Fresh tension is brewing within the Oyo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), following a closed-door meeting convened by the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, with state party executives and all the 33 local council chairmen at his Iyaganku residence in Ibadan, last Saturday.

During the meeting, Adelabu was said to have told the gathering that his controversial defection to the Accord Party (AP) ahead of the 2023 general election was made at the instance of President Bola Tinubu.

According to him, Tinubu not only directed the move at the time, but later recommended his return to the APC, which culminated in his appointment as Minister of Power.

Adelabu also revealed that Tinubu advised him to rejoin the APC after the polls and prepare to pursue his 2027 governorship ambition. This revelation has heightened anxiety within the party, with stakeholders viewing his return—and possible candidacy—with skepticism and outright opposition.

Former APC governorship aspirant, Niyi Akintola (SAN) and former House of Representatives member, Akinade Fijabi, have praised the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administration of Governor Seyi Makinde’s performance, a development interpreted by many as a subtle protest against Adelabu’s rising influence.

Similarly, a former Minister of Communications, Adebayo Shittu, warned that any attempt to impose Adelabu as the party’s 2027 flagbearer would likely lead to another electoral disaster for the APC.

But in what appears to be a defensive response to these unfolding events, the state chapter of the APC recently issued a statement warning members against “anti-party activities”—a move believed by insiders to have been influenced by external forces within the party’s national structure.

Reacting to the growing discord, a prominent PDP chieftain and political strategist, Rasheed Olopoeyan, dismissed the APC as unserious and incapable of threatening the ruling party in 2027. He criticised the APC’s inconsistent disciplinary posture and mocked the party’s internal contradictions.

“APC did nothing in 2023 when Adelabu defected to Accord, Party, yet he was rewarded with a ministerial appointment before rejoining the party. Now, they want to discipline people like Akintola and others for praising Makinde’s performance. Is that not hypocrisy?” Olopoeyan queried.

Meanwhile, Oyo APC has called on Makinde to immediately cancel his administration’s plan to spend a staggering N63.5 billion on renovating the Agodi Government House.

In a statement signed by Publicity Secretary of the party, Olawale Sadare, the APC described the renovation move as an example of “profligacy, insensitivity, and impunity,” warning that it could further damage the state’s economy. (The Guardian)