…Tolu Philips Alleges Irregularities
The member representing Abeokuta South Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Afolabi Afuape, has emerged winner of the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary election, securing the party’s ticket for a second term bid ahead of the general elections.
The result of the primary, conducted on Saturday, was announced at the APC collation centre located at Centenary Hall, Ake, Abeokuta, by the returning officer, Oyesile Olusiji.
Announcing the outcome, Olusiji disclosed that Afuape polled 12,633 votes out of the 13,847 total votes cast to defeat other aspirants in the contest. His closest challenger, Tolulope Philips, garnered 760 votes.
Other contestants included Akeem Ademola, who secured 227 votes; Ayodeji Abolore with 215 votes; and Lanre Edun, who polled 12 votes.
Speaking with journalists after the exercise, Afuape described the primary as peaceful, transparent and credible, maintaining that voting was successfully conducted in 14 of the 15 wards across the constituency.
He dismissed claims that any ward was excluded from the process, insisting that party members participated freely without disruption.
According to him, complaints and disagreements are common in political contests, especially among losing aspirants, but urged party members to close ranks and work together for the success of the APC in the forthcoming elections.
“The allegation is not correct. We deployed resources across the wards, and Ward 7 cannot be an exception. Even in my own ward, people queued peacefully and the process was uninterrupted. This is a peaceful party. These are internal matters, and as we prepare to face other parties, we must not continue to fight ourselves,” he said.
Afuape further stressed that despite differing interests during the primary, the APC remains one family and should remain united ahead of the general polls.
However, one of the aspirants, Philips, raised concerns over alleged irregularities during voting in Ward 7, claiming that non-party members and fake voters participated in the exercise.
He alleged that accreditation procedures were not properly followed despite party members arriving early at the venue, adding that some individuals from Wards 8 and 9 allegedly voted in Ward 7.
Philips maintained that no valid election was conducted in the ward.
Reacting to the allegation, one of the aspirants who later stepped down in support of Afuape dismissed the claims, arguing that the outcome of the primary could not have been determined by votes from a single ward.
He explained that his withdrawal from the race followed the party’s decision to adopt a consensus arrangement aimed at sustaining Afuape’s representation and developmental initiatives in the constituency.
