ADELABU NEVER ASKED NIGERIANS TO REJECT APC — VIRAL REPORT FALSE, MALICIOUS AND MISCHIEVOUS

Our attention has been drawn to a false report circulating on social media alleging that Chief Adebayo A. Adelabu, OFR, FCA, FCIB, the immediate past Minister of Power, called on Nigerians to reject the All Progressives Congress (APC).

We wish to state categorically that this report is false, misleading and maliciously designed to discredit Chief Adelabu, question his loyalty to the APC and create unnecessary friction between him, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the leadership of the party. We therefore urge members of the public to disregard this fabricated narrative.

Anyone familiar with Chief Adelabu’s political antecedents, longstanding relationship with President Tinubu and commitment to the APC would recognise the need to treat such allegations with caution, particularly in the absence of credible evidence.

Chief Adelabu served as Minister of Power under the APC-led Federal Government, where he pursued reforms aimed at repositioning Nigeria’s power sector. He subsequently left public office to pursue his governorship ambition in Oyo State.

Unfortunately, the APC governorship nomination process in Oyo State generated controversy, including allegations of a lack of transparency and the failure to publicly release the results of the primary election. Despite his grievances, Chief Adelabu has consistently maintained that he has no intention of leaving the APC, that his political ambition is not a do-or-die affair, and that he remains loyal to the party and President Tinubu.

His position has remained consistent: loyalty to a political party does not preclude the demand for fairness, transparency and respect for democratic principles.

Chief Adelabu has questioned the rationale behind declaring a candidate the winner of an election without publicly releasing the results, only to subsequently establish a reconciliation committee to address the grievances of aggrieved stakeholders.

His position is straightforward: the standards of transparency, accountability and democratic conduct expected of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should equally guide the internal electoral processes of political parties.

It is therefore mischievous to distort his demand for internal democracy and portray it as a call on Nigerians to reject the APC.

More importantly, the relationship between Chief Adelabu and President Tinubu extends beyond ordinary partisan considerations. It is a longstanding relationship built on mutual respect, trust and affection, which Chief Adelabu has openly described in father-and-son terms.

That relationship remains cordial, and no amount of fabricated reports, political blackmail or deliberate misrepresentation should be allowed to undermine it.

Chief Adelabu has neither renounced his loyalty to the President nor called on Nigerians to reject the APC. Those making such allegations should provide verifiable evidence of the purported statement rather than seek to manufacture controversy through misinformation.

For the avoidance of doubt, the video currently being circulated is an excerpt from an interview Chief Adelabu granted in 2022, when he was the governorship candidate of the Accord Party in Oyo State.

During that interview, he expressed the view that political parties had disappointed Nigerians and that voters should pay greater attention to the credibility, character and competence of individual candidates.

Those remarks were made within the context of the political environment at the time. They were consistent with his political position during the 2022 period and his support for the presidential ambition of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, notwithstanding his candidacy under a different political platform.

At no point should those historical remarks be misrepresented as a call on Nigerians to reject the APC or oppose President Tinubu’s administration.

We therefore challenge those circulating the video to publish the full, unedited interview so that Nigerians can independently assess his remarks in their proper context, rather than rely on selectively extracted statements designed to advance a misleading political narrative.

It is also important to clarify that, according to the Media Office, Chief Adelabu has not granted any media interview since the conclusion of the controversial APC governorship nomination process in Oyo State in which he made the alleged statement.

We are consequently concerned about attempts to attribute statements to him that he neither made in the alleged context nor authorised.

We urge members of the public, APC faithful and media practitioners to exercise caution, verify information before sharing it and refuse to become instruments in the hands of individuals seeking to create discord between Chief Adelabu, President Tinubu and the APC leadership.

Chief Adelabu remains committed to the APC, loyal to President Tinubu and supportive of the party’s broader political objectives. His demand for fairness and internal democracy should not be misconstrued as disloyalty, while legitimate grievances should not be exploited to manufacture a political rupture where none has been established.

No amount of misinformation can rewrite Chief Adelabu’s political record, alter his stated convictions or manufacture enmity between him and President Tinubu.

The public is therefore advised to disregard the misleading report and rely on authentic statements issued by Chief Adelabu or his duly authorised representatives.

SIGNED:

Media Office of Chief Adebayo A. Adelabu, OFR, FCA, FCIB

October 2026