The All Progressives Congress has released the list of House of Representatives aspirants screened but not cleared to participate in the party’s primary elections, with several candidates reportedly backed by Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, failing to scale through the exercise.
LEGAL OBSERVER gathered that the list, released by the National Secretariat of the APC in Abuja and signed by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, indicated that some aspirants from Ondo State were marked “Not Cleared” after the screening process conducted by the party’s committees.
Among those affected are Seun Oluwashina Ajongbolo and Olusegun Victor Ategbole from Akoko South-East/South-West Federal Constituency; Morufu Tosin Ibrahim, Oseni Oyeniyi and Olaleye John Adedipe from Akoko North-East/North-West Federal Constituency; as well as Rt. Hon. Arowole Ayodeji Samuel from Owo/Ose Federal Constituency.
Others on the list include Hon. Adefisoye Tajudeen from Idanre/Ifedore Federal Constituency.
Party insiders said some affected aspirants were believed to have been backed by Governor Aiyedatiwa ahead of the APC primaries, making their disqualification a significant political setback within the party’s camp in the state.
The APC, in a statement accompanying the list, said the affected aspirants participated in the screening exercise but were not cleared to contest in the forthcoming primary election.
“The screening exercise was conducted by the Party’s Screening Committees in line with established procedures and guidelines,” the statement read.
The development has already stirred reactions among party loyalists in Ondo State, especially in constituencies where the disqualified aspirants were considered strong contenders ahead of the primaries.
The APC has yet to disclose specific reasons for the non-clearance of the aspirants.
