APC chairman in Lagos has not suspended any members – party spokesman

The Lagos chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has refuted claims that party chairman Cornelius Ojelabi suspended thousands of members of Alimosho Local Government after they attacked him at the secretariat in Ikeja.

It said that the party could not unilaterally suspend any member and that none of the APC state chairmen had the power under the party’s legislation to take such action unilaterally.

According to APC, the procedures for suspending a member are clearly outlined in the party’s constitution.

The party’s stance came just hours after reports suggested that the party leader had suspended members who allegedly attacked him last month.

The report claims that the move was part of a retaliatory move by the chairman to take revenge on members who attacked him during a protest against the leadership crisis in the Alimosho chapter of the party.

In a statement released to The Guild on Sunday, party spokesman Seye Oladejo refuted the reports of the suspension of the members, stressing that the allegations made in the reports were untrue and should be ignored by the public.

Oladejo pointed out that the party constitution had not been amended and there was no legal provision that allowed a party leader to take such important decisions alone in the highest organ of the APC in the states.

The Guild learned that the suspension of members at the district level of the APC is starting.

The statement said: “We want to make it clear that there is no truth in these allegations.

“The Chairman of the APC in Lagos State, Cornelius Ojelabi, remains committed to the unity of the party and measures that enable peaceful coexistence of all its members.
As a political party whose members pursue different objectives, disputes and suspicions naturally arise within the APC, but these can always be resolved within the framework of the constitutional provisions.

“As an experienced personality in party politics and leadership, the chairman is always ready to step back and take all opinions into account without trampling on the rights of others.

“He believes that the interests of the factions should not be more important than the interests of the party, which are to maintain cohesion among members and ensure that we act as a check on our elected and appointed government representatives in terms of service delivery.

“There is no provision in the party’s statutes that would enable the chairman to unilaterally suspend a member.

“The public is hereby urged to ignore statements designed to create an imaginary conflict and spread deliberate falsehoods that are essentially self-serving.”