The All Progressives Congress in Kwara State has thrown its weight behind Rt. Hon. Yakubu Danladi-Salihu as its governorship candidate for the 2027 election, with the party leadership describing him as a tested hand prepared to succeed Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.

State APC Chairman, Sunday Fagbemi, speaking on a television programme monitored in Ilorin, said Danladi-Salihu emerged from what he called a transparent and credible primary election that reflected the will of party members across the state.

“A free and fair primary has been conducted in Kwara State, and a winner has emerged,” Fagbemi said, insisting that the process was open, competitive and in line with the party’s guidelines.

He anchored the party’s confidence in Danladi-Salihu on his record in public office, particularly his two-term tenure as Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, where he presided during AbdulRazaq’s first and second terms.

“Speaking of competence, this is someone who served as Speaker of the State House of Assembly for two terms. There has been no rancour. There has been cooperation and synergy with the other arms of government. That takes a lot, and it answers the question of competence,” the chairman said.

Danladi-Salihu, who now represents Ilorin East/Ilorin South Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, clinched the governorship ticket after defeating other aspirants in the party primary ahead of the 2027 polls.

Fagbemi dismissed claims that the lawmaker’s emergence was part of a so-called third-term agenda for Governor AbdulRazaq, describing such insinuations as baseless.

“Are they saying Danladi is not a Kwaran? Did they say he is contesting for governorship the third term? If any other person had emerged, they would find something else to say,” he argued, adding that the era of installing surrogates in Kwara politics was over.

He also rejected suggestions that key stakeholders were being sidelined within the ruling party, maintaining that the APC remained cohesive and was, in his words, “winning more” members rather than losing them.

According to Fagbemi, the AbdulRazaq administration’s performance in infrastructure, healthcare, education and security would form the backbone of the APC’s campaign message in 2027.

“There is no one of the 193 wards in Kwara State where you will not find a functional healthcare centre today. Major cities in Kwara are experiencing great transformation. Infrastructure-wise, good schools and other projects are visible across the state,” he said.

Expressing confidence in Danladi-Salihu’s chances, Fagbemi predicted a decisive victory for the APC in the next governorship election, particularly in Kwara North, where the candidate hails from.