APC crisis deepens as members lock out executive in Plateau

The crisis rocking the Plateau State chapter of the All Progressives Congress deepened on Thursday as some aggrieved members locked out some executives of the party, and other stalwarts of the party who were holding a meeting at the secretariat.

The secretariat was donated to the party by a leader in the state.

Our correspondent gathered that the members were annoyed about the procedure adopted in the nominations of members of the board of trustees of the party.

The party had been enmeshed in crisis over the outcome of its state congress, especially the chairmanship position, which a former aide of the former Governor, Joshua Dariye, Mr. Latep Dabang won.

The outcome of the exercise was hotly contested by the former interim state chairman, Senator John Shagaya and another member, Amos Gombi, who had earlier petitioned the national secretariat.

The duo had, among other reasons, disagreed on the eligibility of Dabang to contest the election on the premise he was a legislative aide of Dariye who is a serving Senator on the platform of the Labour Party as at the time he contested the election.

However, the new twist occurred following an attempt by the Dabang-led executive to hold a meeting at the party secretariat for the nomination, but was prevented from doing so by some aggrieved members of the party.

The aggrieved members, who were not happy over the zoning of the zoning of the BOT members had laid siege on the secretariat, arriving ahead of the executives and padlocked the entrance gate and went away with the key.

Consequently, the stakeholders who had arrived for the meeting had to relocate to the abandoned state secretariat of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change along Dogon Karfe road Jos for their meeting.

Leader of APC in the state, Chief Joseph Din, had, in a letter to the secretary of the party said the party could nominate BOT member because the crisis in the party has not been resolved and therefore requested that meeting be shifted.

Part of the letter tagged ‘Re: Text message on the nomination of BOT member in Plateau’ read as follows: “I am shocked because it is a known fact that the issue of the state chairman of our party in the state has not been resolved. The National headquarters of our party has told me as the leader of the party in the state that the issue of chairmanship will be resolved as soon as possible.

“I therefore as leader of the party in the state request that the meeting be shifted to allow the national headquarters of our party to resolve the issue before a meeting in convened for any decision is taken on any party matter in the state.”

Dabang, who spoke to newsmen on the development decried what he described as constant harassment of the executives by some members, adding that the party has finally relocated its state secretariat to CPC secretariat.

He stated that the letter by the party leader in the state was not binding eon the executive and so they could’ve not admit it.

He said, “We have no choice than to relocate the state secretariat to CPC secretariat due to constant harassment by the owner, so here has now become our permanent secretariat. The party in Plateau is intact there is no crisis, the leadership issue has been settled and laid to rest.”

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APC crisis deepens as members lock out executive in Plateau