The Kwara State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) held its congress across the state’s 193 wards on Wednesday.
The exercise was peaceful and carnival-like in many of the wards visited by this reporter in Ilorin, the state capital, and a few other areas, including Asa, Ekiti, and Baruten.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the event at the party’s secretariat in Ilorin, the party’s state chairman, Sunday Fagbemi, said all the new leaders emerged through affirmation.
“It is an affirmative congress, but it is a constitutional responsibility of the party to go through the process.”
The Chairperson of the Congress Committee and Deputy Chairperson of APC in the state, Abdullahi Samari, said all participants were duly screened before the exercise.
“You cannot go to any affirmation without being screened. So, all the candidates have been screened by the party,” Mr Samari said.
The secretary of the screening committee, Oche Muhammed, said the exercise has been peaceful so far.
“We were given a list of screened, accredited party faithful who vied for various ward offices. Elections have been conducted peacefully in various ward centres. Already, we have received some results while we await other results,” Muhammed said.
Also speaking, the party’s Chairperson in Ilorin West Local Government Area, Suleiman Tejidini, said reports from all 12 wards in the area indicated that the exercise was going on smoothly and rancour-free.
“We reaffirmed all our chairmen and other party executives. All the stakeholders, including the elders, women and youth took part. That is why we can see jubilation everywhere because it was a collective decision of all the relevant stakeholders.”
He praised Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, Mr Fagbemi, political appointees, members of the national and state assemblies, council chairmen and other stakeholders for their roles.
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The Chairperson of the Ilorin West Local Government, AbdulRahman Ladan, observed that the congress was peaceful and successful across wards in the local government.
“There was no rancour among us as the exercise was only the reaffirmation of existing executives. We use this opportunity to thank our leader, Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq for creating an enabling environment for the exercise to take place peacefully,” he said.
