Chief Asukewe Ikoawaji, a former Deputy National Chairman (South) of the now-defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANP), has called the current administration “kindergarten” and cautioned that the All Progressives Congress (APC) may lose the 2027 general elections if it doesn’t fulfill its promises to Nigerians.
Ikoawaji also chastised the ruling party’s national leadership for what he called a “studied silence” regarding legislators’ attempts to remove Siminalayi Fubara, the governor of Rivers State.
The elder statesman and Rivers State Elders Council member claimed that the APC was making the same mistakes that caused the Peoples Democratic Party to lose the general elections in 2015.
The flood of renowned politicians and governors defecting to the APC, according to Ikoawaji, was an indication that Nigerians were losing faith in the ruling party.
He claims that just before it lost power, the PDP used a similar tactic.
Similar to how the PDP failed before to the 2015 elections, the APC has failed Nigerians. At that point, the PDP began courting governors from other parties since the public no longer trusted it. Ikoawaji told The PUNCH on Friday, “That is precisely what is happening right now.”
In response to the most recent threat of impeachment against Governor Fubara and his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Odu, Ikoawaji claimed that the Rivers State political crisis was a manifestation of a larger national leadership failure.
He criticized the APC leadership for keeping quiet while its members purportedly took action against their own governor.
“The governor is in the APC,” he declared. Most chairmen of local governments belong to the APC. The APC also has the majority of members in the Rivers State House of Assembly. The APC is in charge of the Federal Government at the national level.
What is the national secretariat of the APC doing, then? How can a ruling party keep quiet while allowing its members to start the impeachment process against their own governor? This is not a cause for laughter.
Ikoawaji blamed Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike for his part in the political turmoil in Rivers, but he also chastised Governor Fubara for what he called weakness.
In the upcoming election, he was adamant that Rivers residents would not support a “kindergarten governor.”
“All these things are part of the FCT minister’s game,” he declared. However, the reality is straightforward: you ought to act like a governor if you are one. The people who elected you are the ones to whom you must answer.
“House Divided Cannot Stand”
Ikoawaji bemoaned the fact that many individuals at the top of the APC did not fully comprehend the party’s constitution, recalling his time as Deputy National Chairman of the ANPP, which he regarded as the main opposition party during the PDP era.
“It is regrettable that many individuals at the top of the party do not even comprehend the party constitution,” he stated. A house divided against itself cannot stand, according to the Bible.
“Kindergarten Politicians”
Wike’s visits to Rivers State local government areas with APC officials were also criticized by the former party chieftain, who called them premature campaigning conducted without the party’s official insignia.
“That tells you that these are kindergarten politicians,” he remarked. The FCT minister does not belong to the APC. The PDP, his party, expelled him. However, APC leaders accompany him when he does grassroots campaigning.
There is no APC flag, despite the presence of senators, the state chairman, the Deputy National Chairman of the APC, South-South, and other APC leaders. Rather, you see blue-white-blue, which is not an APC. The party leadership is also keeping an eye on things.
“APC Failing Nigerians”
Ikoawaji cautioned that the ruling party was gradually losing its hold on power, claiming to be a founder member of the APC and a pivotal member of the ANPP caucus that created the party.
He continued by saying that Nigerians’ immediate suffering had not been addressed by the Federal Government’s focus on long-term economic gains.
“How do you expect the average man to enjoy public electricity if the top citizen isn’t using it?” he said. The issues we are currently dealing with are the result of these mistakes.
The elder statesman warned that in the upcoming general elections, the Rivers people will oppose what he called bad leadership decisions.
“Mark my words: in 2027, Rivers State will not support a kindergarten governor,” Ikoawaji said in closing.
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