Former governor Ibikunle Amosun may have surreptitiously begun the second phase of his move to control the Ogun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) against the decision of the national leadership of the party.
The former governor and his co-travellers were alleged to be behind a concocted list of chairmen of the APC across the 36 states of the federation, where Derin Adebiyi was mentioned as the chairman of the party in Ogun State.
Sources revealed that this was done to confuse the members of the party in the state and “start another round of crisis, when the issues have been resolved during the Congress by the national leadership of the party.”
The list was released on Friday December 10, 2021.
It will be recalled that while Amosun faction of the party, which held it’s state Congress at Ake Palace was not recognized by the party at the center, the authentic faction of the party, which held it’s Congress at the MKO Abiola Stadium, Abeokuta elected Chief Yemi Sanusi as Chairman of the party in the state.
The Congress was held on Saturday October 16, 2021 across the country.
Reacting to the unsigned list, the Publicity Secretary of the APC in Ogun State, Mr. Tunde Oladunjoye described it as fake.
In the disclaimer dated December 12, 2021, Oladunjoye said that “our attention has been drawn to a fake news circulating on the social media by disgruntled and faceless elements who, in their usual deceitful ways, are mentioning the name of an impostor as Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ogun State, instead of the recognized and authentic chairman, Chief Yemi Sanusi.
“There is nothing farther from the truth! The unsigned and uncredited material is only meant to deceive remnants of their gullible followers.”
Oladunjoye implored members of the public in the statement, which he personally signed to, “please ignore the fake news in its entirety,”
A national officer of the party, who spoke to us under the condition of anonymity, said that Ogun State had no issue at all because all the seven members of the party sent from Abuja were at the MKO Abiola venue of the congress recognized by the leaders of the party.
While describing the chairmen list as fake, the officer revealed that the APC doesn’t use WhatsApp group to disseminate information, but that they use national dailies instead.
He added that the officer of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), who was in the state for the Congress went to the stadium, adding that those “trying to destabilise the state should desist from such action as this would be met with a stiff resistance.”
He however declared that it is the Zamfara State issue that is delaying the release of the authentic list by the nation’s chapter of the party.
