Oyo ADC primary crisis deepens as Ilaka rejects outcome, alleges fraud

By Adejayan Gbenga

A governorship aspirant of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Oyo State, Chief Adebisi Ilaka, has rejected the outcome of the party’s governorship primary election, alleging widespread manipulation and electoral fraud in the exercise conducted on May 22, 2026.

Ilaka, who addressed journalists in Ibadan on Sunday, described the primary election as a “travesty” and a clear violation of internal democracy within the party. The former Chief of Staff insisted that the process was compromised through the alleged diversion of result sheets meant for several Local Government Areas.

According to him, result sheets designated for 13 LGAs were allegedly diverted and handed over to unidentified persons, who subsequently produced what he described as “manufactured figures” that did not reflect the actual votes cast during the exercise.

He explained that result sheets for 20 LGAs were properly distributed through the party chairman-elect, Mr. Afees Adelowo, to party officials across Oke-Ogun, Ogbomoso, Oyo and parts of Ibarapa. However, he claimed that the remaining sheets never got to some local governments in Ibadan, Ibarapa East and Ibarapa North.

Ilaka further alleged that party members in the affected areas had already conducted the primary election at ward and local government levels before the disputed figures emerged. He maintained that the announced results did not originate from the authentic collation centres.

“The results entered into those sheets are disputed because they never got to the local governments where the authentic results were domiciled. They were simply manufactured for the purpose of electoral fraud,” he alleged.

The ADC chieftain also stated that party agents, ward executives and local government officials were prepared to testify that the declared results differed from the actual votes collated at the grassroots. He added that available authentic results from his camp showed that he won in 28 out of 29 LGAs and was leading by about 14,000 votes before the disputed results surfaced.

Ilaka disclosed that he had already initiated steps to challenge the outcome before the party’s appeal committee, warning that unresolved grievances could deepen divisions within the ADC ahead of the 2027 general elections in Oyo State. He stressed that the party must protect internal democracy if it hopes to remain united and competitive.