The feud between the National leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and the party chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun is affecting the finances of the party, National Daily has been told. A senior chieftain of the party who spoke under the condition of anonymity, confided in National Daily that all is not well within the party because of Tinubu’s withdrawal of financial support to the party headquarters.
“Things have gone from bad to worse,” the party chieftain told National Daily on phone, “Ever since the refusal of President Buhari to fund the party activities, Asiwaju has been the sole financier of the party. “But he has withdrawn his support due to the way he was humiliated by the party chairman in the Ondo primary.” Asked to comment on the rumours that there are plans by anti-Oyegun elements in the APC to remove him and include his name in President Muhammadu Buhari’s ambassadorial nomination list, the party chieftain said it is true.
His words: “I can confirm that the report is true. The truth is, even members of the APC NEC have lost confidence in Oyegun. “Why do you think they have not come out to pass a vote of no confidence on him, which is the norm in politics when a leader is under duress? “Majority of the NEC members are tired of Oyegun’s antics and they are all pre-occupied with positioning themselves for government appointments than staying put in party politics.”
A former presidential candidate National Daily reached out to corroborate the story. He pleaded for his identity not to be revealed because he was not authorized to speak on such matters. He said: “Baba (President Buhari) has not sent a kobo to the party since he came into office. When we went to Aso Villa to complain, he asked the party chairman how the monies for the forms sold to party aspirants was expended. “The party chairman could not give a reasonable explanation, so baba asked us to go and look for ways to make money for the party. “Tinubu has been the one funding us since then because we could not even approach the governors knowing their situation.” National Daily efforts to get the APC official reaction to this report was not successful as at the time it was published.
Yesterday, there were media reports that the national secretariat of the APC in Abuja has been thrown into darkness following the party’s failure to offset the N1.7 million debt owed Abuja Electricity Distribution Company. An electricity receipt pasted on the gate of the APC secretariat showed that the party had only recently paid N500, 000 of the debt.