APC Youth Solidarity Network, a youth group who recently led a protest calling for the resignation of Abdullahi Ganduje as chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress has revealed that they were sponsored.
According to the youth group, they were sponsored by enemies of the party to unseat Ganduje.
Addressing a news conference on Tuesday, Prince Danesi Momoh,
National Coordinator of the group, said they were brainwashed by those who are conniving with the opposition New Nigeria Peoples party to destabilize the APC and by extension the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Momoh said they have realized their mistakes and urged President Bola Tinubu to ensure that Ganduje is not removed to from seat.
His text speech reads below;
“It may interest you to note that, we are the first set of agitators who led protest against the National Chairman, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, and called for his immediate removal.
“We even submitted a protest letter to the President through the National Secretary in the view that the National Chairman was suspended by his council ward of Ganduje, Dawakin Tofa local government area of Kano State.
“We were brainwashed that, the only way to save of our party, is by mobilizing for the removal of the National Chairman, in order to avoid Zamfara treatment where the party won all elections, but our votes were later awarded to the opposition by the Supreme Court.
“As overzealous members and reputable youth organization within the party, we swung into action by mobilizing against our workaholic National Chairman, only to later realized that the people pushing us against Ganduje are enemies within the party, who are conniving with the opposition New Nigeria Peoples party to destabilize the APC and by extension the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“Without mincing words, we are opposed to this charade and we call on all stakeholders and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to do everything within his powers to end this rascality for the sake of our great party and the country at large.
“Despite the decisive rejection of the ill-fated suspension by the Ganduje ward executive and the discovery that those who appeared on the television and allegedly suspended the National Chairman are not members of the APC, talk more of being Exco. Yet, it gave some mischievous persons an avenue to vent their frustrations because some of the enemies within are complaining of lack of patronage by the Tinubu’s administration.
“These are the people now hiding under the botched suspension to distabilise the party and generate baseless narratives. They should be informed that the criminals who were hired by enemies of the APC to do the hatchet job are not even members of the APC in Dawakin Tofa Local Government Area of Kano State. The plotters are nothing but charlatans who have been paid to cause disaffection and enmity in our great party. Thank God they failed.
“Equally, frivolous and petty is the suit instituted by Mohammed Saidu-Etsu, a former contender for the post of National Chairman in the last APC Convention, at an Abuja High Court, seeking to compel the National Executive Council (NEC) of the APC to declare the appointment of Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje illegal. It’s simply childish to contest the outcome of an election you lost for over a year ago. Moreover, the NEC has all the powers including zoning and rezoning of party positions and elections being the highest organ of the party after National convention.
“What suddenly prompted Mr. Mohammed Saidu-Etsu to question the appointment of Abdullahi Umar Ganduje? Was he part of the team that sponsored the unholy insurrection against Ganduje in Kano? What does he hope to gain if the position of the National Chairman is declared vacant? Does he hope to just get it on a platter of gold? This is dishesrtening and as a youth body, we suspect a grand scheme to decimate our great party, weaken it ahead of next elections and target President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a loss.
“Ladies and gentlemen, history does not lie and this is the time for Mr. President to rise up to the challenges and ensure that Ganduje is maintained as the National Chairman. A similar situation happened in 2013/2014 when some anit-party agents conspired and removed Alhaji Bamanga Tukur as the then National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
“This was done behind the then President Goodluck Jonathan and his silence emboldened the conspirators who clandestinely worked against Jonathan leading to his eventual defeat during the 2015 polls.
“Our President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must not allow history to repeat itself as those behind the plot to remove Ganduje are nothing but the same anti-party elements within the APC, plotting to shatter the party ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“We wish to state categorically that, we were misinformed to stand against the National Chairman of our party at a time, but we have seen the light and understood clearly, the antics of the enemies within our party.
“As we speak, some persons are in Abuja moving round with huge sums of money, mobilizing people to protest against the National Chairman, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje. They are also sponsoring adverts in both the print and electronic media just to tarnish his image. These men are ready to cause disaffection and return back to their bases as some of them are not Abuja base. We call on the media and the general public to disregard any call for Ganduje’s removal as the party is truly in a safe hands.
“Don’t be surprised that in the next few days, you may see sponsored articles, adverts and protest against Ganduje by the same people wasting public funds in a fruitless journey of no result.
“We therefore, pass a resounding vote of confidence in the current leadership of our great party, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and his working committee members. Ganduje has steered the affairs of our great party in the right direction with a lot of innovations and policies that have ensured Internal democracy and equality within the ranks and file of our party.
“The successes recorded during the Party Primaries in Edo and Ondo State should gladden our hearts and give us hope that Nigeria shall once again be a great country where godfatherism and other clannish tendencies will soon be eradicated. It is rather unfortunate that even with the achievements recorded so far under Ganduje, some persons are bent on jeopardising his efforts and that of our great party in an attempt to attack President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“Gentlemen of the press, ladies and gentlemen, as we conclude, it is important to restate our unalloyed support and solidarity with the current National Chairman of the APC, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje. His administration has witnessed the deepening of our party structure in all regions of the country. Those opposed to his strategic leadership should be sent packing because they have sinister motives.
‘On our part, we shall be staging a solidarity protest to tell all naysayers that there’s no vacancy in APC National Secretariat and no matter what they do, Ganduje will complete his tenure and establish APC as the strongest party in Nigeria and beyond.
‘Let it be on record that we were the first to protest against the National Chairman and we are saying we are sorry for been used against our party. We shall work with the National Chairman to move our party forward.