Stop worrying about zoning and start thinking about who can actually win
In the corridors of Kwara State's ruling party, a group of elders has raised a question as old as democratic politics itself: should power be distributed by turn, or by merit? Submitting a formal memorandum to APC leadership, the Kwara State APC Elders Caucus has urged the party to weigh a candidate's proven electoral strength above the customary rotation of offices among regions. Their intervention, timed ahead of the 2027 elections, reflects a deeper tension between the politics of fairness and the politics of survival — a tension no party in a competitive democracy ever fully resolves.
- Party elders have formally challenged the APC's reliance on zoning, arguing that rotating offices by region risks sacrificing the candidates most capable of winning.
- The memorandum names Hon. Abdul-Raheem Tunji Olawuyi as the party's strongest electoral asset in the four-LGA federal constituency of Kwara South, pointing to his past victories, legislative record, and grassroots reach.
- Elders reframe the fairness argument itself — noting that the Ekiti bloc has held the Kwara South senatorial seat for three consecutive terms, while Offa, described as the largest voting bloc in the zone, has yet to secure comparable representation.
- A warning runs through the memorandum: weakening Irepodun, one of the APC's most reliable strongholds, through poor candidate selection could cost the party dearly in 2027.
- The dispute lands amid broader discontent over how APC primaries have unfolded in Kwara, with the elders' intervention an attempt to shift the party's internal conversation from entitlement to electability.
Inside the Kwara State chapter of Nigeria's All Progressives Congress, a familiar contest is unfolding between tradition and strategy. On Sunday, the Kwara State APC Elders Caucus submitted a memorandum to party leadership making a pointed case: that candidate selection for the 2027 elections should be driven by electability, legislative experience, and grassroots acceptance — not by zoning, the long-standing practice of rotating political offices among different regions.
Signed by Chief James Ayeni on behalf of the caucus, the memorandum is not merely philosophical. It is a direct endorsement of Hon. Abdul-Raheem Tunji Olawuyi for the House of Representatives seat covering Ekiti, Irepodun, Isin, and Oke-Ero in Kwara South. The elders describe Olawuyi as one of the party's most dependable electoral performers in the region — a candidate with prior victories, a legislative track record, delivered constituency projects, and a support network spanning all four local government areas.
The memorandum also turns the equity argument on its head. Rather than accepting that zoning protects fairness, the elders point out that the Ekiti bloc has held the Kwara South senatorial seat for three consecutive terms — hardly a picture of exclusion. They argue that Offa Local Government, which they describe as the largest voting bloc in Kwara South, has a stronger claim to consideration if fairness is truly the measure.
Embedded in the document is a caution to party leadership: Irepodun Local Government is one of the APC's most reliable bases in Kwara South, and decisions that alienate it could weaken the party's overall performance in 2027. As the elections draw closer, the elders are pressing the party to choose strength over symbolism — and the outcome of that argument will say much about how the APC intends to govern its own house.
Inside the Kwara State chapter of Nigeria's All Progressives Congress, a familiar battle is playing out in a new key. On Sunday, a group of party elders stepped into the fray over the APC's primary elections by submitting a memorandum to party leadership that amounts to a direct challenge to how candidates are being chosen. Their argument is straightforward: stop worrying so much about zoning—the traditional practice of rotating political offices among different regions—and start thinking about who can actually win.
The memorandum, signed by Chief James Ayeni on behalf of the Kwara State APC Elders Caucus, makes the case that the party's primary job is to win elections. To do that, the elders wrote, candidate selection should be guided by electability, legislative experience, grassroots acceptance, and a demonstrated ability to perform at the ballot box. It's a plea for pragmatism over principle, or at least for a reordering of which principles matter most.
The intervention is not abstract. The elders are backing Hon. Abdul-Raheem Tunji Olawuyi for the House of Representatives seat representing Ekiti, Irepodun, Isin, and Oke-Ero—four local government areas that make up one federal constituency in Kwara South. According to the elders, Olawuyi is one of the APC's strongest electoral assets in the region. He has won elections before. He has legislative experience. He has delivered projects to his constituency. He has built a network of support across all four local government areas. These are not small things in Nigerian politics, where personal relationships and demonstrated delivery often matter more than party machinery.
But the memorandum also contains a more pointed argument about fairness itself. The elders contend that when people talk about zoning and equity, they are often looking at the question too narrowly. The Ekiti bloc, they note, has held the Kwara South senatorial seat for three consecutive terms. By that measure, the argument goes, Ekiti has already had substantial political representation and cannot fairly claim to be excluded from power. Meanwhile, Offa Local Government—which the elders describe as the largest voting bloc in Kwara South—has not secured comparable elective office. If fairness is truly the standard, the elders suggest, then the conversation should include Offa's interests too.
There is also a warning embedded in the memorandum. The elders caution the party against weakening one of its most reliable political structures at a time when it should be consolidating power. Irepodun Local Government, they note, is one of the APC's strongest electoral bases in Kwara South. Political decisions that alienate that area could damage the party's chances in future elections. In other words: do not sacrifice electoral strength on the altar of zoning principles.
The intervention comes as the Kwara APC is already dealing with discontent over how its primary elections turned out. This is not the first time party elders have waded into the dispute. The memorandum is an attempt to reframe the conversation—to shift it from questions of who deserves a turn to questions of who can deliver votes. Whether that reframing will persuade the party's national and state leadership remains to be seen. What is clear is that as the 2027 elections approach, the tension between tradition and strategy, between equity and electability, is only sharpening.
Citas Notables
The APC's overriding objective must always be electoral victory. Candidate selection should primarily be guided by electability, proven performance, legislative experience, grassroots acceptability and the capacity to retain the confidence of the electorate.— Kwara State APC Elders Caucus memorandum
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Why would party elders feel the need to step in now, in the middle of a primary dispute? Isn't that usually settled internally?
Because the stakes are real. If you choose a candidate who can't win, you lose the seat. The elders are saying the party is about to make a choice that looks fair on paper but could cost them an election.
But zoning exists for a reason, doesn't it? It's supposed to keep different regions feeling included, prevent resentment.
It does, and that's the tension. The elders aren't saying zoning is bad. They're saying it's being applied in a way that ignores other parts of the same region—Offa, for instance—that have never held the seat. They're asking: if we're going to talk about fairness, why are we only looking at one local government area?
So this is really about Olawuyi. Is he the only candidate, or are there others?
The memorandum doesn't say there are no other candidates. It just says Olawuyi has won before, has a track record, and has support across all four local government areas. That's the case they're making for him.
And if the party doesn't listen? What happens then?
The elders are warning that alienating Irepodun—one of the APC's strongest bases in the region—could hurt the party in 2027. It's a gentle threat, really. They're saying: listen to us, or you might lose more than you gain.
Do you think they'll be heard?
That depends on whether the party leadership agrees that winning is more important than the principle being invoked. Right now, the party is torn. The elders are trying to tip the scales toward pragmatism.