By Yemi Monday
Aftermath of its lost in the 2023 General elections, a fresh leadership crisis has engulfed Bauchi State chapter of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) which has led to call on the State chairman, Babayo Misau to immediately resign from office or be removed.
The development is contained in an open letter addressed to the President -Elect, Vice President-elect and the National Leadership of APC in Abuja by the Bauchi State APC Patriotic Support Group.
While briefing Journalists at the NUJ Press Centre, Bauchi on Wednesday, the group which comprises of foundation members of the party as well as highly patriotic and committed conglomerates who believe in the unity, justice, prosperity, discipline, due-diligence in the conduct of the party’s affairs as preached and practice by the party leader, President Muhammadu Buhari, declared that urgent efforts must be made to salvage the APC in Bauchi State.
According to the group, “Our goal for this media briefing is to highlight some worrisome development in the party in the state with the intention of drawing the kind attention of the leaders of the party at the top to do the needful so as to restore confidence, trust, discipline, respect for the constitution of the party and entrench right from day one a reward system mechanism that acknowledge loyalty, dedication, sacrifice and patience at all times and under whatever circumstances.”
Reading the text on behalf of other members of the group, Almustapha Zubairu stated that, “it’s no longer news that we collectively resolved to reject in its entirety, the Governorship election results and challenge the outcome in courts of law because the elections was marred by fraud and gross violations of electoral act and other enabling laws.”
He further read that,”We unanimously commend the resilience, doggedness and resolve of our gubernatorial candidate and all other candidates at various elective positions to forge ahead with their litigations as victory will surely come our way in the end.”
He added that, “You were also very much informed how some highly influential and respected leaders of the party who undoubtedly are eating from the sweats and doggedness of every committed member of APC in Bauchi State are reciprocating dis-honorably.”
The group added that, “We call their antics of using their vintage position to frustrate every bit of the Bauchi State Presidential Campaign Council Coordinator by withholding funds that were meant for use during the just concluded Presidential Elections.”
According to Almustapha Zubairu,”What Mr. President-Elect must know is that, we had the election with only 1/3 of our allocation for Bauchi State midnight after the elections had been conducted, yet we substantially triumphed and Alhamdililah, we deliver you ASIWAJU!”
“We also reported instances where some of these leaders openly worked against some candidates of Senatorial and House of Representatives just to satisfy their self-aggrandize and parochial sentiments. Infact, worse still, they consistently refused to attend or support any of our activities in the state during Presidential Campaigns as well as that of the Gubernatorial Elections,” it alleged.
The group stressed further that, “Instead, they re-perpetuated the same anti-party in their respective birth places. When the time comes we would expose them!”
He also stated that, “In the unrepentant resolve to scuttle our resolve in Bauchi State Chapter of the APC to diligently seek redress in competent courts and perhaps restore our stolen mandate at the just concluded gubernatorial elections and other elections, we and our candidates are short-changed by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.”
He stated that, “We wish to bring to the notice of our highly esteemed leader of our great party, National Leadership, President-Elect, VP-Elect and other people of good will, that the same people have perfected the primordial plan to aid the incumbent Governor to defect to APC any time soon.”
According to him, “The motive is not far-fetched; they want to strangulate the cause for justice, further divide us and ultimately prosecute the individual and collective ambition ahead. But what they consciously refuse to understand is that they tried in the past, the same person betrayed them and what else do they expect in this new deal other than disappointment and perpetual betrayal of trust. This is unacceptable!”
“We also understand that those who contested and failed woefully in a free and fair APC party primaries at Gubernatorial, Senatorial and House of Reps and shamefully defected to other parties to vie elective positions are now head-bent to nefariously return to APC after melting all sorts of lies to the party and its leadership at both State and National levels,” The group claimed.
It stated that,”We condemn it in totality and those who are hobnobbing in this regard should be wary about the desperate, ingrate and unholy sportsmanship exhibited in their quest towards self fulfillment at all cost and toy along the scripts of their pay- masters. That should not be allowed to stand. “The spoils of war should only be enjoyed by the veterans of war”.
According to the group, “most disturbing is the lackadaisical, nonchalant and incapacitation of our State Chairman who on his own volition, abandoned his responsibility at the time of peak need just to satisfy his ‘pay master’. This is totally undemocratic and the pinnacle of betrayal of trust.”
“We call on him to honorably resign as the Chairman of our great party in the interest of justice and for the rebuilding process of our party to succeed. We do not wish to dwell on numerous anti-party activities that have been labeled against him including financial recklessness which is already in the public domain. Worst again, he decided to openly display his ballot paper without voting for the gubernatorial candidate of his party,” The group stressed.
It added that, “To say the least, this is the height of betrayal of trust. The truth of the matter is that he has eroded the trust, confidence and loyalty of the vast members of the party hence, the call for his immediate resignation!”
It then prayed that the National Leadership of the party, President-Elect, VP-Elect should be aware of these worrisome antics of the so-called leadership of the party in Bauchi State stressing that as a matter of urgency, they should be admonished once and for all to refrain and repent from such heinous anti-democratic activities and to be counseled on why they should not aid an outsider to destroy the house that together they laboured to build and supported our collective resolve to restore the stolen mandate by the ruling party in Bauchi State.
This according to the group, is the only panacea to achieving enduring unity, trust and genuine reconciliation.
It also prayed that the trio who left the party at the time of need should not be given the listening ears without recourse to due diligence, consultations with critical Stakeholders and they should be made to show remorse and tender public apology with commitment to be faithful, trust worthy in the subsequent dealings.
According to the group, “This would serve as deterrent to others and above all. will promote party loyalty and inculcate the spirit of patience and perseverance. That the State Chairman should honourably resign from his office and pave way for purposeful and trustworthy leadership that every member of the party can trust.”
“This is in addition to our resolve to humbly advise the National leadership to urgently constitute a robust Reconciliation Committee for State chapter of our great party the APC,” it added.
The group also stated that in the same vein, “we are calling on the State Executive Committee of the Party in Bauchi State to as a matter of responsibility, set up a Fact-Finding Committee to among other things, investigate the enormous allegations of anti-party activities perpetuated by some highly-placed members of our party in their respective constituencies and many other financial infractions leveled against them with a view to sanction them accordingly.”
The group concluded saying,”We earnestly and critically seek the support of the President-Elect and the Party leadership in all our affairs. There is no gain saying the fact that Bauchi is an APC State; as such, we should not allow it to slip out to the detractors.”
