The phrase “President Tinubu has chosen…” is fast becoming one of the most dangerous weapons in Oyo APC’s internal politics. Desperate aspirants and their backers have weaponised casual photographs, staged endorsement rallies, and unverified claims of presidential anointing to short-circuit democratic processes and impose preferred candidates. This cynical tactic thrives on the reality that most party members lack the proximity to verify such assertions. Until challenged, the narrative spreads unchecked. Let the record be clear: President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has not endorsed any aspirant as the Oyo APC governorship flag bearer for 2027.
The silence of party faithful in the face of these manipulations is the real threat. Recent electoral history in Oyo has shown the painful cost of imposed candidates: fractured unity, alienated grassroots, and repeated defeats. A forced aspirant, no matter how cleverly packaged, arrives at the general election already weakened by internal resentment and public suspicion. Doing the same thing while expecting a different outcome in 2027 is political delusion.
Oyo APC must break this cycle through genuine internal democracy. Aspirants should earn the ticket on merit via transparent primaries that give ward executives, local structures, and ordinary members real ownership of the process. Only a candidate with organic support can unify the party and command the broad acceptance needed to win.
Party leaders, stakeholders, and genuine loyalists must rise above complacency. The 2027 governorship is winnable, but only if the era of “we have been told from above” ends and due process prevails. History is watching, and Oyo voters are becoming sharper. The time to course-correct is now.
OYO 2027 APC GUBER ELECTIONS UNDER THREAT: From Fake Anointing, Staged Endorsements, Nurtured By Party Members’ Ominous Silence |Ayoola Ayeni
