Concerned members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the South-South have called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to probe his cabinet members hobnobbing with key opposition elements especially governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of the 2027 election.

Speaking in Port Harcourt on behalf of the concerned APC members, the Bayelsa State Coordinator for Good Governance and Accountability, Chief Wilfred Ogbotobo, regretted that some cabinet members out of their selfish political calculations ahead of the 2027 election had sidelined APC chieftains, who worked for Tinubu in the last election to romance key opposition figures in their state.

Ogbotobo in a statement titled, President Bola Tinubu Must Act Fast to Retrieve the Reins, cited the case of Governor Bala Mohammed, who after he was helped to win his case had started singing a different political song.

He said: “President Tinubu has a preeminent reputation as a consummate party-builder and reliable team player with a proven conviction in party loyalty, discipline and reward system – a man of his word!

“The President cannot claim ignorance of the tortuous path, the key players and the parts played leading to his presidency.

“It is, therefore, appalling and distasteful to note the sad and unfortunate treatments that have become the pay back for party chieftains who, out of conviction, braved the odds and put their political careers on the line to facilitate and, finally, ensure the successful election of Mr President.

“There’s no excuse whatsoever for many of the strange actions playing out in the party and the government under the president’s watch. It is totally condemnable that cabinet members have become formidable opposition to the party’s interests in some states.

“Top government functionaries brazenly hobnob with irredeemable opposition figures of the PDP whose political ambitions are known to be in rivalry to the president’s and APC’s future calculations”.

Ogbotobo said it was provocative and sad that the President’s men facilitated the treacherous opposition characters through the backdoors to be honoured with presidential handshakes and photo ops, while founding chieftains, who were the keys to his success at the election had been consigned to wander in political wilderness, or left in the lurch to grope for self help in their pursuits of justice for their mandates.

He said: "Obviously these desperate fair-weather fraternities cannot be of any meaningful contributions to the president’s future political prospects.

“Governor Bala Mohammed of the PDP is already singing a different tune to signal his 2027 affiliations, after coming out victorious by the APC’s clandestine acts of betrayal to its governorship election petition at the Courts.

“In the South-South state of Bayelsa, the same game is being played for Governor Diri. The ministers and others involved in these hatchet jobs do not care a hoot about the threats of their nefarious actions to the president’s 2027 project. They have forgotten so quickly Diri’s discourteous treatment of Her Excellency, Senator Oluremi Tinubu in Bayelsa state, during presidential electioneering.

“They do not have any scruples concerning the fact that their conducts are sending wrong signals capable of undermining and derailing the APC’s governorship election petition at the Courts.

“Except betrayal, PDP governors like Bala Mohammed and Douye Diri cannot be trusted in any form of help or support to the president’s 2027 plans. They can only change colour to suit themselves in times of grave threats. President Bola Tinubu, in contrast, is a man of great conviction. A hard-working, articulate and stable fighter.

“The last presidential election should serve as a constant reminder and pointer to the emergent trajectory of Nigeria’s democracy.

“As President Bola Tinubu works tirelessly to address the yearnings and expectations of Nigerians, these nefarious actions of selfish players must not be ignored as tangential to the success of his administration going to the 2027 calculations. Now is the time to reinforce the APC family and rather embark on new conquest.

“The APC must do everything possible to claim all outstanding governorship election petitions under litigation and move on to win the forthcoming off season guber elections in Ondo and Edo states”.

Ogbotobo asked President Tinubu to take bold steps to ensure that the laudable convictions, which motivated his presidential ambition achieve the targeted outcomes.

He said: "His enviable democratic credentials are legendary. His perseverance and leadership in the pro-democracy struggle, just like the footprints and outstanding legacies he left behind as governor of one of Africa’s foremost economies, are all well rooted in contemporary Nigerian politics.

“Therefore, the mandate popularly given him is a reflection of the deep appreciation and trust Nigerians have in his capacity and competence to grapples with the Leviathan holding down the Nigeria state in captivity.

“The president’s political will to confront the fundamental, multifaceted challenges bedeviling Nigeria’s search for nationhood cannot be doubted.

“Hence we call on the president to reassert his commitment and capacity to fulfill the demands of the mandate freely given to him. To whom much is given, much is expected. Nigerians expect a radical departure from the norms that have characterized our body politic”.

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