The Media Office of former Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has dismissed a viral report claiming that he called on Nigerians to reject the All Progressives Congress (APC), describing the allegation as false, misleading and malicious.
In a press statement issued in October 2026, the media office accused those circulating the report of manipulating an old audio recording to create the impression that Adelabu was working against the ruling party.
It clarified that the viral video was an excerpt from an interview Adelabu granted in 2022 when he was the governorship candidate of the Accord Party in Oyo State.
According to the statement, Adelabu had expressed the view that political parties had disappointed Nigerians and that voters should focus on the credibility and character of individual candidates.
“That position was made in the context of the 2022 political environment and was consistent with his decision at the time to support the presidential ambition of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, notwithstanding his candidacy under a different political platform,” the statement said.
“It was never a call to reject the APC or oppose Tinubu’s presidency,” it added.
The media office maintained that Adelabu remained committed to the APC and loyal to President Bola Tinubu, despite controversies surrounding the party’s governorship nomination process in Oyo State.
It said Adelabu had repeatedly declared that he had no intention of leaving the APC and that his political ambition was not a do-or-die affair.
“His position has been consistent: loyalty does not preclude the demand for fairness, transparency and adherence to democratic principles,” the statement said.
The office also criticised the party’s handling of its governorship primary in Oyo State, alleging that a preferred aspirant was imposed without the transparent release of the election results.
It questioned the rationale behind declaring a winner without publishing the results before setting up a reconciliation committee to address grievances among party stakeholders.
“Whatever standards of transparency, accountability and democratic conduct Nigerians expect from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) must equally guide the internal electoral processes of political parties,” the statement said.
It added that Adelabu’s demand for internal democracy should not be misinterpreted as disloyalty to the APC.
“It is therefore mischievous to twist his demand for internal democracy into a call for Nigerians to reject the APC,” the media office stated.
The statement further described the relationship between Adelabu and Tinubu as cordial, saying it was built on mutual respect, trust and affection.
“That relationship remains cordial, and no amount of fabricated reports, political blackmail or deliberate misrepresentation can destroy it,” it said.
The media office challenged those circulating the viral recording to publish the full, unedited interview to enable Nigerians assess his remarks in their proper context.
“We challenge those circulating the video to publish the full interview, unedited, rather than selectively extracting statements and presenting them out of context to advance a malicious political narrative,” the statement said.
It also disclosed that Adelabu had not granted any media interview since the conclusion of the controversial APC governorship nomination process in Oyo State in which he made the alleged statement.
“We are therefore concerned about the deliberate attempt to attribute words to him that he neither said nor authorised,” it added.
The statement urged APC members, the media and the general public to verify information before sharing it, warning against the spread of claims capable of creating divisions within the party.
It reiterated that Adelabu remained committed to the APC and supportive of the party’s political objectives.
“No amount of falsehood can change Adelabu’s political convictions, rewrite his record of loyalty or manufacture enmity between him and Mr President,” the statement said.
The media office advised the public to disregard the viral report and rely on authentic statements issued by Adelabu or his authorised representatives.