National leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has postponed the Kwara State governorship primary earlier scheduled for Thursday to Friday.

The state party chairman, Prince Sunday Fagbemi confirmed to newsmen that his office was aware that the national leadership ordered the cancellation.

According to him: “we don’t have details for the cancellation other than the fact that the team from national office came and instructed that the election holds tomorrow.”

However, barely few hours to the commencement of the postponed primary in the state, eight aspirants, early Thursday stepped down for Ambassador Abdulfatai Yahaya Seriki, the Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq’s preferred successor.

Ambassador Seriki, on Wednesday, was said to have held strategic engagements with fellow aspirants and key stakeholders in the state, during which many unanimously conceded to his candidature “in the interest of unity and continuity of Governor AbdulRazaq achievements.”

Those who pledged support for Seriki were: Dr. Salako Oluwatoyin, Captain Ahmad Mahmoud, Prof Wale Sulaiman, Dr. Mohammed Bio, Dr. Toyin Alabi, Hajia Aisha Patigi, Sen Ibrahim Oloriegbe, and the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Hon. Yakubu Salihu Danladi.

The meeting ended with a renewed commitment to party cohesion, issue-based engagement, and a peaceful primary process capable of further strengthening the APC in Kwara State.
Further indications suggest that more aspirants may step down ahead of the primary election.

Meanwhile, at the primary proper, people, including physically challenged APC members trooped out in Kwara Central Senatorial District to participate in the electoral process as early as 8:am for the exercise that eventually started at 12:noon across the state.

At Gambari ward II, Karumo in Ilorin East, a Sokoto State born visually-impaired Abubakar Gobir told newsmen that he and his mates and colleagues were at the arena to exercise their civic right as loyal party members.

Another visually-impaired, Rufai Yusuf, also from Sokoto State declared: “we are with our families to pay goodness with goodness, we are all here for Yahaya Seriki.”

At Adewole and Alananmu wards in Ilorin West, the situation tilted to the advantage of Seriki as the shout: “sai Yahaya” rented the air.

In Kwara South, Alhaji Adebayo Yakeen A.K.A Baba blue, at Ganmo/Idanfian said they did not see electoral officers to conduct the exercise, “but we ordered ourselves to queue up and we counted ourselves and have since sent the results to our leadership in the state,” he told newsmen.

However, Mr. Busari Olaiya Lukman Alhaji Mustapha also known as Leko, both ward officers urged journalists to disregard the Adebayo claim, adding that the ward chairman went to the state secretariat for electoral materials.