Members of the Kwara State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) loyal to the minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, have said that the lingering intra-party crisis in the state is capable of leading to mass defection of members to other parties in the state.
Speaking at an inter-religious prayer event in Ilorin, the APC members accused the leadership of the party of alleged insensitivity and maltreatment, thus, urging the leadership of APC in the state and Abuja to urgently intervene and salvage the situation.
The event, themed, God Save APC, was characterized by inter-religious prayers, as both Islamic and Christian clerics, Alfa Shuaib Cisse and Reverend Gabriel Olaoye led prayers for unity in the party and successful general elections come 2023.
Various speakers at the event, who included 193 ward chairmen, 16 local government chairmen and youth in the party, as well as party stalwarts, said that they remained marginalized and disenfranchised despite several complaints lodged with the national leadership of the party.
The people lamented that the ongoing crisis in the party portends grave danger for the fortune of the party in 2023 and subsequent elections in the state.
Addressing the gathering on behalf of the 193 APC ward chairmen, AbdulRasheed AbdulRauf, said peace had allegedly eluded the party since the inauguration of the APC government in the state in 2019.
“The house is falling and we hereby appeal to our local government and state leadership to take urgent measures to retain our members at the grassroots, otherwise, the horse will bolt out of the stable,” he said.
Also speaking on behalf of the 16 APC local government chairmen in the state, Engineer Muyideen Shittu, accused Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq of disenfranchising party members during the registration/revalidation exercise.
“This we believe should not be the attitude of a party that is desirous of winning future elections in the state.
“So, we want to also let you know that we are under serious pressure in our various local government areas, particularly as the 2023 general elections draws near and the majority of our members are desirous of contesting for elective positions. The APC broom is falling, we need to put it together quick and fast,” he said.
In his speech, Yinka Raji, who spoke on behalf of the Kwara APC youth said that they were not carried along in the running of the APC government in the state.
