Kwara governor to quit APC, 42 loyal senators meet Buhari

• Party remains committed to good governance, says Oshiomhole
• Lawmakers trade words over defections

Forty-eight hours after Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State dumped the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), his Kwara counterpart, Abdulfatah Ahmed, is to tow same path.

According to him, the decision follows calls by stakeholders in the state to part ways with the party, adding that the APC has not met the expectations of his people.

Ahmed dropped the hint yesterday at the Government House, Ilorin while reacting to the requests of stakeholders from the central senatorial district asking him and the senate president, Bukola Saraki, to immediately distance themselves from the ruling party.

The governor regretted that the huge expectations that heralded the formation of the APC in 2014 had not been met, noting that the Federal Government has failed to address the insecurity, economic and unemployment challenges confronting the nation.

According to him, “we formed the APC to in 2014 with the hope to meet the needs and aspirations of the people in critical areas of our national life. But the leadership of the party has failed to intervene on critical issues affecting it and its members. The injustice within the group is unbearable.”

The State Chairman of Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON), Mr. Joshua Adekanye, expressed the readiness of the 16 council areas and 193 councillors to end their romance with the APC.

However, APC’s National Chairman, Adams Oshiomole, has reiterated the party’s commitment to good governance.

He spoke yesterday after an emergency meeting of the APC senators loyal to the president at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He said: “The senators have come in their huge number to prove that the APC remains the party with the largest number of lawmakers in the National Assembly It is also to prove that we still have what it takes to continue to provide good governance for Nigerians.

“We have agreed that going forward, the APC cannot be intimidated, the government will not be intimidated or distracted. We remain focused and committed to addressing the critical challenges that confront our country namely security, economy and the fight against corruption.

“On all three, the president is consistent and determined and the senators have come to reassure him of their full backing.”

Curiously, the senate president, Bukola Saraki, was absent despite being on the agenda.

Besides Oshiomhole, others who attended the meeting included the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha; Chief of Staff to Buhari, Abba Kyari; Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina; Senior Special Assistant on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Ita Enang.

Also yesterday, senators Abdullahi Dambaba and Isa Misau described a colleague of theirs, Abdullahi Adamu, “merchant of lies, spewing forth lies unbecoming of an elder.”

According to them, the former Nasarawa State governor has become a “lap-dog of the presidency because he is afraid of his past.”

The lawmakers, who hail from Sokoto and Bauchi states, in a statement in Abuja noted: “It is public knowledge that the axe of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is dangling over him and one of his sons.”

The representative of Nasarawa West had been quoted as saying: “The Senate President merely collated the list of senators he feels are not happy with the APC and announced them as defectors.”