Five governorship aspirants of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State have passed a vote of no confidence in the party’s state chairman, Chief Moses Adeyemo, and demanded his immediate resignation over alleged bias and actions they say have undermined the integrity of the party.
The aspirants—former deputy governor, Engr. Rauf Olaniyan; Engr. Hakeem Alao, Barr. Akeem Agbaje, Mr. Ololade Usman Bakare, and Mr. Musibau Asanike—made the demand in a statement issued after what they described as a crucial meeting held on Monday, June 1, 2026.
They accused Adeyemo of compromising the integrity of the party’s governorship primary process and failing to uphold fairness, internal democracy and unity within the APC in the state.
According to the aspirants, the chairman allegedly directed local government party chairmen to work for the emergence of a particular aspirant before the conduct of the primary election and later declared a candidate before the National Working Committee (NWC) officially announced the results.
The aggrieved aspirants maintained that only the NWC has the constitutional authority to announce the outcome of governorship primaries.
“We, the undersigned five All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirants in Oyo State, met on Monday, June 1, 2026, to review the state of our party and the conduct of recent party activities under the leadership of the state chairman, Dr (Chief) Moses Alake Adeyemo.
“After extensive deliberations, we express our deep dissatisfaction with the way the party is being run in Oyo State. We believe the current leadership has failed to uphold fairness, internal democracy and unity, which are essential ingredients for building a strong political party.
“We unanimously resolved that the Oyo State APC Chairman, Dr (Chief) Moses Alake Adeyemo, must resign with immediate effect. Our decision is based on several actions that have undermined the integrity of the party.
“These actions include his directive to all local government party chairmen to ensure victory for a particular aspirant even before the primaries, which we view as a gross abuse of office and a violation of the principle of neutrality.
“We also condemn the chairman for declaring an aspirant as the party’s candidate before the National Working Committee released the official result of the governorship primary. Such a premature announcement pre-empted due process, confused party members and eroded trust in our institutions. Only the NWC has the constitutional mandate to announce results.
“Furthermore, we are displeased with the chairman’s conduct after a Sallah meeting with the President, during which he granted media interviews and announced a candidate. This action amounted to imposition and disregarded the collective will of party members.
“We also note with concern his public display of raising an aspirant’s hand as the party’s flagbearer, which further confirmed bias.
“We have not forgotten the bitter lessons of 2019 and 2023 in Oyo State. Provocative speeches by the state chairman and his associates can tear the party apart. We lost not because our ideals were weak, but because division, imposition and injustice weakened our ranks.
“To avoid repeating that painful experience, we must allow probity, equity and propriety to guide every decision we make. Our people deserve better than a party that ignores its own painful history and repeats its mistakes.
“We observed other failures under his leadership. The chairman never convened a meeting of aspirants during the critical election period, leaving us in the dark on key decisions.
“In addition, inadequate election materials were provided for the governorship primary from his office, which disrupted voting and disenfranchised delegates.
“We are alarmed that under his watch, party members are leaving the APC in large numbers for other political parties. Loyal members feel sidelined, unprotected and disrespected.
“This exodus weakens our party structure and threatens our electoral prospects in 2027 and beyond if urgent steps are not taken.
“Therefore, we call on the APC National Working Committee and all relevant stakeholders to accept our position and ensure the immediate resignation of the state chairman.
“The future of the APC in Oyo State depends on transparent leadership, respect for rules and justice for all members. We remain committed to building a united party, but that can only happen when the right thing is done,” the statement read.
