I Am Not Plotting To Come Back As APC Chairman, Says Oshiomhole

The immediate past national chairman of the All Progressives
Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole has denied the report of a
plot to bring him back to his former position.

A statement yesterday by his media aide, Mr Victor Oshioke, made
available to journalists in Benin explained that the plot, which
was revealed by one Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, a former National
Publicity Secretary of the defunct New Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) who is now a member of the APC and self-styled aide of
Minister of Transportation, Chief Rotimi Amaechi, was fake.

Chief Eze was quoted as saying that Mr Festus Keyamo SAN,
Minister of State for Labour and Employment and others were
scheming to bring back Comrade Oshiomhole as national chairman of
the APC.

Oshioke remarked that the ex-Edo State governor would ordinarily
have ignored what he described as a nonsensical suggestion.

He however said that it was pertinent to set the records
straight and put to rest this ridiculous falsehood being marketed
by Eze.

Continuing, the spokesman reminded that Keyamo was in the
forefront and indeed provided legal support through his personal
legal assistants who went to court to argue on behalf of those that
filed cases for the removal of Oshiomhole as national chairman of
the ruling party.

Oshioke added that Keyamo also offered legal advice on the
legality of the NEC that was convened for the dissolution of the
Oshiomhole led National Working Committee of APC and emergence of
the Governor Mai-Mala Buni led Caretaker Committee.

He said: “It is therefore frivolous for any right-thinking
person to assume that Mr Keyamo who actively supported the removal
of the National chairman elected by over 6, 500 party delegates
from across the 36 states and the FCT, because 8 out of 27 Ward
executive members purportedly suspended a national party chairman,
would now plot to bring the same Oshiomhole back to the
office.”

The spokesman continued: “It is strange that a serving minister
would share on public social media platforms, what he captioned as
a “Private and Confidential” legal opinion for Mr President who
appointed him, especially considering that he was in the political
kitchen when the pot of crisis he is now offering advice on was
being cooked.”

He argued that if Keyamo had no ulterior motives behind his
sudden change of legal interpretations of relevant aspects of the
APC constitution and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria, the right channel would have been to sit down with his
co-minister, the Attorney General of the federation behind close
doors and put forth his arguments.

Alternatively, he said that the Labour minister could have
sought a private audience with President Muhammadu Buhari or write
a confidential memo to him, explaining why his earlier opinion
supporting the dissolution of the National Working Committee and
setting up of a Caretaker Committee has changed or no longer
tenable instead of going to the “market with his bogus
arguments.”

He charged: “His action is reminiscent of the indiscipline from
some senior leaders of the party which Oshiomhole sought to deal
with decisively as national chairman.

“A Minister certainly should know better how to communicate his
concerns with Mr. President and party leadership in a truly
constructive conversation behind closed doors.

The truth of the matter is that Mr Keyamo seems to have lost out
in the power play and failed to secure the benefits he anticipated
in Oshiomhole’s removal from office with the consequent dissolution
of the NWC and other structures of the party. This is the main
reason for his self serving new legal opinion which contradicts his
earlier stance.”

While reaffirming the erstwhile national chairman loyalty to
Governor Buni’s leadership, he said that Oshiomhole will not be
part of any plot to destabilise or ridicule the party in any way or
for any reason, stressing that he (Oshiomhole) took serious
exemptions to his name being dragged into an issue that he has no
hand in.

According to Oshioke, with the successful conduct of the Ward
Congresses nationwide, the Committee should be encouraged to
proceed with the local government areas, State Congresses and
eventually the National Convention of the party.

The immediate past national chairman of the All Progressives
Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole has denied the report of a
plot to bring him back to his former position.

A statement yesterday by his media aide, Mr Victor Oshioke, made
available to journalists in Benin explained that the plot, which
was revealed by one Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, a former National
Publicity Secretary of the defunct New Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) who is now a member of the APC and self-styled aide of
Minister of Transportation, Chief Rotimi Amaechi, was fake.

Chief Eze was quoted as saying that Mr Festus Keyamo SAN,
Minister of State for Labour and Employment and others were
scheming to bring back Comrade Oshiomhole as national chairman of
the APC.

Oshioke remarked that the ex-Edo State governor would ordinarily
have ignored what he described as a nonsensical suggestion.

He however said that it was pertinent to set the records
straight and put to rest this ridiculous falsehood being marketed
by Eze.

Continuing, the spokesman reminded that Keyamo was in the
forefront and indeed provided legal support through his personal
legal assistants who went to court to argue on behalf of those that
filed cases for the removal of Oshiomhole as national chairman of
the ruling party.

Oshioke added that Keyamo also offered legal advice on the
legality of the NEC that was convened for the dissolution of the
Oshiomhole led National Working Committee of APC and emergence of
the Governor Mai-Mala Buni led Caretaker Committee.

He said: “It is therefore frivolous for any right-thinking
person to assume that Mr Keyamo who actively supported the removal
of the National chairman elected by over 6, 500 party delegates
from across the 36 states and the FCT, because 8 out of 27 Ward
executive members purportedly suspended a national party chairman,
would now plot to bring the same Oshiomhole back to the
office.”

The spokesman continued: “It is strange that a serving minister
would share on public social media platforms, what he captioned as
a “Private and Confidential” legal opinion for Mr President who
appointed him, especially considering that he was in the political
kitchen when the pot of crisis he is now offering advice on was
being cooked.”

He argued that if Keyamo had no ulterior motives behind his
sudden change of legal interpretations of relevant aspects of the
APC constitution and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria, the right channel would have been to sit down with his
co-minister, the Attorney General of the federation behind close
doors and put forth his arguments.

Alternatively, he said that the Labour minister could have
sought a private audience with President Muhammadu Buhari or write
a confidential memo to him, explaining why his earlier opinion
supporting the dissolution of the National Working Committee and
setting up of a Caretaker Committee has changed or no longer
tenable instead of going to the “market with his bogus
arguments.”

He charged: “His action is reminiscent of the indiscipline from
some senior leaders of the party which Oshiomhole sought to deal
with decisively as national chairman.

“A Minister certainly should know better how to communicate his
concerns with Mr. President and party leadership in a truly
constructive conversation behind closed doors.

The truth of the matter is that Mr Keyamo seems to have lost out
in the power play and failed to secure the benefits he anticipated
in Oshiomhole’s removal from office with the consequent dissolution
of the NWC and other structures of the party. This is the main
reason for his self serving new legal opinion which contradicts his
earlier stance.”

While reaffirming the erstwhile national chairman loyalty to
Governor Buni’s leadership, he said that Oshiomhole will not be
part of any plot to destabilise or ridicule the party in any way or
for any reason, stressing that he (Oshiomhole) took serious
exemptions to his name being dragged into an issue that he has no
hand in.

According to Oshioke, with the successful conduct of the Ward
Congresses nationwide, the Committee should be encouraged to
proceed with the local government areas, State Congresses and
eventually the National Convention of the party.