Peace panel chair: Ondo APC leaders reject Bisi Akande

The Ondo APC Unity Forum on Wednesday rejected the choice of Chief Bisi Akande, as Chairman of the All Progressives Congress National Reconciliation Committee.

Akande, a former Osun State governor and pioneer Interim National Chairman of the APC, was named as chairman of the APC national reconciliation committee which was inaugurated, in Abuja, on Tuesday.

The Ondo APC Unity Forum consists of factional members and leaders of the party in the state.

Members of the forum rejected Akande’s leadership of the committee on the grounds of conflict of interest. They accused him of having close ties with Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN).

This was contained in a communiqué issued at the end of the forum’s meeting in Akure, the Ondo State capital.

Leader of the forum, Alhaji Ali Olanusi, who is a former deputy governor of Ondo State, made the forum’s position public.

The forum said the composition of the committee was equally unacceptable because some members were interested parties and could not be judges in their own case.

The communiqué read, “The meeting reviewed the replacement of the Senate President with His Excellency, Chief Bisi Akande, as the Chairman of the APC National Reconciliation Committee and pass a vote of no confidence in Chief Akande as the Chairman of the committee.

“Chief Akande was part of the reconciliation committee that met with the party leadership in Ondo State in July 2019 in Akure, where it was agreed that the party executive in the state be dissolved, but up till this moment, the governor, through some of our leaders, have been blocking the dissolution that was jointly agreed on in the presence of Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Chief Segun Osoba, Chief Bisi Akande, Chief Pius Akinyelure, Dr Kayode Fayemi, and Pastor Oluwajana, the South-West Chairman of the APC.

“The Unity Forum, for the umpteenth time, reaffirms the stand and the outcome of the July 2019 meeting presided over by our National Leader, Senator Bola Tinubu, where it was agreed that the executives of the APC from state to ward be dissolved as a prelude to peace and precondition for any party primary in Ondo State.”

The group also condemned the recent set up of an advisory council in the Ondo State chapter of the APC, saying the composition of the council did not reflect the true membership spread of the party.

It called on the national leadership of the party to do justice to the party in the state, instead of searching for peace.

The group also condemned the forthcoming council poll, saying “it is only Team Aketi that is organising the LG election for itself.” Punch