A former National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress(APC) and Osun State governorship aspirant, Senator Iyiola Omisore has described his disqualification from the party’s primary as the “biggest joke of the year.”
Omisore alleged a rigged process marred by partisanship, multiple fabricated reports, and pressure to favour a shadowy “preferred candidate.”
Addressing journalists after his appearance before the APC Appeal Committee in Abuja on Saturday, the former deputy governor of Osun State vowed that he and six other disqualified aspirants would fight for reinstatement.
He warned that the scandal exposes deep factionalism threatening the party’s chances against incumbent PDP Governor Ademola Adeleke in the 2026 election.
The APC’s Screening Committee, chaired by Chief Obinna Uzoh, had on Friday, disqualified Omisore alongside Benedict Olugboyega Alabi (former deputy governor), Dotun Babayemi, Akin Ogunbiyi, Senator Babajide Omoworare, Kunle Adegoke, SAN, and Babatunde Haketer Oralusi.
The Committee alleged that the disqualified aspirants failed to submit proof of nomination by at least five fully registered and dues-paying party members from each of the 30 local government areas, as mandated by Articles 9.3(i) and 31.2(ii) of the APC Constitution and the 2025 primary guidelines.
The Committee cleared two aspirants – Mulikat Abiola Jimoh and Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji to proceed to the December 13 primary.
Omisore, however, dismissed the Committee’s report as baseless and procedurally flawed.
“That panel report is the biggest joke of the year. It is unfortunate that partisanship has been taken beyond politics,” he fumed.
Omisore claimed that the Committee drafted “multiple reports” and submitted a doctored version to the National Secretariat.
“As we speak, none of us has been shown the report or told why we were disqualified,” he stated.
Omisore revealed that the screening panel chairman privately confessed to succumbing to external pressures aimed at sidelining major contenders.
“The chairman told us he was under pressure. Unfortunately, we are all victims of this,” he said.
He further shredded the nomination shortfall claim, noting the party’s access to its membership database for verification.
“He who alleges must prove,” Omisore retorted, insisting the onus lies with the accusers.
The Osun APC, long plagued by infighting between Oyetola loyalists and rivals like Omisore (who backed Oyetola’s 2018 victory but has since clashed over influence), now teeters on the brink of implosion, the screening report itself admitting the factionalism risks electoral defeat.
“Even the committee’s own report said the party is factionalised and at risk of losing the election. So what exactly are we talking about?” Omisore queried, expressing optimism that the National Working Committee (NWC) would reverse the decision upon review.
All seven disqualified aspirants are slated for individual hearings before the Appeal Committee, led by Senator Tola Odebiyi, with Omisore demanding “fairness and transparency” to salvage the process.
The NWC has yet to respond, but with the primary just a week away, time is of the essence—and Osun’s political tinderbox is one spark from explosion.
