The immediate past Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has denied calling on Nigerians to reject the All Progressives Congress.
Adelabu described the report circulating on social media as false and misleading.
Adelabu, through his media office, said the report was based on a video excerpt from an interview he granted in 2022 when he was the governorship candidate of the Accord Party in Oyo State.
This came a day after a video where Adelabu, during an interview in 2022, urged Nigerians to reject APC resurfaced on Saturday.
In a statement signed by his media office, on Sunday, he said the video had been taken out of context and used to create the impression that he was opposed to the APC and President Bola Tinubu.
The statement said Adelabu had, during the 2022 interview, expressed the view that political parties had disappointed Nigerians and that voters should focus on the credibility and character of individual candidates.
The statement read, “This report is entirely false, misleading and maliciously intended to discredit Chief Adelabu, undermine his loyalty to the APC and, perhaps, create unnecessary friction between him, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the leadership of the party. We therefore urge the public to disregard the fabricated narrative.”
It added that the comments reflected the political circumstances at the time and were not a call for Nigerians to reject the APC or oppose Tinubu’s presidency.
The media office described the report as a deliberate attempt to undermine Adelabu’s relationship with the President and create unnecessary tension between him and the party’s leadership.
It maintained that Adelabu remained committed to the APC and loyal to Tinubu despite controversies surrounding the party’s governorship nomination process in Oyo State.
“Anyone who knows Chief Adelabu, his political antecedents and his relationship with the President would find it difficult to believe such an allegation without compelling evidence. Throughout his political journey, Adelabu has consistently demonstrated his commitment to the APC and his loyalty to President Tinubu,” the statement disclosed.
According to the statement, Adelabu had expressed dissatisfaction with the alleged failure to transparently release the results of the party’s primary election and the subsequent declaration of a preferred aspirant as the winner.
It said his demand for transparency and internal democracy should not be interpreted as disloyalty to the party.
“His position has been consistent: loyalty does not preclude the demand for fairness, transparency and adherence to democratic principles,” the statement said.
The media office added that Adelabu had repeatedly maintained that he had no intention of leaving the APC and that his political ambition was not a do-or-die affair.
It also described his relationship with Tinubu as longstanding, founded on mutual respect and trust, and said it remained cordial.
The statement challenged those circulating the video to release the full, unedited interview to establish the context of the comments attributed to Adelabu.
It further claimed that Adelabu had not granted any media interview since the conclusion of the disputed APC governorship nomination process in Oyo State in which he made the alleged statement.
The media office urged the public, APC members and the media to verify information before sharing it, warning against the circulation of statements that could create divisions within the party.
It reiterated that Adelabu remained committed to the APC and supportive of the party’s political objectives, urging the public to rely on statements issued by him or his authorised representatives.