Adams Oshiomhole, a former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has revealed how former Governors of Ekiti and Ogun States, Kayode Fayemi and Ibikunle Amosun, respectively, and Salihu Lukman, a former national vice chairman, North-west, of the party, plotted his removal from office as the ruling party’s chair.
Oshiomhole focused on his battle with governors elected on the ruling party’s agenda.
On Tuesday, he made the revelation during the presentation of Salihu Lukman’s book “APC and Transition Politics” in Abuja.
Oshiomhole recalled how the author, along with several governors, led the campaign that resulted in his “illegal” expulsion from office.
He alleged that the governors deployed all manner of illegal means to remove him following his moves to enshrine party supremacy.
“Lukman wrote several letters, dismissing my leadership without calling me. When you ride on the back of a tiger, there is only one destination.
“Lukman was appointed undemocratically by the governors’ forum. I was not consulted— I was a governor. We were told this is the new DG of the APC governors forum.
“I wrote to the governors for a meeting. The governors said no, I should come to Imo House, not the APC office. He [Lukman] was there [where they were holding the meeting]. He did not see anything wrong with that,” Oshiomhole said.
“It felt as though I was in a military barrack,” Oshiomhole said while recalling the atmosphere at the meeting with the governors.
He said following the diatribes from the governors, he responded “None of you can lecture me about the power of a governor. Because I have been governor twice. Eight years uninterrupted.
“At a point, I told Fayemi, ‘You did a resit. You were elected and by the second term, you lost. That means you failed’. I did not do a resit, and you are lecturing me about power. I can mention some of them.
“The man in Ogun State, he told me if not for the president, he would have left the party. Some of them told me ‘You are working for your paymaster in Lagos. Your paymaster in Bourdillon.’”
(DailypPost)