Oyo ADC members protest Adegoke’s listing as governorship candidate
By Adejayan Gbenga
Aggrieved members of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Oyo State have protested the listing of Hon. Taofeek Adegoke as the party’s governorship candidate on the portal of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The protesters, led by the party’s State Publicity Secretary, Adebimpe Adelowo, took their grievances to the INEC office in the Agodi area of Ibadan, demanding that Adegoke’s name be withdrawn pending the determination of a court case over the party’s governorship primary.
Adelowo, who said she represented the State Chairman, Alhaji Yinka Olona, claimed that the development contradicted the outcome of the governorship primary held on May 23, 2026. She said Dr. Gbemileke Alagbe-Eleniyan emerged as the winner of the exercise.
She added that the primary was conducted after the party’s national organising secretary constituted an electoral committee in accordance with the ADC constitution. According to her, INEC officials monitored the exercise and later submitted their reports.
Adelowo also alleged that the candidate list currently displayed on the INEC portal was submitted through a hard-copy letter by some national officials of the party, rather than through the procedure she claimed was prescribed by the Electoral Act.
The ADC South Senatorial Chairman in Oyo State also appealed to INEC to withdraw the disputed list until the court determines the matter. He said the members were concerned that the dispute could affect the party’s chances in the 2027 general elections.
The protesters called for the recognition of Alagbe-Eleniyan pending the court’s decision. However, the Head of Legal Services of INEC in Oyo State, Adeniyi Lawal, urged the aggrieved members to remain calm, noting that the matter was already before the court.
Lawal appealed to all parties to sheathe their swords and allow the judiciary to resolve the dispute, as different positions continue to emerge within the ADC over its governorship ticket ahead of the 2027 general elections.
