Kwara gov poll: AbdulRazaq names preferred successor

AHEAD of the All Progressives Congress, APC‘s governorship primaries, tomorrow, Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State, yesterday, unveiled Ambassador Abdulfatai Seriki as his preferred candidate.

Seriki, a mining magnate with networks across Nigeria and beyond, has been a longstanding political insider with extensive goodwill in every part of the state. He is the chairman of the multimillion dollar Kursi Group. 

Governor Abdulrazaq, in a statement, said he endorsed the astute politician after exhaustive consultations with party stakeholders in the state and beyond. 

He said: “Young, pro-people, astute, and broad-minded, Amb. Yahaya Seriki has been a great political mobiliser with profound investments in and extensive goodwill among the people of Kwara State. I have no doubt about his capacity and that his choice is appropriate for the people of our state at this time.

“While this does not in any way preclude all other aspirants from contesting in the primaries, I urge members and leaders to affirm the choice of Seriki as our candidate for cohesion, unity, and continuous success of the party as we hold our gubernatorial primaries on Thursday, May 21, 2026.

“The choice of Ambassador Seriki is neither a disapproval of any of our eminently qualified aspirants nor a whimsical attempt to delegittimise the noble aspirations of our people. But in a race involving some 16 great minds for one office, only one person can take the shot at a time. 

“Finally, I acknowledge and commend the statesmanship of our aspirants, all of whom have shown discipline and impressive capacity to build on the undeniable achievements of our administration over the last seven years for the good of the people of Kwara State.”

The endorsement was followed immediately by a flurry of approvals from grassroots leaders, top politicians, aspirants, and transport unions in the state. 

Leading governorship aspirant and speaker of the House of Assembly, Salihu Yakubu Danladi, has congratulated Seriki over the endorsement and pledged to work for him.

NILD Director General, Prof. Abubakar Suleiman, said he would no longer be participating in the race after the announcement. 

The entire party structure is also poised to announce their support, with all the Local Government APC Chairmen in Kwara Central and Kwara South having sent their endorsement for the nominee. 

ALGON in Kwara State has also congratulated Seriki, while key sociocultural platforms in Central have sent their congratulations. 

ALGON chairman 

Abdullahi Danladi said in a statement that “local government chairmen across the state are in full support of the Governor’s decision”. 

At least five strong party blocs are to hold various endorsement engagements for the nominee on Wednesday, practically guaranteeing his emergence at the primaries that are slated for Thursday. 

Tens of thousands of party enthusiasts and supporters thronged the Tunde Idiagbon International Stadium to welcome Seriki to Ilorin just about three hours after his name was announced.

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