National Chairman, All Progressives Congress, Adams Oshiomhole

The Forum of the All Progressives Congress State Chairmen on Thursday expressed support to the National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole.

The forum also called on the Progressives Governors’ Forum to sack the Director General, Salihu Lukman, for demanding resignation of Oshiomhole if he failed to convene a National Executive Council meeting.

The forum in a statement by the forum Secretary and Enugu Chairman, Dr Ben Nwoye, on Thursday described Lukman as agent of destabilisation.

The statement said, “The position of the National Chairman of our great party is not a child’s play and we cannot allow it to be demeaned by questionable characters like Salihu Lukman who as it seems is being used by some disgruntled elements.

“We are grateful to God that as a party, with the leadership of the current National Working Committee, led by Adams Oshiomhole, we successfully overwhelmed our opponents at the polls, re-electing our dear President, Muhammadu Buhari, and maintained our dominance in the states and won overwhelming majority in the National Assembly.

“Salihu Lukman is talking about NEC meeting, I wonder why he is crying more than the bereave. Some of us have interacted with our progressives’ governors and we were informed that Salihu Lukman is on his own.

“This man has never held any elective position and we wonder why he is interested in NEC meeting which has no business with him. We the chairmen want to use this opportunity to appeal to our governors to sack this man who is obviously being used to cause disaffection within the APC.

“But we want to reiterate our support to the National Chairman and once again pass a vote of confidence in the national chairman of our great party.

My statement represents govs feelings –APC govs DG

Meanwhile, Lukman said he had no regret calling on Oshiomhole, to convene the NEC meeting or resign.

At a press briefing on Thursday in Abuja, Lukman said he was in a position to know the feelings within the ranks of the governors and other party members based on his “privileged” position as the PGF DG.

Lukman said, “There is no meeting of the governors where a decision was taken on these matters. I wrote the statement as a Nigerian, a party member and as someone relating with governors. I know the sentiment; everybody is worried.”

He stated that he had not received any call from the governors or anywhere querying him since he issued the statement.

Lukman said the request for Oshiomhole to convene the NEC meeting was in line with Paragraph 9 of his declaration speech of May 10, 2018, where he promised to institutionalise the party and convene NEC meeting quarterly.

He said, “Every day, the NWC continues to run the affairs of the party without convening a NEC meeting. It is working illegally.”