Kwara APC Governorship Aspirants Urge Tinubu to Block Traditional Rulers’ Endorsement of Danladi

Ten governorship aspirants of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara State have appealed to President Bola Tinubu to resist alleged efforts to mobilise traditional rulers in favour of Speaker Salihu Danladi, the party’s declared governorship candidate.

Danladi, who serves as Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, emerged victorious from the APC gubernatorial primary held on 22 May 2026, securing 94,990 votes and defeating 14 other contenders. Despite the official result, the aspirants contend that the outcome remains controversial within the party.

In their letter, the aspirants stated: “We have received credible information that some traditional rulers from Kwara State are being mobilised to visit the Presidential Villa in what appears to be an effort to legitimise and secure endorsement for a governorship candidate whose emergence remains controversial within our party.”

The signatories — Dele Belgore (SAN), Yahaya Gambari, Saliu Mustapha, Yahaya Oloriegbe, Oluwatoyin Alabi, Tajudeen Audu, Omar Bio, Bashir Bolarinwa, Ahmad Mahmud and Azeez Olaniyi — emphasised their respect for the royal institution while urging it to stay neutral.

“While we hold our revered royal fathers in the highest esteem and recognise their invaluable roles as custodians of our culture and tradition, we respectfully submit that traditional institutions should not be drawn into partisan political contests,” the letter read.

The aspirants warned that involving monarchs in the dispute could erode the neutrality of the traditional institution and called attention to what they perceive as misplaced priorities.

They added: “If royal fathers can be mobilised to Abuja in support of a governorship candidate, many citizens will naturally wonder why similar efforts have not been made to seek urgent federal intervention on the security challenges confronting communities in parts of Kwara State.”

Meanwhile, APC chieftain Professor Abubakar Sulaiman urged the traditional rulers to advise Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq to withdraw from the succession dispute, saying that a concession could resolve the current crisis within the Kwara APC.