The ongoing membership registration and validation has opened both old and new wounds as factions have emerged in chapters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in some states.
The states which just started experiencing the clash are Delta, Anambra, Edo, Nasarawa, Osun, Ekiti, Akwa Ibom, Gombe. Kwara, Imo and Rivers states had all along been experiencing leadership tussles, the membership registration was only an addition.
21st Century Chronicle reports that the affected states have all along been embroiled in leadership crisis before the current membership registration deepened the discontent.
It can also be observed that from the clashes in these state, it is largely between ‘Abuja politicians’ mostly made up of ministers and other federal appointees taking on ‘home-based’ who are the governors and their large followers.
There is unease between Senator Abdullahi Adamu and Aliyu Ahmed Wadada due to the later’s interest to go to Senate as both are from the same zone. Governor Suleiman Adamu, Senators Adamu and Tanko Al-Makura have all revalidated their membership, but as at the time of this report, Wadada was yet to follow suit.
For instance in Delta, it is a straight fight between unknown politicians fronting for Governor Ifeanyi Okowa and Minister of Labour Festus Keyamo, NIMASA Director Victor Ochei; founding leader, O’tega Emerhor, Great Ogboru, among others who have been allegedly schemed out.
In Kwara state, it has been a dirty fight between the Abuja group led by Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, Minister of state for Transport Gbemisola Saraki, among others and Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazak.
In Anambra state, the crisis is between the South East APC Young Progressives Forum led by its National Coordinator, Comrade Paschal Candle, who rejected the seven-man Committee for APC Party Registration and re-validation sent to the state on January 25. The forum frowned at the nomination of Maria Olabisi Idaomi as the Secretary of the Committee and some others, who were nominated by an aspirant for 2021. They alleged that Idaomi supervised the worst primary in the history of APC in Anambra State in 2019. The youth threatened that they will not allow her “to mess up the whole process.”
In Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola is slugging it out with Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, just as it is the same scenario in Imo State between Governor Hope Uzodinma and Senator Rochas Okorocha.
In Ekiti, it is supremacy fight between Governor Kayode Fayemi and presidential aide Senator Babafemi Ojudu.
A former vice chairman of the APC in Lagos Fouad Oki, who is leading a faction, had threatened to engage in what he described as ‘credible’ membership registration and effect leadership change in the party. Oki was actually referring to the party leadership loyal to Bola Tinubu. Though Tinubu and Governor Babatunde Sanwo-Olu had since revalidated their membership of the party.
Only last week, the APC caretaker chairman Governor Mai Mala Buni reconciled the former Governor Abdulaziz Yari and Senator Marafa’s factions in Zamfara State. It is not clear how long the reconciliation will survive.
