered after the process had been concluded.
He further questioned the inclusion of names of aspirants who allegedly did not emerge victorious during the direct primaries and called on the national leadership of the party to address the concerns raised by members.
The protest marks another phase in the growing internal disagreements within the Ondo APC ahead of the forthcoming electoral contests, with stakeholders awaiting possible intervention from the party leadership.
