APC chairman apologises to aggrieved members over primary election wrongdoings

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, has apologised to party members who felt unfairly treated, excluded or hurt during the party’s recent primary elections.

Yilwatda made the apology on Thursday in Ibadan, Oyo State, during the inauguration of the APC Campaign Office, as the party moves to strengthen its structure ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The APC chairman said the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) accepted responsibility for any misconduct or mistakes committed by committees it constituted to conduct the primaries.

According to him, the responsibility for the outcome of the primaries could not be shifted to individual states because the committees involved were appointed by the national leadership.

“This is not for Oyo State alone. Anywhere anybody made a mistake in a state, it is our mistake because the committee was set up by us and they are representing us,” Yilwatda said.

He acknowledged that some members may have been hurt, injured, prevented from participating or excluded during the exercise, and appealed to them to forgive the party.

“If anybody is hurt, if anybody is injured, if anybody is prevented or excluded in any form or the other, we take responsibility. On TV, before Nigerians, we take responsibility for all that has happened. I appeal to everybody that we are sorry,” he said.

Yilwatda urged party members at the polling-unit, ward and local government levels to regard the disagreements as an internal family matter and work toward reconciliation.

He also stressed the importance of Oyo State to the APC, describing it as a strategically important state with one of Nigeria’s largest voting populations, second only to Lagos.

The apology comes amid discontent among some APC governorship aspirants in Oyo State, who have challenged the emergence of the party’s candidate, Senator Sharafadeen Alli, alleging that his candidacy was imposed on them.

Alli, who represents Oyo South Senatorial District in the National Assembly, however, praised Yilwatda for engaging with the state’s aspirants and stakeholders.

He said the national chairman had fulfilled commitments made to the stakeholders within two days of his engagement with them.

“The promises made when the national chairman invited the aspirants had now been fulfilled. We cannot thank you enough for what you have come to do,” Alli said.

He assured the APC national leadership that the party’s Oyo State chapter would continue working to strengthen the party ahead of the 2027 elections.