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Gov Amosun Threatens To Dump APC Over Primaries
Ogun State governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, last night threatened to pull out of the All Progressives Congress (APC) if the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party fails to uphold the candidacy of his anointed governorship candidate, Abdul-Kabir Adekunle Akinlade.
This is coming a few hours after Governors Akinwunmi Ambode (Lagos), Rochas Okorocha (Imo), Umar Ganduje (Kano), Mohammed Abubakar (Bauchi) and Kashim Shettima (Borno) met with President Muhammadu Buhari to seek his intervention in the contentious primaries in the states.
Amosun issued this threat during a meeting with some party leaders and his loyalists across the 20 local government areas of the state held at his private residence located inside Ibara GRA, Abeokuta.
According to a source who was present at the meeting, the governor, who briefed his loyalists on the outcome of his meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari as well as the national leadership of APC, did not give any hint on the party he may join.
He further told our correspondent that Amosun informed them that rather than the NWC iron out the issue of the governorship, he was asked to share the national and state assemblies tickets with certain group of individuals, who, according to him, did not participate in both the governorship and legislative primaries.
The source added that the governor berated those he termed “Abuja connection APC” for standing rules of the primary election on its head and produced Abiodun as the party’s candidate instead of Akinlade, who emerged through a direct primary.
The Ogun governor, the source stated, made it clear that he could not work with Abiodun, who he said lacked the wherewithal to win a senatorial district, let alone the whole of Ogun State, insisting he would rather bid APC goodbye rather than accept his candidacy.
When told about a rumour making the rounds that the governor may likely defect to the Accord Party, the source insisted the governor was silent on the choice of the party, but made it clear that he would never defect to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
In a related development, five governors of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) met with President Buhari, yesterday, behind closed-doors, at the State House, Abuja and pleaded with him to intervene in the simmering crises occasioned by the party’s primaries.
They also assured that the APC is not jittery over the emergence of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in next year’s presidential election.
Governors at the meeting, which that was also attended by the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, at the State House, were Mohammed Abubakar (Bauchi); Abdullahi Ganduje (Kano); Kashim Shettima (Borno); and Akinwunmi Ambode (Lagos) and Rochas Okorocha (Imo), as well as the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha.
Okorocha, who is also Chairman of the APC Governors’ Forum told State House Correspondents what they discussed with the president.
“We are here as a delegation of APC governors, to congratulate the president, for emerging the presidential candidate of our great party APC for the 2019 election and we believe that its victory well-deserved. The honour we have given him confirms our confidence in the man Buhari.
“The president is quite happy with this visit and he will soon give us a date as we requested, to celebrate him and tell the world about our joy and happiness that he emerged our presidential flag-bearer, which is victory assured come 2019,” he said.
Asked about plans to address issues arising from the recent primary elections in the party, Okorocha replied: “We have looked at issues concerning our primaries. In every democracy, we expect some kind of disagreement and we have kindly requested that something be done fast, to bring all warring factions together so we can have a united party to face the challenges ahead and we are happy that that will soon take place.
“Most of the problems are already being resolved, except for one or two states like Zamfara and where it becomes very difficult, we will ask for the President’s intervention in the matter.
“Reconciliation is the main thing we want because we do not want to go into this battle a divided family and we want to make sure that all governors are intact, all National Assembly members are intact while going into this battle,” he stressed.
The governor said the APC will not be dragged into what he described as noise by the opposition, ahead of the 2019 election.
Rather, he said the campaign of the party would be based on issues.
“Our election, this time, will not engage on castigations or talking. We will be taking on issues; Nigerians are tired of political abuses. What we want to be talking about are issues, the track records of people involved in our elections.
“Nigerians are wise now. Before they elect anybody they will ask questions, what has been your track record, who were you before, who are you now and everything about you. And, for that reason, we are confident that in 2019, APC will go through.”
On whether the controversy surrounding Zamfara State APC primaries was part of the discussion with the president, he said, “Zamfara is one of the issues that we have addressed also.”
On Atiku’s candidacy, he said: “I don’t know about talking tough, we can’t be jittery and history is there to speak, history is very important and it is there to speak.
“So, as I said, we are not going to engage in this verbal war with anybody, we will be talking about issues.
“If we say ‘look, you are not good,’ we tell you what we can do and we cannot do and what others cannot do.
“APC is not going to join in those talkshops but we are discussing issues of what our party can for our people.”
Asked what Buhari’s response was, he replied: “The president is quite happy with the whole outing and he will give us a date to celebrate him and tell the world our joy and happiness, that he emerged as our presidential flag-bearer which is victory assured 2019.”
The House of Representatives on Tuesday approved President Bola Tinubu’s request to secure a $516.33m loan from Deutsche Bank to finance Section I of the ambitious Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway project, a key infrastructure initiative under the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
The approval followed the consideration of the President’s request by the Committee of Supply during plenary presided over by Speaker Tajudeen Abbas.
In a letter read on the floor of the Green Chamber, Tinubu described the Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway as a transformative national project aimed at connecting Nigeria’s far northwest to its southwestern coastline through an approximately 1,000-kilometre dual carriageway stretching from Illela in Sokoto State to Badagry in Lagos State.
The corridor is expected to pass through Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, Ogun, and Lagos states, opening up major agricultural, commercial and industrial hubs across the country.
According to the President, the project was designed to stimulate economic growth by significantly improving the movement of goods and people across Nigeria’s northern and southern regions.
He said the highway will “improve north-south connectivity, safety and network performance on the corridor; reduce logistics costs and travel times by providing a continuous high-capacity expressway standard link to downstream markets and strengthen trade facilitation, food security and national cohesion through improved access between production zones, markets and ports.”
Tinubu further noted that the road project would “safeguard long-term intermodal flexibility by reserving the central median for future rail integration and accommodating utility corridors.”
The President explained that the funding arrangement involves a $516.33m facility from Deutsche Bank, backed by partial guarantee cover from the insurance arm of the Islamic Development Bank, while the Federal Government will provide counterpart funding of N265.54bn.
The counterpart contribution, he said, would cover land acquisition, compensation payments, and complementary infrastructure requirements.
Tinubu urged lawmakers to expedite legislative approval of the borrowing request in view of the strategic importance of the project to national development.
The Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway was conceived as one of Nigeria’s most expansive road infrastructure projects, intended to serve as an economic backbone linking the resource-rich northern corridor with major export gateways in the south.
Beyond easing transportation challenges, the superhighway is expected to boost agricultural supply chains, enhance regional trade, improve access to seaports, and attract investments in manufacturing, logistics and real estate along its route.
The project also aligns with broader government plans to modernise transport infrastructure and strengthen Nigeria’s competitiveness under the African Continental Free Trade Area framework.
Presenting the report of the House Committee on Aids, Loans and Debt Management, Abdullahi El-Rasheed, who represented the committee chairman, Abubakar Nalaraba, urged lawmakers to support the loan request, citing the project’s strategic economic value.
He said the highway would serve as a critical driver of development and improve long-term economic productivity.
Following deliberations, the House approved the borrowing request at plenary, paving the way for the commencement of the project’s first section.
(L-R): Founder of Tinubu Support Group, James Faleke; APC National Organising Secretary, Suleiman Argungu; and other APC officials during the presentation of nomination and expression of interest forms to Faleke for President Bola Tinubu in Abuja on Tuesday.
The lawmaker representing Ikeja Federal Constituency, James Faleke, has picked up the All Progressives Congress Expression of Interest and Nomination forms on behalf of President Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
The APC National Organising Secretary, Suleiman Argungu, on Tuesday in Abuja, declared the process open and presented the Expression of Interest and Nomination forms to Faleke, who also serves as the founder of the Tinubu Support Groups.
Faleke’s collection and payment for the forms, valued at N100 million on behalf of the President, formally signal the commencement of Tinubu’s bid for re-election.
The Independent National Electoral Commission has scheduled the Presidential and National Assembly elections for Saturday, January 16, 2027, while governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections will hold on Saturday, February 6, 2027.
The commission also announced that party primaries, including the resolution of related disputes, will run from April 23, 2026, to May 30, 2026.
INEC further stated that campaigns for the presidential and National Assembly elections will begin on August 19, 2026, while those for governorship and state assembly elections will commence on September 9, 2026
The Chief of Staff to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, has assured Lagos State Deputy Governor, Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, of his support in securing the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship ticket ahead of the 2027 election.
Gbajabiamila, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, gave the assurance on Sunday, describing Hamzat as competent and well-suited to lead Lagos State.
He stated that the state would be in safe hands under Hamzat’s leadership.
Hamzat had visited Gbajabiamila at his Surulere residence in Lagos as part of consultations with party stakeholders over his governorship ambition.
Responding, Gbajabiamila commended Hamzat’s capacity and approach, expressing confidence in his ability to govern the state effectively.
“Dr Hamzat, you are a man of honour, and it shows in your approach to consultations. But I say this publicly—you can take my support for granted because I have full confidence in your ability and capacity. My constituency, Surulere, is for you, and Lagos is for you,” he said.
In his remarks, Musiliu Obanikoro, a member of the Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC), briefed the host on the extent of consultations carried out so far.
“I can confidently inform the Chief of Staff that the level of endorsement has been overwhelming,” he said.
Other members of the delegation included the Secretary of the GAC, Alhaji Muti Are, Senator Ganiyu Olanrewaju Solomon, Hon. Bode Oyedele, Engineer Adekunle Olayinka, Dr. Hakeem Shittu, Hon. Saheed Kekereekun, Dr. Jebe, and Hon. Rasaq Ajala, among others.
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