The immediate past national chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Chief Odigie Oyegun and its incumbent chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole are at daggers drawn over factors responsible for the deleterious state of affairs at the party national secretariat and the setback it suffered in certain states in the last general elections.
Reacting to the letter, addressed to the embattled national chairman of the party by one of his deputies, Senator Lawan Shuaibu, who accused the former of responsible for the loss of five states, the chairmen of the party in the six south-south states chapters had at the weekend pointed fingers of scorn at Chief Oyegun, whom they claimed created unsurmountable challenges for his successor before abdicating the office.
In a communiqué at the end of their meeting held in Abuja at the weekend, the south-south states chairmen asserted that “it was the landmines created by his predecessor who was bent on destroying the party before departing that fuelled the unfortunate situation and wondered why Senator Law an is just realising it.”
The State Chairmen further claimed that “what the Deputy National Chairman, North has done is tantamount to creating disaffection amongst party faithful” which they noted, “is very offensive to the constitution of our great party.”
The Chairmen thereafter passed a vote of confidence on the National Chairman and vowed to resist any attempt to blackmail him out of the office for standing against the injustice that has hitherto been the hallmark of his predecessor which was the only legacy he left behind.
The statement was jointly signed by the six (6) South-South APC State Chairmen namely, Honourable Ini T. Okopido – State Chairman, Akwa – Ibom State, Honourable Amos Lalabunafa – State Chairman, Bayelsa State, Mr John Ochalla , State Chairman, Cross Rivers State. Others were prophet Jones Ode Erue – State Chairman, Delta State, Barrister Aslem U. Ojezua – State Chairman, Edo State and Honourable Ojukaye Flag Amachree, state Chairman, Rivers State.
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But Oyegun in a statement issued by his Public Affairs Adviser, Chief Ray Morphy, the former national chairman of the APC described the claim of Booby Traps as infantile and “an attempt to dream up justification for the failings of the party under Oshiomhole Chairmanship.”
Oyegun dismissed Comrade Oshiomhole as bereft of the capacity to manage a political party.
“Oshiomhole fails because he lacks the temperament that is required to run a political party. He lacks the capacity to manage the different interests and tendencies that constitute a political party.
“He engages his mouth before engaging his mind, so he offends party members, so how does that constitute booby traps by Oyegun, the erstwhile chairman.
“Already, the Deputy National Chairman has confirmed that Oshiomhole runs the party without recourse to the NWC. He acts in direct opposite of decisions taken by NWC.
“No minutes of NWC meetings which in any event take place outside the party Secretariat.”
Oyegun further argued that leaving the state chapters to choose between direct, indirect and consensus to pick the party candidates for the last general elections was a recipe for chaos and the electoral loss in five states which visited the APC.
“How would you not have a crisis in states with the confusion that Oshiomhole created when he gave the state’s freedom to choose their methods of choosing candidates for elections. Much of the crisis in states arose out of sheer incapacity on the part of the current chairman! How did this Oshiomhole incapacity become booby traps by Oyegun?
“Many party men were aghast at the unfairness and injustice meted them during the primaries process.
“Only a bad carpenter quarrels with his tools. Indeed Oshiomhole is degrading and demarketing the party, rather than seek to bring more people on board, he is rather chasing people out of the party with his ‘agbero’ ( motor park tout) style of engagement.”
Recall that the deputy national chairman, North of the APC, Senator Lawan Shuaibu had in a letter addressed to Comrade Oshiomhole which leaked to the press, accused the latter of taking unilateral decisions on sensitive matters and appropriating the functions of other members of the party national working committee. He further demanded the resignation of the former President of the Nigeria Labour Congress from the exalted office.
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