‘I should have spoken to the party’ — Ndume apologises to APC but stands by ‘kleptocrats’ remark

Ali Ndume, senator representing Borno south, has apologised to the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) but has maintained that he stands by his comments.

During a recent interview, the former chief whip of the senate alleged that the administration of President Bola Tinubu is populated by kleptocrats.

Following his comments, Ndume was removed as chief whip of the senate by the ruling party, which also asked him to resign as its member.

Speaking with reporters after meeting the leadership of the party in Abuja on Wednesday, Ndume admitted that he was wrong by not channeling his grievances through the leadership of the party.

The senator said his comments were borne out of patriotism.

“With what has happened which you are all aware, it is not surprising that I am invited to hear my own side, and we had family discussions,” Ndume said.

“And I actually accepted the mistake of not talking to the party as a last point, and I promised the party that all my observations as a senior member of the family should have terminated or ended with the party.

“Whatever I said or whatever I did was out of patriotism, and those issues may be said strongly, but they are true—I should have talked to the party as the last bus stop.”

On his part, Abdullahi Ganduje, national chairman of the APC, said the party was satisfied with Ndume’s apology.

Ganduje described the disagreement as a “family matter”.

“It is a family issue we need to resolve, and we are writing to the national assembly conveying what has transpired between Senator Ndume and the party,” he said.

“You know he apologised to the party, and we conveyed the same issue to the national assembly; when we do that, we hope they can review their position.”