The Wike vs AbdulRazaq dispute has added pressure to APC in Kwara, with party chieftain Titilope Anifowoshe urging leaders to reconcile and fix internal problems before 2027.
ILORIN, KWARA — The Wike vs AbdulRazaq political dispute has added fresh pressure on the All Progressives Congress in Kwara State, with APC chieftain Titilope Anifowoshe warning the party against ignoring internal grievances and recent defections ahead of the 2027 elections.
According to Anifowoshe, APC leaders must acknowledge areas of disagreement, rebuild relationships and avoid assuming that politicians who defect automatically take their supporters with them. She spoke against the background of FCT Minister Nyesom Wike’s public accusations involving Kwara Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq and growing political realignments in the state.
Newstridez reviewed data show that Anifowoshe’s intervention comes as APC faces defections involving lawmakers and other party members in parts of Kwara, including the governor’s political ward and Offa. She said the developments should concern party leaders, but cautioned against treating every defection as proof that APC has lost its grassroots support.
Speaking on the development, Anifowoshe said a serious political party must listen when members become unhappy. She urged APC to be honest about its internal problems and courageous enough to address them, arguing that unresolved disputes could create bigger challenges as political activities build towards the 2027 general elections.
The APC chieftain also responded to Wike’s accusations against AbdulRazaq, stressing that the claims should remain separate from established facts until the governor has an opportunity to respond. She said Wike had publicly linked AbdulRazaq to a campaign against him and connected the dispute to the movement of aggrieved APC politicians.
Anifowoshe described the dispute as politically significant because Wike has continued to signal his intention to play an active role in Nigeria’s 2027 political arrangements. According to her, the former Rivers governor and current FCT minister has maintained that his wider political objective remains the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The comments come at a sensitive time for APC in Kwara, where political actors are already positioning themselves ahead of the next election cycle. Anifowoshe said the contest would involve more than the traditional APC-versus-PDP rivalry, with competing interests also focused on political control, succession and the future leadership of the state.
She warned APC leaders against allowing personal disagreements between influential politicians to become bigger than the party itself. According to her, the party must find ways to manage disagreements without destroying its internal structure or weakening the national political project associated with Tinubu.
“Reconcile. Reorganise. Listen. Don’t underestimate anybody. Don’t take the electorate for granted,” Anifowoshe said.
She added that APC should not confuse its political machinery with genuine public support. According to her, winning elections requires more than party structures because voters retain the power to decide whether those structures translate into electoral support.
The argument comes as defections continue to attract attention across Nigerian politics. In Kwara, Anifowoshe acknowledged that some lawmakers and party members had moved to the Peoples Democratic Party, while reports also indicated grassroots movements in some areas. She, however, said political movement does not always mean voters will follow the politicians involved.
“In Nigerian politics, politicians move. Voters sometimes don’t,” she said, stressing that the distinction could become important when Kwara voters decide who to support in 2027.
The statement reflects a wider challenge facing Nigerian political parties, where defections often trigger claims that a party has lost its base. Anifowoshe argued that APC should examine the reasons behind the movement instead of simply dismissing defectors or assuming that their departure has no political effect.
She also advised party leaders against responding to every disagreement through exclusion. According to her, a strong political organisation does not require everyone to agree with its leaders; rather, it should have enough room to settle disagreements without allowing disputes to destroy the institution.
For AbdulRazaq, the political challenge comes as he seeks to protect the gains of his administration and maintain influence over the direction of Kwara politics. Anifowoshe said the governor has a legitimate interest in protecting those gains, while political actors around him also have their own ambitions.
Meanwhile, Wike’s intervention adds another layer to the political calculations. Anifowoshe said his public position suggests that he intends to influence the political architecture ahead of 2027, even as he continues to support Tinubu’s re-election bid.
The dispute also matters beyond the personalities involved because Kwara remains a politically important state in the North-Central region. Control of the state’s political structures, grassroots networks and succession plans could shape the strength of both APC and PDP as the next election approaches.
Newstridez reviewed Anifowoshe’s comments and found that she did not present Wike’s accusations against AbdulRazaq as proven facts. Instead, she specifically urged political observers to separate the allegations from established facts and give the Kwara governor an opportunity to respond.
She also rejected the idea that Kwara’s political future should belong to any individual or faction. According to Anifowoshe, the state belongs to its people and not to a governor, minister, senator, political dynasty or party group.
Her position reflects the balancing act facing APC ahead of 2027. The party must retain influential politicians and its existing political structures while also responding to complaints from members who believe they have been sidelined or treated unfairly.
Earlier political developments in Kwara have shown how quickly internal disputes can affect party calculations. With the PDP seeking to rebuild and politicians moving between platforms, APC leaders face pressure to resolve disagreements before they become wider electoral problems.
Anifowoshe therefore called for reconciliation and reorganisation rather than a purely confrontational response. She said the party should listen to its members, repair broken relationships and avoid taking voters for granted.
The message also carries significance for politicians seeking to influence the 2027 succession battle in Kwara. Whoever controls the party structure, grassroots network and support of voters could have a major advantage when candidates emerge and campaigns begin in earnest.
As at the time of filing this report, Wike’s allegations against AbdulRazaq remained claims, while Anifowoshe urged APC to address its internal problems and prepare for the political contest ahead. The governor’s response to the specific allegations was not included in the interview reviewed by Newstridez.
The political calculations in Kwara are expected to intensify as 2027 draws closer. For APC, Anifowoshe’s message is clear: reconcile, reorganise and listen, while rebuilding public confidence instead of relying only on party structures to secure electoral victory.
