Dare Babalola
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Farouk Aliyu, has said the ruling party is prepared to address grievances that may arise from its candidate selection process ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Aliyu made the remarks during an appearance on Arise Television’s Morning Show on Monday, where he acknowledged that some aspirants would likely be disappointed following the party’s primaries or consensus arrangements.
He, however, urged members who may feel aggrieved to remain committed to the party, assuring that the leadership would engage dissatisfied aspirants through dialogue, promises, appointments and other reconciliation measures.
According to him, political decisions within the APC are often shaped by wider consultations among party stakeholders, stressing that governors do not always have the final authority in determining candidates.
Aliyu also stated that the party would adopt consensus arrangements where possible, while direct primaries would be held in areas where consensus could not be reached.
“Of course, there will be broken hearts. Of course, you will have an ambition. If you don’t get it, you probably get heartbroken,” he said.
“But then, if you are a true party man, if the general opinion of the leaders of the party is candidate A, go for it. And if you don’t want to go for that, go for the election.”
He added that political realities often change, making earlier promises difficult to sustain.
“Yes, there are some places where people were promised, but politics is dynamic. Today is one thing, and tomorrow another thing,” he said.
Aliyu further noted that even governors may be unable to impose candidates in some cases because of the influence of other party stakeholders.
“Where somebody is promised a ticket, even the governor promised a ticket, at the end of the day, you will find out that even the governor, there are certain things he cannot do because there are other stakeholders that are more important than a governor in the state,” he stated.
Speaking on the party’s preparedness, Aliyu said the APC already has structures in place to manage fallout from internal contests.
“In our own party, when the leaders in their wisdom have decided let’s go through consensus. Where there are no consensus, we go for direct primaries,” he said.
“So I’m telling you we are prepared. We are ready. And of course, where the hearts are broken, we’ll try to mend them with good words, promises, also appointments and so on. The party has mechanism in trying to appease those that their hearts are going to be broken.”
