The dingdong affair in the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) has continued to pit state governors elected on the party’s platform against the National Working Committee (NWC) led by former Edo State governor, Adams Oshiomhole.

More state chapters have continued to voice opposition to the chairman’s style of leadership, while supporters of the NWC continue to push back on the charges of obduracy and strong arm tactics leveled against Oshiomhole who has denied allegation of wrongdoings over the choice of Dapo Abiodun as Ogun governorship candidate for the party.

Governor Ibikunle Amosun, who preferred House of Representatives member, Mr. Adekunle Akinlade, for the ticket had alleged that the national leader of the parry, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, working in cahoots with the former governor of the state, Segun Osoba, bribed the party officials to manipulate the outcome of the party primaries in favour of Abiodun.

APC’s national Publicity Secretary, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu argued that Amosun lacks the moral rectitude to fault the outcome of the entire primaries in Ogun state.

Recalling how the party conducted the primaries, he argued: “It is a straight forward case. If we speak to the merit of this case, the whole world saw it, the visuals were everywhere, where the governor gathered some aspirants, stakeholders and said clearly, there won’t be primaries and right there he pointed at who the next governor, senator, House of Representatives candidates would be. He named himself the next senatorial candidate.

“Even if they have accepted those people, it is against the procedure, especially for a governor to openly say a thing like that. It was clearly stated that the party gave two options, which were the direct and indirect primaries and you are to have stakeholders’ meeting where majority are to decide.

“So, whatever Amosun did was self-help and there is no provision for self-help in the party’s constitution. Eventually, the NWC panel that was constituted to conduct the primary went to Abeokuta and did the primary. The governor’s preferred candidate chose not to participate in that exercise. So, the party stands by the result of the primary it conducted in Ogun State.

The party also insisted that the independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) couldn’t reject its candidates from Zamfara State, further arguing that it would amount to illegality for INEC to maintain its stand on rejecting candidates of the party from Zamfara State.

It further disclosed that the party would take its final position on whether to settle for Uche Nwosu or Senator Hope Uzodinma as its governorship candidate for Imo State by the November 2 this year.

•Text (excluding headline) excerpted from The Guardian report

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