APC Sends Materials for Direct Primary Voting

By Omeiza Ajayi

The National Working Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) appears to have abandoned its earlier push for consensus primaries ahead of Thursday’s House of Representatives shadow elections, yielding to strong pressure from aspirants and grassroots members across the country’s 360 federal constituencies.

The most obvious sign of this reversal was the party’s Organising Department sending election materials and result sheets to every state on Thursday, which insiders interpreted as approval for direct primaries.

Initially, the NWC promoted consensus primaries to maintain party unity, but growing opposition made that stance difficult to sustain. A source confirmed that the leadership chose flexibility to prevent a larger internal crisis.

“Reports from numerous states that reached the NWC indicated that our members and aspirants preferred to test their ambitions in an election rather than accept consensus,” a senior party official said.

He added that, recognizing the demand, “the NWC has instructed everyone to proceed to the field where aspirants and stakeholders cannot reach an agreement.”

The most visible backlash occurred in Oyo State, where supporters of former Power Minister Adebayo Adelabu raided the party secretariat in Ibadan to protest the selection of Senator Sharafadeen Alli as the consensus candidate for governor.

“Forcing a candidate deprives others of a fair chance. We demand transparency and the adoption of direct primaries,” a protester said.

In Ondo State’s Ile‑Oluji/Oke‑Igbo and Odigbo Federal Constituency, tensions rose after reports that Hon. Mathew Oyerinmade, known as MATO, was being guided toward a House seat after an unsuccessful