From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has cautioned a leader of the party in Zamfara State, Senator Kabiru Marafa, and his cohorts, warning them not to reduce political issues into a contest of personalities.
Senator Marafa had on Sunday taken the party’s Chairman, Governor Mai Mala Buni, to task after the conduct of the ward congress in the state.
Reacting to the attack, APC had in a statement issued by the National Secretary, Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee, Sen John James Akpanudoedehe, insisted that it did not suspend ward Congresses in Zamfara State.
Dismissing Senator Marafa’s claim of not notifying the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ahead of the ward congress, the ruling party noted that the clarification has become necessary to guide him and his cohorts bent on misleading teeming party members in Zamfara.
‘Our attention has been drawn to uninformed and misguided comments by Senator Kabiru Marafa regarding the APC Ward Congresses held in Zamfara State on Saturday, November 13, 2021,’ he stated.
‘While the APC will not join issues with Senator Marafa who is supposed to be one of the party leaders in Zamfara state but chooses to denigrate the party and its leaders, it is important to set the records straight.
‘For the avoidance of doubt, the APC recieved intelligence reports bordering on the security of the Zamfara State APC Ward Congress Committee, hence the need to temporarily suspend their activities. That necessitated the letter of November 5, 2021 to the Chairman of the Committee, Ibrahim Kabir Masari, only.
‘After, evaluation and consultations, the Committee, in a letter dated November 10, 2021 was okayed to proceed with the conduct of the Zamfara State Ward Congresses on Saturday, November 13, 2021, which Sen Marafa participated.
‘This had nothing to do with the 21 days notice for the conduct of Wards, Local Government Areas and State Congresses in Zamfara State earlier sent to INEC, which subsists.
‘The letter to Ibrahim Kabir Masari which Sen. Marafa is brandishing is an internal administrative correspondence and was not copied to INEC nor any other agency or person(s) as the case may be. This clarification is necessary to guide Sen. Marafa and his cohorts who seem bent on misleading our teeming party members in Zamfara State.
‘The party urges Sen Marafa and his cohorts not to reduce the political issues to a contest of personalities but submit to party supremacy and internal dispute resolution structures adequately provided for by the APC Constitution. Anything outside this amounts to insubordination and indiscipline and the APC constitution is very clear on this,’ the statement read.