Cold War In Ekiti APC As Incumbent Lawmaker, Party Candidate Battle Each Other

All seems not well in All Progressive Congress (APC), Ekiti South Federal Constituency 2 as the incumbent House of Representatives member there, Hon Rufus Ojuawo is in a cold war with the party’s candidate in the Federal Constituency, Engr Toyin Okoro. The latter defeated the former in the primary election of the party conducted in June this year.

In what appears like a vindictive motive, the incumbent lawmaker, AVM Rufus Adeniyi Ojuawo (rtd.) has been accused by Engr Okoro of sponsoring a petition against him before the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) following his defeat in the party’s May 2026 primary.

Okoro, through his Campaign Council, alleged that the petition and subsequent media report linking him to alleged contract fraud were part of attempts to discredit him ahead of the 2027 elections.

The Campaign Council, in a statement issued in Abuja on Friday, said Okoro merely honoured an invitation from the ICPC to respond to a petition, stressing that such an invitation did not amount to an indictment, guilt or conviction.

“An invitation to clarify issues is a routine procedure and does not amount to guilt, indictment or conviction,” the Council said.

It alleged that Ojuawo had embarked on a series of actions against Okoro after losing his bid to secure the APC ticket to return to the House of Representatives in 2027.

According to the Council, Ojuawo had earlier petitioned the APC Screening Committee seeking Okoro’s disqualification from the primary, but the committee dismissed the petition and cleared him to contest.

It further alleged that another petition challenging Okoro’s claim of being an indigene of Ise-Ekiti also failed, while Ojuawo subsequently approached the court to challenge the outcome of the primary.

“Having failed at the party level, Ojuawo has approached the court challenging the outcome of a primary election he lost woefully. The matter is subjudice and we are confident the judiciary will uphold the will of the people,” the statement said.

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On the allegation contained in the ICPC petition, the Council said Okoro had never violated any law by combining his position as Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of a private company with his role as Senior Legislative Aide at the National Assembly.

It explained that Okoro resigned his position as Managing Director/CEO of the company before taking up his appointment as a Senior Legislative Aide.

“We state categorically that Engr. Toyin Okoro never broke any law as he duly resigned as Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of a private company when he was appointed as Senior Legislative Aide at the National Assembly,” it said.

The Council described Okoro as a law-abiding professional engineer and public servant, maintaining that he had never been arrested, charged or convicted of any criminal offence.

It alleged that the latest ICPC-related report was intended to embarrass and distract the APC candidate, urging supporters in Ikere, Ekiti South-West and Ise/Orun Local Government Areas to disregard it.

The Council also appealed to the Ekiti State Government, APC national leadership and other stakeholders to intervene against what it described as actions capable of undermining party unity.