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There Was No APC Guber Primary in Ekiti – Opeyemi Bamidele Alleges

Published

4 years ago

January 31, 2022

Eric

A serving senator and governorship aspirant in Ekiti State, Opeyemi Bamidele, has said there was no primary election for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state.

The senator had called for the cancellation of the exercise after alleging that the primary election committee was made up of loyalists of Kayode Fayemi, Ekiti governor.

He and other aspirants withdrew from the exercise, while Biodun Oyebanji, a former secretary to the Ekiti state government, was later declared winner of the poll.

In a statement issued on Sunday, Bamidele thanked his supporters but described the exercise as “a fraudulent and fictitious vote count”.

“Unfortunately, the process of conducting these primaries was hijacked, truncated, compromised and bastardised by those at the helm of affairs in Ekiti State, which is tantamount to a complete abuse of trust and leadership,” the statement reads.

“Judging from a critical assessment of our campaign strategy by positively reaching out to our people in all nooks and crannies of Ekiti State to push our progressive message, I had no doubt in my mind that we were coasting to victory had the process been transparent and fair.

“It is public knowledge that no primary election took place on Thursday, 27th January, 2022 but yet, rather disappointedly, results were announced based on concocted and fictitious vote counts.

“The underlining level of impunity, desperation and perfidy which characterised the entire rigging process was so much and thought beclouding that I was allotted 700 plus votes in a state-wide gubernatorial primary election in a state where I had scored over 94,000 votes in just one out of three senatorial districts to emerge as a senator.

“This was less than three years ago and after then, I had done much more to earn the confidence and greater love of the people through effective representation on the floor of the senate as well as life touching empowerment programmes and constituency development projects.

“More specifically, the breakdown of the votes allotted to me indicated that I got 150 votes in Ado Ekiti, my beloved second home, where I had recorded 28,000 votes out of the 42,000 votes that gave me the house of representatives mandate way back in year 2011 to represent Ado/Irepodun-Ifelodun federal constituency.

“But we will remain resolute, strong, focused and faithful in the face of this impunity, total lack of regard for the electoral due process and executive rascality by a chosen few who were elected to represent the interests of Ekiti people.”

While urging his supporters to remain calm, Bamidele said he would take steps to challenge the outcome of the primary election.

“We are of course taking immediate steps within the confines of our party constitution and the law to seek redress for this blatant abuse of trust and due process by the state actors,” he added.

TheCable

Featured

Tinubu Nominates Oyedele As Minister of State for Finance, Moves Anite-Uzoka to Budget Ministry

Published

12 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Eric

A statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy Bayo Onanuga, has announced that “President Bola Tinubu has nominated Taiwo Oyedele as the minister of state for finance, replacing Doris Anite-Uzoka.

“Mrs Anite-Uzoka will now move to the Ministry of Budget and National Planning, as the Minister of State, her third portfolio in the administration.

“President Tinubu has today conveyed the nomination of Mr Oyedele to the Senate for confirmation in a letter to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

“Until President Tinubu nominated him as a minister, Mr Oyedele from Ikaram, Akoko, Ondo State, was the chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, which overhauled Nigeria’s tax system.

“Mr Oyedele, 50, is an economist, accountant and public policy expert.

“He attended Yaba College of Technology, where he obtained a Higher National Diploma (HND) in accountancy and finance. He attended Oxford Brookes University and earned a BSc in applied accounting.

“He also completed executive education programmes at the London School of Economics, Yale University, the Gordon Institute of Business Science, and the Harvard Kennedy School.

“Mr Oyedele spent 22 years of his working career at PwC, joining in 2001 and rising to become the Fiscal Policy Partner and Africa Tax Leader.

“Mr Oyedele is also a professor at Babcock University in Ogun State and a visiting scholar at the Lagos Business School.”

Featured

Defection: Atiku’s Son, Adamu, Resigns As Adamawa Commissioner

Published

17 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Eric

Adamu Abubakar, the first son of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, has resigned as Adamawa State’s commissioner for works and energy development, days after Governor Ahmadu Fintiri defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress.

Abubakar’s resignation letter, dated 2 March 2026, was addressed to the governor through the Secretary to the State Government. He gave no reason for his departure.

The timing is pointed. Fintiri announced his defection to the APC in a statewide broadcast last Friday, saying his cabinet and the PDP’s state structure had moved with him. Within 24 hours, 22 commissioners and special advisers publicly announced they were following suit. Abubakar, whose father remains one of the PDP’s most prominent national figures, was not among them.

In a statement issued Monday night, Abubakar’s media aide Abdulaziz Jauro said the former commissioner thanked the governor for the opportunity to serve and pledged continued loyalty to the administration’s developmental agenda. He also expressed gratitude to his father “for granting him the moral support and blessing to serve the people of Adamawa State” — a line that, read in context, suggests Atiku was consulted on the decision.

Abubakar said his resignation was not a withdrawal from public life. “This does not mark the end of his commitment to public service,” the statement read, “but rather the beginning of new avenues for developmental collaboration.”

The resignation leaves unresolved the question of whether it reflects a political break with the governor over his defection or a personal decision unconnected to the broader party realignment now reshaping Adamawa’s political landscape.

Featured

DSS Nabs Man over Assassination Attempt on Peter Obi

Published

19 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Eric

Nigeria’s Department of State Services (DSS) has detained a man in connection with the recent attack and alleged assassination threats targeting Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi.

According to AIT, the shooting incident took place on February 24, 2026, in Benin City, Edo State, during a political gathering attended by Obi and several figures from the African Democratic Congress (ADC). The meeting was hosted by former APC National Chairman, John Oyegun. Gunmen reportedly opened fire at the venue, causing panic and forcing attendees to disperse for safety.

According to security sources, shortly after the attack, an individual identified as Udeme Monday Stephen allegedly took to social media claiming responsibility and issuing additional threats against Obi, warning of further violence.

Intelligence officials reportedly initiated swift investigations, employing digital tracing and forensic tools that led to the arrest of the 26-year-old suspect in Rivers State. He is said to be a teacher at a private secondary school in the Eliozu area of Obio-Akpor Local Government Area.

The suspect remains in DSS custody and is expected to face prosecution. The agency reiterated its commitment to responding to credible threats and safeguarding lives and national interests without bias.