The leadership crisis in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the country may have spilled into Kwara state as two separate governorship primaries conducted by factions of the opposition party in the state have produced parallel governorship candidates for the 2027 general elections.

It is recalled that the PDP had last week Sunday announced Kale Kawu Agaka as its governorship candidate, while the faction loyal to the Turaki-led national leadership has nominated Alhaji Ladi Hassan as its governorship candidate on Sunday.

Hassan may have emerged from the Kabir Turaki (SAN) faction of the PDP, while Kale Kawu won the ticket from the Abdulrahman Mohammed’s side.

Political watchers in the state have
expressed fears of a prolonged legal and political battle over which ticket will be recognized by electoral authorities with the emergence of two candidates from the same party.

Speaking on the development, the state secretary of the PDP in the state, Kayode Abdulrahman, said that the factional PDP governorship candidate was sponsored by non-PDP members in the state to destabilise the party.

The party secretary said that Mr. Ladi Hassan got nomination form from the PDP and participated in the party’s governorship primaries where he lost.

“For him to have gone to emerge as a governorship candidate in the fake PDP that’s not recognized by the INEC speaks volumes. He must have been sponsored by people outside our party. But I assure you they can’t succeed,” he said.

Political observers have, however, warned that the split could severely undermine the PDP’s ability to present a united front in Kwara, a state the opposition is keen to reclaim.

Party stakeholders and supporters have begun calling for urgent reconciliation, but with both factions digging in, attention is now turning to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the courts to determine which candidate if any will legally represent the PDP in the 2027 governorship race.

The latest development is expected to have significant implications for the political landscape in Kwara State as preparations for the general elections gather momentum.