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APC aspirant accuses anti-Buhari cabals of overheating polity

By Gordi Udeajah (Umuahia), Auwal Ahmad (Gombe) and Tina Todo (Calabar)
24 September 2018   |   4:24 am
A governorship aspirant in Abia State, Ambassador Chidike Ukauwa, has alleged that anti-Buhari reelection cabals in the party are overheating the polity and not President Muhammadu Buhari. Ukauwa, who lamented, “Exorbitant fees have restrained many patriotic youths from contesting various elective positions,” said APC ought to pacify aggrieved youths or risk the consequences of youth rage.…

[FILE PHOTO] President Muhammadu Buhari. PHOTO/TWITTER/APCng

A governorship aspirant in Abia State, Ambassador Chidike Ukauwa, has alleged that anti-Buhari reelection cabals in the party are overheating the polity and not President Muhammadu Buhari.

Ukauwa, who lamented, “Exorbitant fees have restrained many patriotic youths from contesting various elective positions,” said APC ought to pacify aggrieved youths or risk the consequences of youth rage.

While urging the party not to impose candidates, the aspirant disclosed his readiness to surrender his ambition for Dr. Uche Ogah, stressing that Ogah has sterling qualities to govern Abia State.

He also pointed out that no law or constitutional provision restrained Ogah from contesting the governorship on the basis that he is not from Abia South zone insisting that “there is no zoning of elective offices in APC.

If Abia South zone claims it was/is its turn to re-produce the governor in 2019, it should cite the relevant law or section of the constitution that provided for zoning.”

However, crisis in the offing for Gombe State chapter of APC following moves by supporters of some governorship aspirants to challenge the attempt to impose Mohammed Jibrin Barde as the governorship standard-bearer in the state.

In a press statement, Secretary of the supporters forum, Yusuf Musa Danbayo, said Danbarde had refused to join in the recently concluded state-wide peace and unity rally organised for all the supporters.

Danbayo explained that since the aim of the rally was to ensure there was no violence and form a stronger force by uniting supporters of the aspirants to be able to work as a team and dislodge the ruling party, Dan Barde’s absence shows that he has other ideas. 

He regretted that the attitude of Jibrin Barde and his supporters points to a sinister move to thwart the unity achieved by all the aspirants and their supporters, maintaining that by deliberately refusing to participate in the unity rally, Barde has shown that he is not willing to support others.

“He is already reneging from the memorandum of understanding signed by the aspirants to support whoever emerges as the flag-bearer. 

On this note, we state categorically that if he wins the primaries, we won’t support him, for we won’t give him that which he is not willing to give to others,” he added.

The forum disclosed that having gotten the assurances of the party leader in the state, Senator Danjuma Goje, that he has no favoured candidate, it decided to tour round the eleven local government councils of the state to build peace.

It disclosed that the aspirants including, Idris Umar Abdullahi, Khamis Ahmed Mailantarki, Ibrahim Dasuki Jallo Waziri, Umar Kwairanga, Aliyu Haidar Abubakar, Farouk Umar Bamusa, Abubakar Habu Mu’azu Muhammed Inuwa Yahaya and Mohammed Jibrin Barde, had earlier met and signed a memorandum of understanding to support anyone that emerged flag bearer. 

Similarly, Concerned Progressive Youths (CPY), a coalition of Youths groups in Cross Rive State chapter of APC have urged the party to adopt John Upan Odey as its consensus candidate.

The group, which made the demand in Calabar, weekend, while briefing newsmen ahead of the APC governorship primaries, explained that all the odds favour Odey’s candidacy more than others to win the state for the party.

The Chairman of the group, Effiong Sebastien, said that to ensure the party unites ahead of the general elections, the party needs to field a neutral person that does not belong to any faction as is governorship candidate.

Effiong, who advised the leadership of APC to go for the best person that can win the state, regretted the division of the party in the state for personal gains, saying: “We are here today to send a message to the leadership of our party from ward to the national level.

We have been in opposition for about 20 years now and there has never been a better opportunity for the party to win the State than now.

“The party since in 2015 has been engulfed in crisis engineered by personal interest.

We have conducted our independent investigation and as critical stakeholders in our party, we want to advice the party to if necessary adopt John Upan Odey as a consensus candidate to save the party from fresh crisis that may emanate from the primaries.

“John Upan Odey candidacy would not only win the state but would address some issues which have continued to incite APC members against each other.

“Firstly, it would address the issue of zoning. There’s no argument that the party zoned the governorship ticket in 2014 to the north.

During the last national convention, there was a directive from the national secretariat that the subsisting zoning arrangement of the party be maintained.

This was why the central zone retained the chairmanship and the southern zone was left to contest the national zonal Vice Chairman (South South).”

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