The crisis rocking the Kwara state chapter of the All Progressives Party (APC) , worsened Wednesday as the three Senators from the state threw their weights behind Governor Abdulrahaman Abdulrasaq as the authentic leader of the party .
Cracks among leadership of the party emerged during the re – registration and revalidation of membership exercise which started in February.
While a faction of the party led by the Minister of Information and Culture , Alhaji Lai Mohammed described the exercise as a sham, the faction loyal to the governor of the state, described the exercise as transparent and credible .
The crisis got worsened ahead of slated congresses of the party coming up soon across the 36 states of the federation with insistence of the minister that such will not happen in the state until all party faithful are allowed to register .
The minister at a factional rally in Ilorin last weekend, described the governor as a one chance state executive
But the Senators namely , Ibrahim Yahaya Oloriegbe ( Kwara Central), Lola Ashiru ( Kwara South ) and Umar Sadiq Suleiman (Kwara North ), described Lai Mohammed’s remarks as a side talk .
Briefing the press on the lingering crisis , the three Senators who spoke one after the other, said as President Muhamnadu Buhari is the leader of the party at the national level , so is Governor Abdulrasaq leader of the party in the state.
Specifically , Senator Oloriegbe in his submissions said though the Information Minister is one of the leaders of the party in Kwara state , Governor Abdulrahaman is the overall leader as chief executive of the state .
“What is happening in the state between the governor and the minister is part of challenges faced after revolution.
“The Otoge revolution staged in Kwara by all the APC stakeholders has come to stay, since it is about the people and not a single individual.
“Yes, as a big party, APC has collegiate leadership like other states, but in line with constitution of the party, the sitting governor is the overall leader and we are 100% in support of his leadership. “All the deliverables are being delivered to Kwarans in terms of development with the support of the governor, one of which is the Budo Egba Psychiatric Hospital Bill passed for third reading in the Senate today,” he said.
Senator Lola Ashiru who hails from the same Senatorial district with the minister said the party is intact and one in the district and 100% loyal to the governor .
“As Senator from Kwara south , the same Senatorial district the minister hails from, I can tell you that APC is one and intact in the district and that majority of party faithful are on the same page with the governor as far as massive infrastructural development going on in the State are concerned,” he said .
Senator Sadiq Umar Suleiman in his own remarks said what the party is experiencing in the state for now are post revolution challenges.
“Information minister’s attack against the governor as one chance chief executive is nothing but side talk or political talk .
“The governor is performing very well and majority of Kwarans are behind him,” he said.
