Chief Okoi Obono-Obla, a former aide to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari, has accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of manipulating the 2023 national and state assembly elections to benefit defectors from other political parties.
In a statement calling for midterm elections to reform the leadership of the APC in Cross River State, Obono-Obla claimed that only the governorship election was conducted fairly, with the winner emerging through a consensus.
“All tickets for elective positions such as national and state assemblies (except the governorship ticket) were manipulated and handed over to defectors,” he alleged.
He urged the party to conduct midterm congresses at the state, local government and ward levels to address the alleged imbalances, claiming deep divisions within the party’s ranks due to perceived injustices that followed the 2021 defections from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
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Obono-Obla also criticised the current APC leadership in Cross River State for running an exclusive and undemocratic administration. He argued that the party’s executive committees at all levels are dominated by defectors from the PDP, and called for a more inclusive leadership.
In response, the APC State Chairman, Barrister Alphonsus Ogar Eba, dismissed Obono-Obla’s allegations, accusing him of attempting to divide the party.
Eba said Obono-Obla’s frustration stemmed from the failure of his efforts to secure federal and state appointments for himself and his nominees.
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