…Says party cannot arbitrarily shut aspirants out

…Accuses Oyetola of trying to impose candidate ahead of 2026

Former National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Senator Iyiola Omisore, has criticised his disqualification from the Osun governorship primary, describing the decision as “a joke and an embarrassment”.

Omisore spoke on Tuesday during an interview on Arise Television, where he argued that the screening panel had acted outside the limits of the law.

“There is a limit to what a party can do in disqualifying candidates. The Electoral Act makes it clear that nomination is not the prerogative of any political party,” he said.

The APC Screening Committee had barred Omisore and six others from participating in the December 13 primary over alleged irregularities in their nomination documents. Those also excluded include Babatunde Oralusi, Oyedotun Babayemi, Dr Akin Ogunbiyi, Benedict Alabi, Adegoke Rasheed Okiki and Senator Babajide Omoworare.

Reacting to the development, Omisore linked the internal crisis to unresolved issues from the party’s defeat in the 2022 governorship election.

“In Osun State, we lost the election in 2022. After the loss, a post-mortem led by former Health Minister Isaac Adewale clearly stated that former governor Gboyega Oyetola was responsible for the defeat,” he claimed.

He added that the report also identified some cabinet members who allegedly contributed to the loss, saying the situation had continued to divide the party.

“So that is why we believe that, going forward, we must have a credible primary. Unfortunately, former governor Oyetola is now sponsoring one of those who aided the 2022 loss,” Omisore alleged.

He said the “entire state leadership” opposed Oyetola’s position and rejected any attempt to impose a candidate on members.

The former lawmaker also rejected attempts to link the crisis to President Bola Tinubu.

“I don’t want you to drag President Bola Tinubu into this matter. The President is a leader of the country. He has been fair to everyone,” he said.

Omisore insisted that the party must avoid repeating the mistakes of the 2022 election.
“We want to win in 2026, so we cannot go the same way or take the same route that led to our defeat,” he added.