The internal crisis rocking the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) has deepened ahead of the 2027 general elections following a boycott of a presidential campaign town hall meeting organised by the party’s candidate, Seyi Makinde, by chairmen of its six South-South states.
The party chairmen also passed a vote of no confidence in Makinde, accusing the Oyo State governor of disregarding established party structures and excluding recognised officials from the coordination of his presidential campaign.
The development followed a South-South presidential campaign town hall meeting held by Makinde in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, on Tuesday.
The chairmen announced their decision in a statement titled, “South-South Chairmen of APM/Governorship Candidates/National Assembly Candidates Boycott South-South Presidential Town Hall Meeting, Pass a Vote of No Confidence on Our Presidential Candidate, Seyi Makinde.”
They said the decision was reached after deliberations on the state of the party and its relationship with the presidential candidate, insisting that internal democracy, accountability and respect for established leadership structures must be upheld.
While acknowledging the importance of the 2027 elections and the need for unity among party members, the officials accused Makinde of failing to consult existing party leaders in matters relating to his campaign.
“We have realised that our Presidential candidate, Seyi Makinde lacks substance, the political will and focus to lead us aright as a Presidential candidate,” the statement read.
The chairmen further accused the governor of dishonesty and political compromise, questioning his suitability to lead the party into the 2027 presidential election.
They also described him as a “political deadwood” and alleged that he joined the APM from a faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that had lost political relevance.
Another major grievance raised by the party officials was the alleged appointment of campaign coordinators across the 36 states from outside the APM, instead of relying on the party’s existing structures.
According to them, the alleged appointments disregarded party members who had invested time and resources in building the organisation at the grassroots.
“All of whom are not card carrying members of our Party APM. It thus appears that Seyi Makinde came to our Party, only to make merchandise of us, whereas APM is not a trading company,” the statement said.
The chairmen maintained that Makinde’s emergence as the party’s presidential candidate did not place him above its constitution or established procedures.
They insisted that the party’s national, zonal, state, local government and ward structures must be respected, warning against allowing individual political ambitions to undermine the organisation.
The officials said their decision was taken in consultation with the zone’s governorship candidates, National Assembly candidates and state House of Assembly candidates.
They stressed that their grievances were directed at Makinde’s alleged handling of his presidential campaign and his failure to adequately recognise the party’s leadership structures across the South-South region.
“We have invested our time, resources and political capital in building the party structures across the South-South zone and we will not allow political hoodlums to destabilise a party we all laboured to build,” they added.
Despite their opposition to Makinde’s campaign leadership, the six chairmen reaffirmed their support for the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), led by National Chairman Alhaji Yusuf Mamman Dantalle, who also heads the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC).
They passed a vote of confidence in Dantalle and the NWC, urging the national leadership to continue strengthening the party ahead of the 2027 elections.
The chairmen also expressed confidence in the party’s National Leader and Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed, commending what they described as his exemplary and focused leadership.
However, they said they would reconvene at an appropriate time to determine their position on the presidential election, insisting that political interests must not be allowed to undermine the South-South region’s role in the party.
The statement was signed by the six state chairmen: Dagogo Whyte of Rivers State, Peace Oruama of Bayelsa State, Uduak Edet of Akwa Ibom State, Ugiagbe Ogieriakhi of Edo State, Henry Eze of Delta State, and Ntami Nkanu Esege of Cross River State.
