Oyo APC group passes vote of no confidence on Akin Oke-led exco

Barely two weeks after the death of the immediate past governor of Oyo State, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, the disquiet in the All Progressives Congress (APC) continues to linger as a group in the state chapter of the party said all is not well in the party, against the claim by its state chairman, Chief Akin Oke, that there is no division within the fold.

The tendency within the rank of the party, under the aegis of Way Forward Oyo APC Group, stated this in a communiqué addressed to the party’s national caretaker committee chairman and governor of Yobe State, Mr Mai Mala Buni, and copied to the state executive council of the party in Oyo State, dated Monday, July 7.

The communiqué, respectively signed by the convener and the secretary, Messrs Dipo Fawole and Kazeem Adebayonle Sanni, and made available to the Tribune Online, decries the level at which Chief Oke, with his cabal within the party’s executive council, was feigning the myriads of cold war brewing within the fold.

The group alleged that through a press release issued by Chief Oke recently, the lies and divisive insinuations therein would make non-political minded residents of the state, aside from party faithful, to be aghast of his proclamations that all is well in the party.

The group advised the state working committee (SWC) of the APC, headed by Chief Oke, to promptly resign or be voided by the acting national working committee of the party, asserting that it has passed a vote of no confidence on the executive body.

The communiqué read in part, “We are constrained to inform our national caretaker committee that Pa Akin Oke, the heavily compromised chairman of the party in the state, has for a long time, been operating the party exclusively with his cabal of frustrated and panicky fellows within the state executive body, who are pariahs, afraid of going to political oblivion after the demise of Senator Abiola Ajimobi, whom they led astray while alive; thus, causing untold excruciating painful castigations and aspersions on the late leader.

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“The unguarded use of foul and divisive words to qualify bona fide members of the party is replete in his release.”

The group, therefore, called on the leadership of the party to embark on true reconciliation and repositioning of the party towards the 2023 elections with a view to having harmonious and peaceful resolutions of issues, realignment, total overhaul and restructuring of the APC in the state.

Meanwhile, Chief Oke told Tribune Online that the state executive council of the party would always embrace peace and avoid whatever can tear the fold apart. He stated that, contrary to the release by the group, the tenure of the present executive council would end in 2022, advising any group that wants to join the executive council to come out and test its popularity in the congress.

Oke stated, “I wanted peace and I said there is no faction in the part according to our constitution. There may be grievances, no doubt. And that is why we set up a reconciliation committee. Some people who gathered themselves and said because they disagree with the congress and they lost out and left the party to join the Action Democratic Congress (ADC). Originally, they said they formed Unity Forum and from there they went to ADC and later to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

“We had an election. Two of them were senators. Eight of them were House of Representatives members. And they lost out completely. In the general election, we won two of the three senatorial seats, nine of the federal representatives. What are they talking about? I, Akin Oke, came in as the chairman of the party in 2010 when we at the opposition at the federal and state levels. I managed the party and we won the election in 2011 and 2015.”

Chief Oke explained that the tenure of the current executives will end in 2022, asking any aggrieved group to prepare themselves for the democratic congresses.

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE