APC forum denies blackmailing Akume over appointments

The North Central All Progressives Congress (APC) forum has denied indulging in the blackmail of the secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) over alleged appointments of his kinsmen in positions of government.

The chairman of the forum, Alhaji Saleh Zazzaga insisted that its allegations of lopsided appointments against Akume were based on complaints from stakeholders in the North-Central zone.

Zazzaga spoke to reporters on Tuesday while responding to a statement issued by a spokesperson of the SGF, Terrence Kuanum, which described the Forum’s allegations against Akume as false and misleading.

Zazzaga pointed to a statement issued in August 2023 by a Benue group known as Zone A Peoples Assembly (ZAPA), urging the Tor Tiv, Orchivirigh, Prof James Ayatse, to call the SGF to order over lopsided appointments in favour of his Jemgbagh kinsmen of the Tiv ethnic group.

Zazzaga recalled that ZAPA had decried the nomination of a relative of the SGF, Dr. Tyover Dajo of the Akume Dajo family, as Rector of Federal Polytechnic, Wannune in Tarka Local Government Area (LGA) of the state adding the SGF schemed to have his cousin, Dr. Tyover Dajo, as Rector, Federal Polytechnic, Wannune, to replace Prof Joseph Utsev whom he nominated as minister. Prof Joseph Utsev is currently the Minister of Water Resources.

Zazzaga equally noted that the SGF has derailed from the leadership approach which made his forum to commend him in 2023.

The forum insist that they are not mischief makers, but bonafide members of the APC who are only interested in the good of the party and the country, adding that the concerns raised about alleged lopsided and imbalanced appointments by the SGF were based on complaints from stakeholders of the North-Central zone.

Zazzaga challenged the SGF to disclose who recommended the Minister of Water Resources, the appointments of the MD Shippers’ Council, Executive Director, Federal Housing Authority, Chairman, Governing Council of Federal University of Technology, Owerri, and others, who are all allegedly from his village.

The forum added: “We don’t want to go into too much details because what we intended to achieve with our earlier call is for the SGF to change his approach to leadership by carrying the entire North-Central zone along. We want him to unite the North-Central and show leadership, that is what we want.

“We are not blackmailing him as his spokespersons claimed, neither are we sponsored by anybody or any group. We are only voicing our concerns as legitimate stakeholders of the North-Central APC.

“But if the SGF refuses to head our call then we will have no other option than to present more evidence to back up our concerns, and we will also embark on protests to demand that he changes his flawed approach to leadership, or resign from the office he is occupying on behalf of the North-Central, failing which we will call for his removal.”