The Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has described as mischievous the press statement titled, “Buhari’s Group Supports Suspension of Chief Ikanya”, credited to a group it described as nonexistent in the state.

In a statement issued by the State Chairman of APC, Chief (Dr.) Davies Ibiamu Ikanya on Saturday in Port Harcourt, the APC said it had already alerted the national body of the true Buhari Supports Group (BSG) that would soon move to “get these funny characters operating as Rivers State chapter of this noble group arrested accordingly.

He said that BSG, as envisioned by its founding fathers, could never involve itself in any form of illegality and undemocratic move.

“With this, we wish to alert the general public particularly the leaders and members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State that there is no iota of truth in the said statement and that no member or EXCO of Ward 5 of Andoni Local Government Area of Rivers suspended the party’s Chairman or intends in the nearest future to suspend the amiable and hardworking Chairman of Rivers State APC, whose only single goal is his plan to ensure the success of the party come 2019," Ikanya said.

He alleged that the other BSG was an assemblage of former APC members and chieftains that decamped to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with Tele Ikuru, former Deputy Governor of the state.

“In their devious plot, one of the strategies adopted was to initiate crisis in the party by announcing the suspension of Dr. Ikanya as the party Chairman illegally after which, if they succeed, they will move forward to suspend all other members of the party loyal to Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi in other Local Government Areas in order for them to install their leader as the Rivers State APC flagbearer to run for the 2019 election," Ikanya further said.

According to him, the group felt threatened by the sagacity and wisdom demonstrated by Ikanya during the party's last non-elective congress and concluded that with Ikanya as the party’s Chairman, they stood no chance of "hijacking the party to achieve their devilish plot against Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi."

“According to the minutes of their meeting made available to us by one of the Ikuru’s cronies, this plot is to pave way for Engr. Tele Ikuru to stage a comeback to APC from the backyard seeing that Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has concluded arrangements to collapse PDP both in the state and at the national level to enable him run for the office of the Vice President with a northern candidate as the Presidential candidate in one of the political parties recently registered by INEC(Independent National Electoral Commission) as the bigwigs in PDP have turned him down bluntly that he has no chance to run for such an exalted position in the party (PDP) which they are trying to reposition and rebrand to see if they can win at least four states come 2019.”

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