Kwara APC Crisis Deepens as Mustapha Dumps Party, Picks PDP Ticket

.Says he backs Tinubu

·Jiya, other aggrieved members follow as party reconciliation efforts falter

Hammed Shittu in Ilorin and Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

The crisis rocking the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara State has deepened ahead of the 2027 general elections following the resignation of the Senator representing Kwara Central Senatorial District, Saliu Mustapha, from the ruling party and his decision to pick the senatorial ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Mustapha, who chairs the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development, formally announced his resignation from the APC yesterday, ending weeks of speculation over his political future amid growing discontent within the party over the conduct and outcome of its recent governorship primary.

Also, another prominent APC member from Patigi Local Government Area, Hon. Kolo Jiya, has also resigned from the party and joined the PDP. Jiya is reportedly positioning himself to secure the PDP ticket for the Kwara North Senatorial District.

The latest defections followed earlier protests by 10 APC governorship aspirants who rejected what they described as the alleged imposition of the Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, Salihu Yahaya Danladi, as Governor AbdulRazaq’s preferred candidate for the 2027 governorship election.

The aggrieved aspirants had raised concerns about the process through which the party’s governorship candidate emerged, further widening the divisions within the APC.

He said the coalition, which comprises members of the G15, Otoge Progressives (TOP) and the elders’ caucus, deliberately chose the PDP because it was considered the most suitable platform outside the APC for supporting Tinubu while challenging the ruling party’s structure in Kwara.

“I did not abandon the APC. But I have left the APC with a collective understanding. I’m representing the group in PDP so as to reset what AbdulRazaq thinks he wants to do,” he said.

According to him, the coalition emerged from the political crisis that followed the APC governorship nomination process, involving several aspirants who, he alleged, became alienated because of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq’s style of running the party.

Mustapha listed some members and associates of the coalition to include Senator Yahaya Oloriegbe, Dele Belgore (SAN), Senator Lola Ashiru, Senator Sadiq Umar, among others.

THISDAY gathered that Mustapha has secured the PDP ticket to contest the Kwara Central senatorial seat in 2027, setting the stage for a major political battle with the APC candidate for the district, who is expected to be Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.

His defection represents a major setback for the APC in the state and comes against the backdrop of widening disagreements among party members over the 2027 succession process and the outcome of the governorship primary.

The development also suggests that efforts to reconcile aggrieved members and contain the internal divisions within the party were yet to yield the desired result.

The APC had constituted a reconciliation committee following the controversies surrounding its primary election, but the initiative has failed to prevent some prominent members from seeking alternative political platforms ahead of the 2027 elections.

Mustapha’s departure is the latest in a series of developments exposing the depth of the crisis in the Kwara APC.

In his resignation letter to the APC leadership, Mustapha said his decision followed extensive consultations with political stakeholders, supporters and constituents across Kwara Central.

He said the decision was not taken lightly but became necessary following recent developments surrounding the party’s controversial governorship primary.

“This is not a decision I have taken lightly. It follows weeks of extensive consultations and engagements with relevant stakeholders, my supporters, constituents across Kwara Central Senatorial District, and well-meaning Kwarans,” he said.

Mustapha said his decision was guided by his belief that politics should remain centred on “people, principles and purpose.”

According to him, where a political platform no longer sufficiently aligns with those principles and the aspirations of the people he represents, “the honourable thing to do is to chart a new course.”

He maintained that his disagreement was with AbdulRazaq’s handling of the APC in Kwara and not with President Bola Tinubu, saying the coalition was determined to deliver the President at the national level while seeking to defeat the APC in the state.

“President Tinubu will even garner more votes this time around for himself. But at the state level, Tinubu will win at the national, while at the state, APC is a goner,” he declared.

He also dismissed reports that the Presidency had endorsed Speaker Yakubu Danladi-Salihu as the APC governorship candidate in Kwara.

“The Villa did not endorse Danladi as the candidate for us. Nothing like that. I’m 100 per cent sure because I’m an active participant in this process,” he said.

He thanked the national leadership of the APC led by President Tinubu, for the relationships and experiences he had gained during his years in the party.

“To the leadership of the APC, ably led by H.E. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, I express my deepest gratitude for the relationships and experiences I have been afforded over the years,” he said.

The senator assured his supporters and constituents that his decision to leave the APC would not affect his commitment to them.

“To my constituents, supporters, political associates and stakeholders in Kwara State and beyond, I assure you that while my political platform may change, my principles, my purpose and my commitment to the people remain unchanged,” he said.

He added, “I remain steadfast in my service to the people of Kwara Central, Kwara State and Nigeria at large.”

The senator also defended his record in office, citing the facilitation of 10 tractors, agricultural tricycles, electrification projects, transformers, medical facilities, school renovations, feeder roads and other federal interventions across Kwara Central.

Mustapha said he had prioritised agricultural production as a means of reducing poverty and supporting the Tinubu administration’s economic agenda.

He, however, rejected criticism over poverty in his senatorial district, arguing that his primary constitutional responsibilities were legislation and oversight, while the executive was responsible for creating the enabling environment, infrastructure and economic opportunities required to improve living standards.

On his alliance with former Senate President Bukola Saraki, Mustapha said it did not amount to abandoning Tinubu, stressing that Saraki, whom he described as the PDP leader in Kwara, was not contesting for any position in 2027.

He said the emerging “Rainbow Coalition” could produce an unusual political alignment in which PDP members would support Tinubu’s presidential bid while working to defeat the APC in Kwara.

“We want to reset the political mood in Kwara, so that not AbdulRahman or not Saliu Mustapha, anybody that comes there or that finds themselves there again, will not take everybody for granted,” he said.

The latest development has further complicated the APC’s preparations for the 2027 elections in Kwara, with the party now facing the challenge of managing its internal disagreements while preventing further defections of influential members.

For the PDP, however, the entry of Mustapha and other former APC members could significantly strengthen its chances of challenging the ruling party across the state’s three senatorial districts in the 2027 elections.