The recently constituted APC Oyo State Post-Primary Election Reconciliation Committee is premature and appears designed to persuade angry aspirants to accept results that have not been officially declared, Comrade Femi Awogboro, Media Assistant to Chief Adebayo Adelabu, says.

In a statement issued on the development, Awogboro argues that the committee’s timing undermines the very essence of reconciliation, noting that the National Working Committee (NWC) of the All Progressives Congress is yet to officially announce the outcome of the party’s primary elections in the state.

“What exactly are we reconciling over when the official results of the primary elections have not been released by the competent authority?” Awogboro asks, insisting that only the NWC, through its National Chairman or National Secretary, has the constitutional powers to declare winners of the party’s primaries.

He dismisses the issuance of INEC nomination forms to some aspirants as proof of victory, describing it as an administrative step that cannot substitute for a formal declaration of results complete with vote breakdowns and collation documents.

According to him, the same standard of transparency the APC demands of INEC during general elections ought to apply to its own internal contests. “He who comes to equity must come with clean hands,” he says, warning that the party cannot preach accountability externally while withholding it internally.

Awogboro maintains that reconciliation, by nature, presupposes a recognised outcome from which aggrieved parties can seek redress or accept compromise a foundation he says does not yet exist in Oyo APC’s case. He cautions that proceeding without this foundation creates the impression that the committee’s real objective is to pressure aggrieved aspirants and their supporters into accepting unofficial outcomes, rather than genuinely resolving disputes.

He further warns that continued public reference to certain aspirants as APC candidates, ahead of an official NWC declaration, could prejudice internal party processes and expose the party to avoidable litigation.

Setting out what he describes as the proper sequence, Awogboro says the NWC must first officially declare authentic primary results with full vote breakdowns, after which aggrieved aspirants should be allowed to challenge outcomes through established party and legal mechanisms. Reconciliation, he insists, should only follow once these steps are completed.

“True reconciliation cannot be founded upon uncertainty. Peace cannot be imposed. Unity cannot be manufactured. Acceptance cannot be compelled” he says, adding that suppressing genuine grievances for political convenience only postpones rather than resolves crises.

Awogboro urges the party’s leadership in Oyo State to prioritise internal democracy and due process over hasty conciliation efforts, if it genuinely hopes to succeed at the 2027 general elections. He describes internal democracy as the moral foundation of any credible political party and insists the APC must lead by example.

He concludes that the reconciliation committee, if allowed to proceed ahead of an official declaration of results, risks being seen as a tool for validating disputed outcomes rather than a genuine peace-building effort a perception, he warns, that could deepen divisions within the party and weaken its electoral chances in Oyo State.

The recently constituted APC Oyo State Post-Primary Election Reconciliation Committee is premature and appears designed to persuade angry aspirants to accept results that have not been officially declared, Comrade Femi Awogboro, Media Assistant to Chief Adebayo Adelabu, says.

In a statement issued on the development, Awogboro argues that the committee’s timing undermines the very essence of reconciliation, noting that the National Working Committee (NWC) of the All Progressives Congress is yet to officially announce the outcome of the party’s primary elections in the state.

“What exactly are we reconciling over when the official results of the primary elections have not been released by the competent authority?” Awogboro asks, insisting that only the NWC, through its National Chairman or National Secretary, has the constitutional powers to declare winners of the party’s primaries.

He dismisses the issuance of INEC nomination forms to some aspirants as proof of victory, describing it as an administrative step that cannot substitute for a formal declaration of results complete with vote breakdowns and collation documents.

According to him, the same standard of transparency the APC demands of INEC during general elections ought to apply to its own internal contests. “He who comes to equity must come with clean hands,” he says, warning that the party cannot preach accountability externally while withholding it internally.

Awogboro maintains that reconciliation, by nature, presupposes a recognised outcome from which aggrieved parties can seek redress or accept compromise a foundation he says does not yet exist in Oyo APC’s case. He cautions that proceeding without this foundation creates the impression that the committee’s real objective is to pressure aggrieved aspirants and their supporters into accepting unofficial outcomes, rather than genuinely resolving disputes.

He further warns that continued public reference to certain aspirants as APC candidates, ahead of an official NWC declaration, could prejudice internal party processes and expose the party to avoidable litigation.

Setting out what he describes as the proper sequence, Awogboro says the NWC must first officially declare authentic primary results with full vote breakdowns, after which aggrieved aspirants should be allowed to challenge outcomes through established party and legal mechanisms. Reconciliation, he insists, should only follow once these steps are completed.

“True reconciliation cannot be founded upon uncertainty. Peace cannot be imposed. Unity cannot be manufactured. Acceptance cannot be compelled” he says, adding that suppressing genuine grievances for political convenience only postpones rather than resolves crises.

Awogboro urges the party’s leadership in Oyo State to prioritise internal democracy and due process over hasty conciliation efforts, if it genuinely hopes to succeed at the 2027 general elections. He describes internal democracy as the moral foundation of any credible political party and insists the APC must lead by example.

He concludes that the reconciliation committee, if allowed to proceed ahead of an official declaration of results, risks being seen as a tool for validating disputed outcomes rather than a genuine peace-building effort a perception, he warns, that could deepen divisions within the party and weaken its electoral chances in Oyo State.