The All Progressives Congress (APC) has disqualified longtime lawmaker Wole Oke from contesting the party’s primary election for the Obokun-Oriade Federal Constituency seat, ending his bid for a seventh consecutive term in the House of Representatives.
Oke was screened out by the APC screening committee on Wednesday in Abuja, according to party sources familiar with the exercise. The decision effectively blocks the Osun politician from extending a 24-year uninterrupted stay in the National Assembly, where he has represented the Obokun-Oriade constituency since 2003.
Sources close to the screening process said the decision was largely influenced by zoning considerations within the constituency. Some members of the committee reportedly argued that the APC ticket should be ceded to Oriade Local Government Area rather than Obokun, Oke’s home base, in the interest of political balance and fairness within the federal constituency.
The development marks a major setback for the lawmaker, who recently defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC after years as one of the opposition party’s prominent figures in Osun State politics.
Oke’s political future had appeared secure following his defection to the ruling party and his subsequent appointment as director-general of the APC campaign council for the August 15, 2026 governorship election in Osun State.
The veteran legislator has long been regarded as one of the enduring figures in Nigeria’s National Assembly due to his lengthy stay in the green chamber, alongside ranking lawmakers such as Ali Ndume.
His disqualification is expected to generate political reactions within the APC in Osun, especially among his supporters in Obokun-Oriade, where he has maintained significant grassroots influence over the years.
Although the APC has yet to issue an official statement detailing the reasons for the disqualification, party insiders said the zoning arrangement was strongly considered to avoid internal disputes ahead of the primary election.
The Obokun-Oriade Federal Constituency has remained politically strategic in Osun State, and the APC is expected to field a candidate capable of challenging rival parties in the next general election cycle.
Oke’s removal from the race also comes at a sensitive moment for the APC as the party intensifies preparations for the Osun governorship election, where its candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, will face incumbent governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party, who is seeking re-election.
Political observers say the outcome of the APC primaries across Osun State could shape internal party unity ahead of both the governorship poll and the 2027 general elections.
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