Reported by Simon Daniel Yusuph l Journalist at Weng Global
Deputy Senate President Jibrin Barau has urged All Progressives Congress (APC) members who lost in the party’s 2027 primary elections to accept the outcomes, put aside their grievances and work collectively for the party’s success in the general elections.
Barau’s appeal comes amid continuing disagreements within the ruling party following its primary elections, with several aspirants across the country challenging results, alleging irregularities and, in some cases, threatening legal action or considering alternative political platforms.
The APC has faced pressure to reconcile its members and prevent internal disputes from weakening its preparations for the 2027 elections.
Barau Calls for Party Unity
Barau, who secured the APC senatorial ticket for Kano North, has emerged as one of the senior figures involved in the party’s preparations for the 2027 elections.
His call for unity reflects growing concerns within the APC that disputes arising from the primaries could affect the party’s ability to mobilise its structures effectively ahead of the elections.
The Deputy Senate President has consistently expressed support for the APC leadership and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, while urging party members to remain united.
Barau’s position is particularly significant given his own experience during the process leading to the Kano North senatorial ticket.
He eventually emerged as the APC candidate after an affirmation exercise at the party’s headquarters in Bichi Local Government Area of Kano State.
According to reports by TheCable and Punch Newspapers, thousands of APC members participated in the exercise, while officials of the party and representatives of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were present.
APC Primaries Produce Winners and Losers
The APC’s 2027 primary elections produced victories for several serving lawmakers, former governors and prominent political figures, but also resulted in notable defeats for some incumbent politicians.
TheCable reported that 51 serving senators had secured APC tickets for the 2027 election, while 14 serving senators lost their return bids during the party’s primaries.
Among those who lost their tickets were politicians such as Lola Ashiru, Ned Nwoko, Osita Izunaso, Pam Dachungyang, Titus Zam and Olubiyi Fadeyi, according to the publication.
Such outcomes have generated significant political tension in several states.
Some defeated aspirants accepted the results and pledged to remain within the party, while others challenged the processes through petitions, protests or legal action.
Disputes Emerge Across States
The APC has faced complaints over the conduct of its primaries in several states.
Punch Newspapers reported that aspirants in states including Zamfara, Kogi, Plateau and Osun raised allegations involving imposition, irregularities, exclusion and interference in the primary process.
The allegations have not been uniformly established, and the APC has maintained that its internal processes provide mechanisms for addressing legitimate grievances.
The party subsequently received numerous petitions from aspirants challenging the outcomes.
The APC’s National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, later said the party had reviewed more than 700 petitions submitted after the primaries.
According to reports carried by The Nigeria Lawyer, Morka said some petitions succeeded and resulted in changes to candidates in certain constituencies, while unsuccessful petitions left the original results intact.
This indicates that the party did not simply ignore all complaints but subjected the petitions to an internal review process.
APC Faces Pressure to Reconcile Members
Despite the completion of the primary process, disagreements have continued in some states.
Punch Newspapers reported that the APC leadership had begun reconciliation efforts to address concerns among aggrieved aspirants and members.
The party’s challenge is to balance the need to respect the outcomes of its primaries with the need to prevent defeated aspirants and their supporters from becoming politically disengaged.
In several constituencies, losing aspirants possess their own political structures and networks. Their cooperation could therefore be important to the eventual performance of APC candidates during the general election.
The concern is not limited to the APC.
Nigeria’s political history shows that internal disputes over candidate selection can sometimes result in defections, independent candidacies, litigation or weakened campaign structures.
Kano Provides an Important Example
The events surrounding the Kano North senatorial ticket provide a useful example of how the APC has attempted to manage competing interests.
Before the primary, Barau faced competition from former Minister of State for Housing Abdullahi Tijjani Gwarzo and other interested politicians.
According to The Guardian, negotiations involving senior political figures eventually produced a consensus arrangement that paved the way for Barau’s return bid.
Gwarzo withdrew from the contest, allowing the process to proceed in Barau’s favour.
Barau subsequently secured the ticket through an affirmation exercise.
The development demonstrated the role of political negotiation and consensus-building within the party, although similar arrangements have generated controversy elsewhere where aspirants believed they were denied a competitive contest.
Why the Appeal Matters
Barau’s call for aggrieved aspirants to support the party highlights one of the central political challenges facing the APC ahead of 2027.
Winning a primary election is only the first stage of a broader electoral process.
Candidates still require the support of party members, local political structures, campaign organisations and voters.
A candidate who emerges from a contested primary but fails to secure the cooperation of defeated aspirants could face difficulties during the general election.
For this reason, reconciliation is likely to remain an important part of the APC’s preparations.
The party must persuade defeated aspirants that their political interests can still be accommodated within its structures while ensuring that legitimate complaints are properly addressed.
Some Aspirants Continue to Challenge Results
Despite calls for unity, not all disputes have disappeared.
In Bauchi State, for example, supporters of former Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Maitama Tuggar have continued to question the APC governorship primary that produced former Governor Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar as the party’s candidate.
Punch Newspapers reported that supporters of Tuggar challenged aspects of the process and called for a review.
Other reports have also documented continuing disagreements and reconciliation efforts in the state.
These disputes demonstrate the difficulty of achieving complete unity immediately after a major primary election.
While party leaders can call for members to accept results, aggrieved aspirants may still pursue available internal or legal remedies where they believe established procedures were violated.
The Need for Internal Democracy
The APC’s experience also highlights a broader issue concerning internal democracy within Nigerian political parties.
Primary elections determine who will represent parties at general elections, making transparency, fairness and credible dispute-resolution mechanisms particularly important.
Where aspirants believe that the process was unfair, party leadership faces the dual responsibility of addressing legitimate complaints while preserving the authority of the primary results.
The APC has indicated that it has already reviewed petitions from dissatisfied aspirants, but continuing disputes in some states show that reconciliation remains an ongoing process.
For Barau and other senior party figures, the priority is now to ensure that disagreements do not become permanent divisions.
What Happens Next
The APC is expected to continue preparations for the 2027 general elections while managing internal disagreements arising from its primaries.
The party’s leadership will need to work with state chapters, candidates, defeated aspirants and other stakeholders to strengthen campaign structures and prevent defections or political disengagement.
For aggrieved aspirants, available options include pursuing legitimate internal appeals and legal remedies where applicable, while deciding whether to remain within the APC and support its candidates.
For the ruling party, the bigger task will be translating reconciliation efforts into genuine cooperation at the grassroots.
The 2027 elections are still ahead, meaning the APC has time to resolve many of its internal disputes. However, prolonged disagreements could create opportunities for opposition parties and emerging political platforms to attract dissatisfied members.
A Test of APC’s Political Cohesion
Barau’s appeal ultimately reflects the importance of unity within the ruling party as it prepares for another major electoral contest.
The APC has secured its candidates through a process that produced both winners and losers. The next challenge is to bring those competing interests together.
Whether the party succeeds will depend not only on calls for members to accept defeat but also on how effectively it addresses legitimate grievances, maintains confidence in its internal processes and gives defeated aspirants meaningful roles in the political structure.
For the 2027 election, party unity could prove as important as the strength of individual candidates.
Weng Global – Stories beyond borders
Sources:
- TheCable — Report on Jibrin Barau’s victory in the APC Kano North senatorial primary and the party’s 2027 candidates.
- Punch Newspapers — Reports on APC primary disputes, aggrieved aspirants and the party’s reconciliation efforts.
- Vanguard Newspapers — Report on Barau’s emergence as APC candidate for Kano North.
- The Guardian Nigeria — Report on the consensus arrangement involving Barau and Abdullahi Tijjani Gwarzo.
- The Nigeria Lawyer — Report on the APC’s review of petitions submitted by aggrieved aspirants after the primaries.
