Thursday, 28th March 2024
To guardian.ng
Search

AAC reaffirms Sowore as presidential candidate

By Kehinde Olatunji
07 May 2022   |   3:04 am
The African Action Congress (AAC) has countered the rejection of Omoyele Sowore as the party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general election by a faction of the party.

Omoyele Sowore

The African Action Congress (AAC) has countered the rejection of Omoyele Sowore as the party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general election by a faction of the party.

The party also debunked a report by a group of people claiming to be its members, who stated that Sowore was expelled from the party in 2019. The national publicity secretary of the faction, Sylvester Cletus, had claimed that Sowore was removed for violating the party’s constitution and misappropriation of funds, among other offences.
  
But the authentic National Publicity Secretary of the party, Femi Adeyeye, in a statement yesterday, said the earlier report was purported by “rogue elements” who aimed to smear the image of the party and its leaders.

The party claimed the report accusing Sowore of misconduct was false, criminal and sponsored by an expelled member of the party, Leonard Nweze. Adeyeye said the members were expelled in May 2019 “after being found guilty of misappropriating party funds, gross sabotage and numerous anti-party activities.”

He said the renewed attack on Sowore was in reaction to his gradual acceptance by the electorate ahead of the 2023 elections. He said: “Setting the records straight, we wish to reiterate, for the umpteenth time, that these elements spreading fake news in the media are not members of our party. And the leader of this rogue squad was expelled as far back as May 13, 2019, after being found guilty of misappropriating party funds, gross sabotage and numerous anti-party activities.

“If these issues of corruption and abuse of office happened in the APC and PDP, the systems therein would probably have looked the other way. But as a revolutionary party, which aspires to genuinely win the people’s mandate to rescue Nigeria, we cannot keep a thief within the party leadership. That would amount to sheer hypocrisy and a crime against the Nigerian people we swore to fight alongside with.”

The party noted that Sowore never misused any party funds but rather gave a statement of account concerning the expenditure of campaign funds. It also authenticated Sowore’s position as both the leader of the AAC and its presidential candidate.

“As a matter of education, let it also be known that Sowore occupying the chairmanship position of the party and being its presidential candidate, is not unconstitutional or immoral.”

“The AAC is a party entrenched in democratic tenets and it has processes and steeped in lessons from our history.
  
“At the appropriate time, there shall be a change in the leadership structure by the democratic will of party members.
  
“To lay the matter to rest is to ask our friends in the media to disregard this news and to send it to the trash can of history where it belongs.
 
“Sowore remains a staunch member of the party, a leader of leaders and a presidential aspirant in the 2023 elections,” the party noted.

In this article

0 Comments