Ten governorship aspirants of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara State have urged President Bola Tinubu to prevent any attempt to involve traditional rulers in efforts to legitimise or endorse the party’s governorship candidate, Speaker Salihu Danladi.
In an open letter dated Monday, the aspirants raised concerns over reports that selected first-class traditional rulers from the state were being mobilised to visit the Presidential Villa in Abuja ahead of the 2027 elections.
Danladi, Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, won the APC governorship primary held on May 22, 2026, with 94,990 votes, defeating 14 other aspirants.
However, the aggrieved aspirants maintained that the outcome of the primary remains disputed and warned against attempts to use royal fathers to confer legitimacy on the process.
They said, “We have received credible information that some traditional rulers from Kwara State are being mobilised to visit the Presidential Villa in what appears to be an effort to legitimise and secure endorsement for a governorship candidate whose emergence remains controversial within our party.”
The letter was signed by 10 prominent APC figures, including Dele Belgore (SAN), Ambassador Yahaya Gambari, Senator Saliu Mustapha, and Senator Yahaya Oloriegbe, among others.
While reaffirming their loyalty to the party, the aspirants stressed the need to protect internal democracy and preserve the neutrality of traditional institutions.
They noted that although they hold royal fathers in high esteem, involving them in partisan matters could weaken the credibility and neutrality of the institution.
“The involvement of traditional rulers in efforts to validate the outcome of a disputed party primary risks eroding the neutrality and moral authority that have distinguished the institution over the years,” they said.
The group warned that such actions could create a false impression of unity within the party despite unresolved disputes over the primary election.
They also insisted that their earlier objections to the conduct of the primary had not been addressed by the party leadership.
They said, “Your Excellency will recall that our concerns regarding the conduct of the governorship primary have been communicated through lawful and constitutional channels. Those concerns have not been addressed and remain a source of anxiety among party faithful across the state.”
The aspirants added that any engagement involving traditional rulers should not be mistaken for a consensus position within the Kwara APC.
They further raised concerns about insecurity in parts of the state, questioning why similar mobilisation efforts were not directed toward pressing community challenges.
“If royal fathers can be mobilised to Abuja in support of a governorship candidate, many citizens will naturally wonder why similar efforts have not been made to seek urgent federal intervention on the security challenges confronting communities in parts of Kwara State,” they said.
Meanwhile, an APC chieftain in Kwara State, Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman, called on traditional rulers to advise Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq to withdraw from the succession crisis to allow peace to prevail within the party.
He said, “Tell Gov AbdulRazaq to concede, tell him to back down. That alone can solve the current crisis in Kwara APC.”
Attempts to get a reaction from the state government were unsuccessful at the time of filing this report.
