APC FRUSTRATED ME – GOV AMAECHI

Embattled governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi has finally opened
up on his frustrations in the opposition All Progressives Congress, APC
against the backdrop of the party’s recently concluded national
convention held in Abuja.
Before now, other APC leaders had made
similar complaints against the conduct of the convention and its outcome
which they said fell short of ordinary democratic norms.
According
to an online publication, thenigeriangazette.com, the Rivers state
governor said he was roundly betrayed by former Lagos state governor and
leader of the opposition party, Senator Bola Tinubu.
alongside
former military Head of state, General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) in his
quest to become an elected national officer of the APC.
Amaechi in
the report, said: “let it be known, that I didn’t just join the APC, I
was wooed by the legacy parties and four other PDP governors then.
Naturally, in every bargain, interests must be spelt out.
“Of course
they did promise me the vice presidential ticket in the forthcoming
election with a condition to sell the party and make President Jonathan
unpopular. The initial arrangement was to pair me with Hon. Tambuwal
(Speaker of House of Representatives).
“But when other entrants like
Atiku and others entered the party, everything changed. It was Gov.
Nyako that opened up to me on the recent changes, and pleaded with me to
take the position of the National Chairman of party, that it will be
zoned to the South-South.
And I grudgingly accepted. Now, in every political convention, consensus building is needed to harmonize all interests.
“So I initiated a platform for the 16 APC governors to talk in
Port-Harcourt last week. And in that meeting, the 13 governors and their
deputies that were in attendance reassured me that I will be given the
national chairmanship slot.
“But when I asked Gov. Adams to ask
Chief Ikimi and John Oyegun to step down for my candidate, Adam’s
quietly told me “My brother, I know the bad name they have called you in
the South-South and Rivers in
particular. Again, I sympathize with
you because I know how much you have put in APC, this Yoruba and Hausa
people can’t be trusted, they said you couldn’t build the APC in Rivers
State and that only 95,633 out of the 1.3 million membership you claimed
have passport photographs. That everything was doctored by you”.

The embattled governor said that he found it very disappointing, adding:
“we no longer have men of trust, and integrity; men whose words should
be their bond in politics. So last night, I made my position clear, that
if the other candidates didn’t step down for Dr. Sam Sam Jaja, then
there was no point picking the expression of interest form. I feel
deeply betrayed.”
Amaechi’s position followed same line as those of
Chief Tom Ikimi, Ali Modu Sheriff(former Borno state governor) and
others all of whom expressed disappointment with the outcome of the
convention which was skewed in favour of Bola Tinubu’s nominees.

Former minister of foreign affairs and initial chairmanship contender at
the convention, Chief Tom Ikimi, did not mince words in declaring his
grievance. In a statement he issued days after the event, he said:

“I am compelled to make this statement at this time so as to clarify
some issues pertaining to my person as it relates to the APC generally
and the recent APC National Convention in particular. I want to correct
some
information deliberately distorted and misconstrued to the
public through deliberate falsehood orchestrated by a section of the
press, particularly The Nation Newspaper.
Finally, I want to explain to all our members and sympathizers nationwide the reason for my boycott of the convention.
“All that transpired thereafter leading to the convention happened
mostly in secret meetings and caucuses, some of which I have since
become aware were convened in Europe. The Party was now run as a private
property.
Former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu operated as the core of one of these caucuses whose
membership varied from time to time within the realms of his whims and
caprices. The other known caucus was the APC Governor’s forum. These two
groups hijacked power from the National Interim Executive Council,
which is the body known to INEC.”
Ikimi narrated all the processes
that led to the convening of the convention and how Tinubu alongside
Buhari picked candidates for the national offices of the party
concluding that the former Lagos governor is a tyrant.
In the same
vein, immediate past national vice president of APC and dumped national
secretaryship aspirant of the party, Dr. Umar Duhu in a statement,
protested the conduct of the party’s national convention last weekend in
Abuja and how his association with former Borno state
governor, Ali Modu Sheriff worked against his ambition.
He said in statement that, “I was the only candidate standing and
cleared by the screening committee; but Bitrus Lawal’s name was smuggled
in by Buhari. Buhari and Tinubu witch-hunted me, not because I am not
capable, they said because of my close association with Sen. (Dr.) Ali
Modu Sheriff. What wrong has Sen. Sheriff done to Buhari after he
assisted Buhari severally in the ANPP days to secure the presidential
ticket?”