Tony Osauzo, Benin

In spite of plots to sack him by some members of his party, National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, declared yesterday that he remained calm and committed to moving the party to greater heights.

Addressing party faithful in Iyamho, his home town in Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State, he urged his supporters to remain focused and continue to support President Muhammadu Buhari.

Besides, he urged party members to ensure they integrate all members who have ‘re-integrated’ into the party.

Reeling out his scorecard as APC helmsman, Oshiomhole said: “There are facts of history nobody can change. I became chairman precisely on the 24th of June 2018. The first election was Ekiti election. By the special grace of God we won.

“The next election was Osun State election and by the special grace of God APC won; the next election was presidential and National Assembly elections, by the special grace of God and our president was re-elected for the final second term and we won more seats in the Senate and in the House of Representatives.

“Unlike in 2015, this time we managed our victory more creatively, memory fails fast that is why I am saying this because in 2015 we had majority, yet APC produced Senate President and PDP produced Deputy Senate President and it was a riotous National Assembly permanently fighting against the president.

“This time, we managed our victory more creatively, more smartly and we conducted peaceful secret ballot and our party won all the principal officers that were there to be contested. This time there was no grafting of APC and PDP.

“We went to Kogi, our neighbour and we won, then we went deeper to South-South: Bayelsa State, the heart of the Ijaw nation. We fielded a candidate; a humble man from a very humble beginning and as we can see, we have Bayelsa.

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“By February, he will be sworn in and the number of APC governors will increase, so I am proud to say that under my chairmanship, we won one more state in the South-South and it is not just another state, it is a very special state, the state that produced the immediate past president.

“I have no enemies; I have brothers and I have sisters. Some may be happy with me today some may not be happy with me tomorrow but that is right.

“We have quality minds because the governance of our country and the quality of politics must reflect the quality of the people who are in it so we are not just celebrating good people today, we are celebrating quality re-union with my brothers and my sisters.

“I ask all of you to do the same thing in your various wards. Please, work hard to re-integrate all those who have re-united with us in all your wards, in all the local governments and, of course, at the state level.

“Our president in our last NEC meeting reminded us that the strength of our party should be at the grassroots at the unit level, you must properly get yourself re-integrated and he believes that if we are not on ground at the unit level, how can you have the wards. He said we must listen to the ordinary members of the party and we will try the best we can to run our party transparently. The ordinary members are as important as all because without them we cannot win elections.

“You must have read a lot of stories about my person. I sleep well because my heart is at peace, but let me ask you to always please remember me in your prayers. I believe when God says yes, no man can say no.

“I believe when we work with our good heart, we might even seem to be persecuted even for the good that we are doing but this season is the best season to remember that the purity of our heat does free us from people throwing stones at us.

“Don’t say I am doing my best because  even that best is the reason somebody will fight you.”