By Emmanuel Mogbede
The Forum of All Progressives Congress (APC) State Chairmen have dismissed speculations that there is rancour within the party’s rank and file.
Mr Alphonsus Oga, the APC Chairman in Cross River and Secretary of the forum, said this on Monday in Abuja while speaking with newsmen at the party’s national secretariat.
He spoke at the end of a closed-door meeting between the forum and the APC Sen. Abdullahi Adamu-led National Working Committee (NWC).
“We are here to congratulate the winning Chairman of our party, Sen. Abdullahi Adamu, and his hard-working NWC team,” he said.
Oga said there was no truth in the ongoing reports that there was rancour within the rank and file of the party, especially with regards to the postponement of its Caucus and National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the party had earlier scheduled its Caucus and NEC meeting for July 10 and 11 to July 18 and 19.
Sen. Iyiola Omisore, the party’s National Secretary, while announcing the postponement, explained that the postponement was necessitated by the regional and sub-regional schedules and engagements of President Bola Tinubu, as the new Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
“There is nothing like that, if you have been following the itinerary of the President, he is presently not in the country and he is expected to proceed for another journey.
“This was what necessitated the postponement of the meeting. This is a moment where rumours and blackmail can thrive.
“But as a party, there is only one APC, and we came again in solidarity to say we are strongly behind our national Chairman and the NWC,” he said.
Earlier, Adamu said the meeting was to discuss issues of developments in the party and development that would take place.
He recalled that a similar meeting was recently held between the APC NWC and governors elected on the party’s platform where issues of discipline, leadership and the need for harmonious relationship among the party’s stakeholders were discussed.
Adamu, however, advised the state chairmen to ensure they shared identified problems in their states to the party’s leadership with a view to addressing them, saying it is their responsibility to do so. (NAN)