Date: 2018-06-13

Alhaji Abdullahi Samari, Deputy Chairman of Chief Bashir Bolarinwa-led faction of the All Progressives Congress, in Kwara has declared the faction as the authentic APC in the state.

Samari who made the claim while speaking to newsmen on Wednesday in Ilorin said the faction was made up of members advocating the return of President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.

He claimed that Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the national Publicity Secretary of the party had no moral right to declare his faction as not recognised in the party.

It will be recalled that the party national leadership had recognised the Alhaji Isola Balogun-Fulani led faction as the authentic APC in Kwara after the appeal committee panel sat on the recently held party congresses in the state.

According to Samari, the congress held by his faction at the Arca Centre in Ilorin was attended by President Muhammadu Buhari's loyalists in Kwara.

He said: "It is an amalgamation of all Buhari/Osinbajo 2019 re-election support groups in Kwara State against the insinuation of Abdullahi that we are fame seekers." Samari appealed to members and leaders of the party, particularly executives in Abuja to be wary of members of the New Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP) in APC "as they are out to destroy the party".

He said: "Committed and loyal leaders of our party should be wary of their likes still hob-nobbling at the national level and to always objectively weigh their counsel."

"Members of the nPDP led by Alhaji Kawu Baraje and the Senate President, Bukola Saraki will eventually leave APC, but not until they destroyed it.

"It is no longer news that Bolaji and his masters are now hell bent at de-marketing our great party before commencing their journey to an unknown destination. "Since it is clear that they are only preparing ground for their eventual exit from the party, we passionately request them to do so on time.

"Let it not be like the Yoruba proverb that say when a white man is living, he will defecate on the seat." Samari described the claim of marginalization by nPDP members as frivolous, saying that they were the one that benefitted more than any group from President Buhari's government.

He commended the President for declaring June 12 as Democracy Day in Nigeria.

He said: "We are indeed very proud of our forward looking leader, President Buhari who has shown again that he is committed to the promotion of democratic values."

Samari appealed to the people of Kwara to give Buhari a second term to pave the way for true democracy and for the benefit of the state.