Pro-Abe protesters ask APC to recognise him as Rivers guber candidate

Some All Progressives Congress (APC) members loyal to Magnus Abe, senator representing south-east, on Friday stormed the national secretariat of the party to demand that the leadership of the party to recognise Abe as the APC gubernatorial candidate for 2019.

The senator and Tony Cole both emerged governorship candidates of APC after holding parallel primaries.

Cole belongs to the faction of Rotimi Amaechi, minister of transportation.

On Thursday, a court in Port Harcourt nullified the primary election held by the Amaechi faction. The court also sacked the leadership of that faction.

At the secretariat, the protesters displayed placards which read “Respect the will of the people”, “Direct primaries is the best”.

Speaking with journalists, Bethel Oko Jaja, a member of Rivers APC, called on President Muhammadu Buhari to wade into the matter.

Jaja said if Abe had not won his election in 2015, APC would have been lost in the state.

“He remains the only committed APC member that has worked for this party. You recall that in 2015, when PDP won election in Rivers state and it was nullified and in December 2016 to be precise that election was conducted. The only man who won his senatorial district is Magnus Abe,” he said.

“He gave APC a face in Rivers state, APC would have lost, forgotten today in Rivers state. Magnus Abe stood and won the election. Today they are accusing him of fighting for his right, he is fighting for the good right of Rivers people, he is fighting to liberate the people impunity perpetuated by one man.

“We sending a strong message across to the national chairman of All Progressives Congress, our own brother, Adams Oshiomhole, to live up to expectation, the leader of this party and commander-in-chief of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari to please intervene in this matter.

“We are committed members of APC in Rivers state. Impunity must not prevail, one man should not hold the party to ransom. We will stand against it. We believe in direct primary and on the one that was conducted on 30th September Abe emerged the winnner and remains candidate of the APC come 2019 governorship election in Rivers state.”