Kogi APC rejects Tinubu, Faleke’s ministerial nomination

All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders in Kogi State have vowed to reject the influence of the party’s national leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, in the North-Central region of the country.

They also vowed to reject James Faleke if nominated as replacement for the late minister of state for labour, James Ocholi, who died in a road accident in March last year.

They called on President Buhari to disregard Faleke’s nomination, saying it would cause crisis in the party in the state.
A statement jointly signed by the leaders of the party from Kogi West, Suleiman Ejibunu and Richard Asaje, and made available to newsmen in Lokoja, said the party would reject Faleke’s nomination.

“If at all Faleke and his godfather, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, deserve anything, not the ministerial slot of Kogi State to avoid serious crisis in the Kogi APC as such a move may lead to the exit of every prominent, loyal and committed member of the party while aggravating the fractionalisation of the party along many divides,” the statement read in part.
“We are also unequivocally resolute to stop Tinubu’s expansion into Kogi State or any state in the North-Central. We are determined to push out all his cohorts from Kogi come 2018/2019. It is a task that must be done through all legal/political means. They have failed and they will continue to fail,” it said.
They equally noted that James Faleke representing Lagos in the National Assembly was known to Kogi APC, adding that during the guber election, Tinubu allegedly imposed him on APC in Kogi as the deputy governorship candidate to late Prince Abubakar Audu.
“This generated a lot of discomfort to the founding members of APC who built the party, fought the then sitting government in all national elections and won. However, we swallowed the pains to fight and win the governorship election in the state,” the statement said.
“Giving him such appointment will amount to providing him fuel to fire on the breakup of APC in the state. Faleke along Buba Ibril in the West Senatorial district of Kogi State have formed illegal party structure for which a petition is already before the national leadership of the party,” it said.
They advised President Buhari to look for means of compensating Faleke, not to give him what rightfully belongs to Kogi.

 

VICTORIA NNAKIAIKE