Crack in APC as Onilu gets N500m defamation charge

In yet another crack in the national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the National Vice Chairman (North-west) of the party, Inuwa AbdulKadir, Magatakarda Babba, has slammed a N500 million demand of monetary compensation on its acting National Publicity Secretary, Lanre Issa-Onilu.

The suit is in regard to published rejoinder to an earlier personal letter by the National Vice Chairman (North), Lawal Shuaibu to the party’s National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.

Inuwa Abdul-Kadir is also asking Onilu, in a letter dated July 9, 2019 to publish a retraction and an apology in national dailies for, among other statements in the rejoinder, alleging that the APC lost some states in the 2019 elections “due to the indiscipline and inaction” of the National Working Committee (NWC) under former national chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun which “lacked the courage to confront the political despots who could not operate by the party’s rules” and “accommodated impunity”.

The National Vice Chairman (North-west) said as a member of the party’s NWC throughout Oyegun’s tenure as national chairman, he was included in the condemnation by Onilu which implied that all NWC members under reference were “irresponsible persons/officer who lacked discipline, character and pedigree to hold the offices they occupied,” noting that the contents of Onilu’s published rejoinder had greatly lowered his estimation in the eyes of right thinking members of the public.

He also affirmed that as a member of the Adams Oshiomhole-led NWC of the APC, he knew that at no time did the NWC or any organ of the party meet and considered the tenure of the Oyegun-led NWC and make conclusions a contained in Onilu’s rejoinder, either before, during or after his appointment as acting national publicity secretary, adding that Onilu made the statements on his own volition using his position as Acting National Publicity Secretary to give it official colouration.

Mr Onilu has seven days to meet the demands or face further legal action.

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