Ondo APC Primaries: Group Scoffs at Critics, Affirms Aiyedatiwa’s Neutrality

In the wake of the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Assembly primaries in Ondo State, a party support group, the Ondo Progressives Family (OPF), has stepped in to quell the rising tide of accusations and discontent. The OPF has strongly advised aggrieved contestants, who have voiced complaints about alleged bias and candidate imposition, to exercise maturity and pursue their grievances through established party channels. This call for adherence to internal party processes comes as some defeated aspirants have resorted to social media to disparage the primary election outcomes and leadership.

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These accusations against the governor and the Kolawole Babatunde-led Ondo APC are wholly puerile, false and incoherent for the fact that up until the eve of the primary elections, these contestants had been praising the governor and the state’s APC leaders to high heavens for their neutrality, transparency, and high-level preparations for the poll; only for them to do a 360-degree turn into hostilities, once they failed to win the contest.

The OPF has particularly taken exception to the allegations leveled against Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa and the state APC leadership, describing them as "wholly puerile, false and incoherent." The group pointed out the apparent hypocrisy of contestants who, prior to the elections, had praised the governor and party leaders for neutrality and transparency, only to turn hostile after failing to secure victory. The OPF highlighted that these same individuals had initially advocated for a consensus approach, but shifted gears to purchase nomination forms and participate in the primaries once they realized they were not favored under the consensus arrangement.

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In the same vein, these are people who demanded vehemently that a consensus approach should be adopted from the outset, and once this was done and they were not favoured under such arrangement, they quickly raced to buy nomination forms.

Furthermore, the OPF did not shy away from directly addressing the conduct of some defeated aspirants. In a pointed remark, the group condemned one contestant, who is reportedly facing "local accusations bothering on illicit affairs with housewives," urging the aspirant to "keep his peace and instead, work on his moral crisis." This direct criticism suggests internal party dynamics are complex, with personal conduct being scrutinized alongside political grievances. The OPF's defense of the primaries, citing independent observers and the peaceful conduct even in the presence of studying schoolchildren, aims to project an image of fairness and legitimacy, countering the narrative of imposition and bias.

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After purchasing the forms and standing in the primary poll, they failed abysmally to win at the ballot and now feel the next route to winning public sympathy is to wrongfully accuse Governor Aiyedatiwa and the state APC as the forces behind their inability to win.