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• Remi Tinubu to headline Lafia rally, North Central leaders pledge mobilisation
• Ondo women leader faces suspension threat, gov’s aides accused of backing SDP candidate
From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja and Bamigbola Gbolagunte, Akure
The All Progressives Congress (APC) is preparing a mega rally to demonstrate North Central support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election, even as disputes over National Assembly candidates deepen divisions within its Ondo State chapter.
While governors, ministers, legislators and other North Central stakeholders have pledged to mobilise their political structures for the Tinubu-Shettima ticket, party sources in Ondo alleged that some state executives and government appointees were working against candidates recognised by the APC’s National Working Committee (NWC).
The North Central mobilisation will culminate in a rally in Lafia, Nasarawa State, on Saturday, October 10, which APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, described as the “mother of all rallies.”
Hosted by Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule, the event is expected to feature First Lady Oluremi Tinubu and draw party leaders, women and youth groups, grassroots organisations and supporters from Benue, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger and Plateau states, as well as the Federal Capital Territory.
Yilwatda disclosed the arrangements after a meeting of North Central APC stakeholders in Abuja on Thursday, where participants agreed to deploy their structures and supporters to ensure a large turnout.
Those at the meeting included Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume; Niger State Governor Mohammed Umar Bago; Sule; the deputy governors of Kwara, Benue and Kogi states, Kayode Alabi, Samuel Ode and Salifu Joel Oyibo, respectively and Information and National Orientation Minister Mohammed Idris.
“The meeting reflected a shared determination among participating stakeholders to coordinate their activities and strengthen grassroots engagement in support of the Tinubu/Shettima ticket,” a statement quoted Yilwatda as saying.
The stakeholders acknowledged Akume’s role in bringing the region’s political leaders together, commended Sule for agreeing to host the rally and welcomed the First Lady’s planned participation.
The preparations follow an earlier North Central stakeholders’ resolution to establish a reconciliation committee to address grievances within the party, alongside grassroots advocacy, town hall meetings and medical outreaches.
In Ondo, however, disagreements arising from the National Assembly primaries and the subsequent review of some candidates’ names by the national leadership have fuelled allegations of divided loyalties within the state executive.
The state APC Women Leader, Oluwayemisi Iji-Ayeola, is reportedly facing possible disciplinary action, including suspension, over her continued support for candidates recognised by the NWC.
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Party sources alleged that her position conflicted with a directive attributed to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa that state executives should support his preferred candidates on other political platforms.
A source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said: “She was expected to abide by the governor’s position, but she continued to identify with the candidates backed by the NWC. That is why the issue of her suspension is now being considered.”
The disagreement has been compounded by allegations that some political appointees of the governor and APC executives attended a campaign rally organised by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate for Idanre/Ifedore Federal Constituency, Tajudeen Adefisoye, popularly known as Small Alhaji.
Some party stakeholders also accused the governor of supporting candidates who lost the APC primaries and subsequently sought election through other platforms, including the SDP and the Rainbow Coalition associated with Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike.
The allegations remain disputed. Aiyedatiwa had previously denied encouraging candidates to contest against the APC.
At a September meeting with APC local government and ward chairmen in Akure, he said: “I did not ask any candidate to contest in any other party; it is all lies.”
He also declared his opposition to anti-party activities and urged members to support Tinubu and all APC candidates.
The source who spoke on the women leader’s situation also linked the dispute to the allocation of an 18-seater Hiace bus reportedly provided by the First Lady for women’s mobilisation ahead of the elections.
According to the source, the bus intended for the Ondo APC Women Leader was handed to the state Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Dr. Bosede Seun Osamaye.
The source further alleged that the commissioner was involved in mobilising women for National Assembly candidates outside the APC. The supplied report contained no response from Osamaye or Iji-Ayeola on these claims.
Aiyedatiwa, speaking on a television programme, had maintained that there was nothing wrong with the Rainbow Coalition associated with Wike, provided its objective was to support Tinubu’s re-election.
Meanwhile, Yilwatda has commiserated with families of victims of the recent Nigerian Air Force aircraft crash in Ondo State and the mining tragedy in Niger State, describing the incidents as painful losses.
The North Central stakeholders ended their meeting by reaffirming their commitment to the successful hosting of the Lafia rally and the re-election of Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima.
