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By Joel Anaekwe, Port Harcourt
Aftermath of last weekend’s ward and local government non-elective congress of the All Progressives Congress (APC), which further exposed the cracks in the party in Rivers State, the senator representing Rivers South East senatorial district, Magnus Abe has said that no amount of intimidation would force him out of the party.
He said he is a founding member of the APC in Rivers State and believes in the capacity of the party leadership to amicably and satisfactorily address issues causing disagreement and division in the party.
Speaking to journalists after the congress and the long meetings between the party leadership and the Rivers State Police commissioner, Ahmed Zaki, Senator Abe said that unfolding events in the APC would not force him out of the party, adding that he believes the commitment of the party to address issues that arose from the congress.
Abe said; “Cross carpeting to the PDP does not arise, that does not arise. I left PDP because of impunity when people will not listen to reason, so there is no reason for me to go back to that kind of arrangement. In the APC, processes are respected, and besides they are two different organizations and the things that happen in PDP, can`t happen in APC.
“So I can`t leave a place where the leadership has respect for its own rules to go to a place where there is no guarantees that there is respect for rules which I had left that place for that reason. I am one of the founding members of the APC, I struggled with my life to establish APC in Rivers State so there is no reason for me to leave. Don’t be fooled by anything that is happening. We are totally focused on building the party and that we will do,” he said.
He expressed reservations over the conduct of the congress, saying it was designed by APC leadership to favour some persons and frustrate those loyal to him.
“Even a child knows that the last local government non elective congress in the state was designed by the leadership for one reason and one reason only, to ensure that supporters of Senator Abe were shut out of the party and we have no space in the affairs of the party.”
“There are issues on the way things are being done. But yesterday we met with the party chairman and the state commissioner of Police and the party made some undertaking before the commissioner of police as to certain things they are going to do to try to resolve the present situation. So we are waiting to see if those things would be done as has been stated,” Abe said.
He insisted that the process of the congress was grossly irregular saying “that everybody in the state knows that the process was neither free, nor fair, nor transparent. But I don’t want to make any arguments with the party”.
Meanwhile, the APC publicity secretary in Rivers State, Chris Finebone said the congress was peacefully conducted across the 23 local government areas of the state.
Finebone told newsmen that every local government chapter of the party had the list of delegates that participated in the congress, adding that “every LGA has of delegates that participated, they have the names of party officers that conducted the congresses they also have names, audio and visual evidences of the congresses and the INEC officers that witnessed each of the congress.
“Let me state that there have been rumours and positions being canvassed that the congresses today did not hold, that is not true. It could be that the processes did not go perfect in their local government,” Finebone said.
He said the APC has constituted a panel that would address grievances arising from the congress. “There was not a situation where materials were stockpiled to be issued by anybody, took it away and all that. No. We have dealt with all such logistic issues earlier, 3, 4 days ago, so there was nothing left to be done,” he said.