An Open Letter to Fellow Progressives in Oyo State By Dr. Adewale Kolapo Kareem (AKK).
“We must Navigate the Crossroads of Grievance, Inclusivity, and the 2027 Mandate on Motion”
 
Over the past few weeks, my office and personal communication channels have been flooded with messages from dedicated party faithful, key stakeholders, and passionate foot soldiers across Oyo State. Many of these engagements have been marked by a palpable sense of dissent, frustration, and deep-seated concern regarding the trajectory of our great party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), following the primary process. I hear you loud and clear. It is both a duty and an honour to serve as a sounding board for your anxieties, and I do not take for granted the trust required to pour out your hearts to me during this politically charged season.
 
Let it be known that I do not sit in an ivory tower, detached from the emotional and structural realities of our movement. I intimately share in the deep reservations, institutional discomfort, and anxieties felt by many of our fellow gubernatorial aspirants and their teeming supporters. These concerns are not frivolous; they are entirely legitimate, valid, and of course born out of a genuine love for internal democracy. I felt this same weight, which is why I did not hesitate to publicly express it in my statement released on Wednesday, 20th of May, 2026 while endorsing Distinguished Senator Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli, PhD, I explicitly articulated this position, stating:
 
“In the midst of all of this, I feel a profound duty to sensitively call the attention of our party's hierarchy and stakeholders to a vital principle of statecraft: that democratic pursuits, by their very nature, naturally attract divergent interests, and these interests must always be deeply, inclusively, and delicately channeled. While consensus is an institutional tool for unity, we must continually strive to do better in rallying every competing interest together from the foundational stages. Inclusivity is the oil that keeps the progressive machine running smoothly, and ensuring that every voice feels genuinely valued and integrated into the decision-making process is the surest way to safeguard our institutional harmony and guarantee an impenetrable front moving forward.”
 
This remains my unshakable conviction, and I have re-emphasised it in multiple fora.
However, statecraft and political strategy dictate that we cannot afford to remain perpetually anchored to our grievances, no matter how justified they are. We must move forward in the overriding interest of peace, progress, and the absolute unity of the APC fold. The ultimate prize ahead of us is the governance of Oyo State in 2027, an architectural vision designed to rescue our people from the current lackluster administration. To achieve this, we must accept a fundamental truth: moving forward does not mean burying or ignoring the systemic issues that arose during the primaries; rather, it means resolving them while keeping our feet firmly on the pedal. We must address our internal wounds on the motion, actively correcting the wrongs of yesterday while maintaining our collective momentum toward the general elections.
 
We simply cannot afford the catastrophic luxury of resting on our oars from a stagnant position. In the theater of politics, time waits for no one, and our political opponents will certainly not suspend their operations to allow us to finish our internal mourning. As we sit at this crossroads, other political parties are aggressively scheming, mapping out terrains, and forming clandestine realignments across traditional divides. The political landscape of Oyo State is shifting daily, and if we remain paralysed by our hurts, we risk being outmaneuvered. If we do not safeguard our house now, we will have no house left to reform. Strategic realignment must happen within our camp immediately to ensure we present a bulletproof facade to the opposition.
 
Therefore, and again, my passionate appeal to every aggrieved stakeholder, coordinator, and supporter is to channel our collective energy into strategic engagement rather than isolation. Let us bring our valid grievances to the table of reconciliation with our heads held high, backed by the undeniable leverage of our formidable structures. Choosing to align with our party's flag-bearer does not mean we are surrendered, rather, we are repositioning ourselves to be the core drivers of the incoming progressive government. Let us rise, dust off the ashes of yesterday’s friction, and march into the field with a singular, fierce determination. Our plan for a prosperous Oyo State remains alive, and it is only through an unbroken, victorious APC that this vision can be fully realised.
 
~ Dr. Adewale Kolapo Kareem (AKK)
Former Oyo State Governorship Aspirant
APC… PROGRESS!
AKK! Aseyori ni tiwa
AKK!! Ajọṣe, Ajoje
AKK!!! A Task That Must Be Done.
Monday, June 15 2026.