.Cracks deepen in Kwara APC as PDP drafts Saraki to woo aggrieved members ahead of 2027
.Kwara APC reconciliation committee submits report, hails support of gov AbdulRazaq, party exco
Chuks Okocha in Abuja and Hammed Shittu in Ilorin
The Kwara State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the 15 aggrieved gubernatorial aspirants of All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state have commenced negotiations on the sharing of elective positions ahead of 2027 elections.
With political permutations ahead of the 2027 general elections gathering momentum, the Kwara State PDP has also moved to capitalise on the growing discontent within the ruling APC, mandating former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, to begin talks with aggrieved members of the party.
As part of efforts to put its troubled house in order which engulfed the party after the conduct of the party primaries in the state, the Kwara State APC Reconciliation Committee yesterday submitted their report to the State Working Committee of the party.
The parley according to THISDAY checks might not be unconnected with the recent resolutions of the PDP leadership to meet the aggrieved 15 APC gubernatorial aspirants towards fostering political understanding ahead of the forthcoming elections.
At the meeting of the aggrieved gubernatorial aspirants held in Ilorin on Thursday, they had pledged their commitment to the electoral victory of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu come 2027, but vowed not to work for the success of the APC in the state.
However, the PDP and the 15 aggrieved gubernatorial aspirants have set up a committee on how to share the elective positions before the final closure of the portal of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Sources close to the two groups told journalists in Ilorin yesterday, that the PDP camp was said to have presented six members of the state House of Assembly, two senatorial tickets and two House of Representatives slots to the 15 aggrieved gubernatorial aspirants’ camp.
On the part of the 15 aggrieved APC gubernatorial aspirants, the group was said to have demanded 10 slots of the members of the state House of Assembly, two senatorial tickets and two House of Representatives tickets from the PDP.
Speaking at a press briefing in Ilorin, spokesperson of the coalition and former Senator, Yahaya Oloriegbe, alleged that the governor’s leadership had sidelined many stakeholders and deepened divisions within the party.
He warned that unless the APC national leadership intervenes, the lingering crisis could undermine the party’s electoral prospects in the 2027 general elections.
According to Oloriegbe, the Oto Ge Progressives was formed to protect the principles of fairness, inclusiveness and transparency, alleging that many party faithful had been excluded from critical political decisions.
He also claimed that members of the coalition had been subjected to intimidation and pressure to support what he described as a predetermined succession arrangement.
The coalition insisted that candidates for elective offices must emerge through transparent and democratic processes rather than through the influence of any individual, urging the APC leadership to urgently address the grievances before they escalate.
Seizing on the apparent cracks within the ruling party, PDP stakeholders at a two-day strategic meeting in Ilorin authorised Saraki to commence consultations with members of the APC’s G15 bloc and other political groups as part of efforts to expand the party’s support base ahead of the next general elections.
The decision was contained in a communiqué jointly signed by the Kwara PDP Chairman, Adamu Bawa, and the State Secretary, Abdulrahman Kayode, following the meeting attended by party leaders, former political office holders, aspirants, women and youth representatives.
The communique said, “At the meeting, His Excellency, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki appreciated all aspirants and stakeholders for the serious sacrifices they made before, during and after the 2026 party primaries, and for their commitment to the unity and growth of the PDP in Kwara State.
“After extensive deliberations, the stakeholders unanimously resolved as follows: stakeholders passed a vote of confidence on our National Leader, His Excellency, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, for his consistent leadership, political sagacity and unwavering commitment to the PDP and the people of Kwara State.
“Noting that the PDP in Kwara State is already strong and united, the meeting mandated His Excellency, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki to proceed with engagements with members of the Kwara APC’s G15 and other political parties, with the objective of further strengthening the PDP and expanding its base ahead of future elections.”
The meeting also resolved that all stakeholders, aspirants, and candidates must be prepared to set aside personal ambitions and individual interests in the greater interest of the party.
Meanwhile, the APC had on 3rd of July 2026 set up the five-member committee, chaired by retired Col. AbdulWahab Ademola Lawal(rtd) to resolve internal disputes following the party’s primary elections.
Presenting the report at the party’s Secretariat in Ilorin, Col. Lawal, appreciated the governor and the party executives for their trust and for giving them an enabling environment to operate.
He said the committee had invited all the aggrieved members in the course of their findings and provided them with a level playing ground to ventilate their grievances – a step he noted aided their work.
He said that the committee, however, got assurances of the members to remain in the party and to “not go back to Egypt.”
“I want to say that on the mandate given to us we received the blessings of His Excellency (Governor AbdulRazaq), and the Party Chairman made it clear to us that: “please allow everybody to vent their anger and sentiments and also do what is needful,” he said, adding that the report will go a long way to resolving the disagreement.
“We made it clear to them that this is a family affair; no one is outside the family. All of us are together and in a family. But there are bound to be disagreements and therefore they should see us as mediators,” Lawal said.
The state APC Chairman Prince Sunday Fagbemi, thanked the committee for their effort, and pledging that the state leadership of the party will do everything humanly possible to do justice to the report.
He described Col. Lawal as highly disciplined and a diplomat par excellence, adding all members of the committee are people of integrity.
“When we go through the report of the committee, we will do all that is humanly possible to make sure we remain as a family.
“We are appealing to all that are aggrieved to await the actions that will be taken after the presentation of the committee’s report,” Fagbemi said.
Other members of the reconciliation committee are the Assistant Comptroller of Immigration, AIG Ahmed Abbas, Engr. Musa Yeketi, Dr. Oluwatoyin Opawoye and Hajia Kubura Kassum.