The Kwara State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Sunday Fagbemi, has defended the emergence of the party’s governorship candidate for the 2027 election, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Danladi-Salihu, describing him as competent and well equipped to succeed Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.
Fagbemi, who spoke on TVC’s Breakfast Show, monitored by our correspondent on Friday, said Danladi-Salihu’s track record in public service and leadership positions distinguished him as a worthy successor to the incumbent governor.
According to him, the APC candidate emerged through a transparent and credible primary election conducted by the party.
“A free and fair primary has been conducted in Kwara State, and a winner has emerged,” Fagbemi said.
Defending the party’s choice of standard-bearer, the APC chairman pointed to Danladi-Salihu’s tenure as Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, during which he served two consecutive terms.
“Speaking of competence, this is someone who served as Speaker of the State House of Assembly for two terms. There has been no rancour. There has been cooperation and synergy with the other arms of government. That takes a lot, and it answers the question of competence,” he said.
Danladi-Salihu, who currently represents Ilorin East/Ilorin South Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, recently emerged as the APC governorship candidate following the party’s primary election ahead of the 2027 polls.
Fagbemi dismissed criticisms trailing the outcome of the primary and allegations that Danladi-Salihu’s emergence was part of a purported third-term agenda by Governor AbdulRazaq.
“Are they saying Danladi is not a Kwaran? Did they say he is contesting for governorship the third term? If any other person had emerged, they would find something else to say,” he stated.
“Everyone prays to grow in politics. This is not the era in Kwara when someone would put a surrogate in office.”
The APC chairman also rejected claims that some stakeholders were being sidelined within the ruling party, insisting that the party remained united and continued to attract more supporters across the state.
“Most of them left before the 2023 elections, yet we won. When they returned, we reabsorbed them into the party. Most of the erstwhile opposition’s grassroots leaders are now with us. We are not losing members but winning more,” he said.
Fagbemi further expressed confidence that the APC would retain power in the state in 2027, citing what he described as the achievements of the AbdulRazaq administration in infrastructure, healthcare, education, and security.
“There is no one of the 193 wards in Kwara State where you will not find a functional healthcare centre today.
“Major cities in Kwara are experiencing great transformation. Infrastructure-wise, good schools and other projects are visible across the state,” he said.
The APC chairman maintained that the party would campaign on its record of governance and expressed optimism that Danladi-Salihu would secure the support of Kwarans in the next governorship election.
“I was in Kwara North recently, and I will come back here to debate the wide margin with which we will defeat the opposition come 2027,” he added.
