Some elders of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Kwara State have called for the suspension of the Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed from the party and his removal as minister in the Federal cabinet over allegations of divisive tendencies, and his unrelenting attacks on Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.
The elders from the 16 local government areas included Barrister Kunle Sulyman, Senator Ahmed Mohammed, Prince Sunday Fagbemi, Chief Wole Oke, Senator Simeon Ajibola, Gen ST Bello, Elder Chief J. A. Sogo, Senator Bisi Oyewo, Barr Titus Ashaolu (SAN), Alh Abubakar Ndakene and several others said this at a press conference in Ilorin on Thursday.
Their spokesman, Prince Sunday Fagbemi, attributed the lingering crisis in the party to the contest for the leadership of the party by the minister. which dates back to the 2019 election and campaign period, stressing that the minister wants to impose himself on the party as leader.
Fagbemi said: “May we at this point refresh your memory of the rebirth of the party in 2018: It was an amalgamation of varied tendencies with no common ideology and therefore lacking in the most rudimentary party discipline at the take-off of its operations.
“It is also necessary to remind you that with the conclusion of the party’s gubernatorial primary in October 2018 with Mallam Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq emerging the winner of the primary election it has been a case of no love lost between him and Alh Lai Mohammed who had assumed the leadership of the party shortly before the primaries, (being the highest political office holder at the time). That uncordial relationship resulting from supremacy contests has existed up till today. It is from this angle that one can understand this lingering hostility.”
Prince Fagbemi also said: “It is, therefore, not surprising that at the same programme on Saturday, 3rd July 2021 Lai Mohammed tried to divide the party along ACN/CPC lines when he asked his audience whether they knew anybody called AbdulRazaq AbdulRahman before now and the answer was that they didn’t.”