BREAKING NEWS: SEASON OF DEFECTION IN KADUNA APC....Akida and Restoration Groups Dump APC

At last, the long awaited news of the final split of the All Progressives Congress APC has happened in Kaduna state with members of Akida and Restoration groups, on Friday announced their withdrawal from the party.

At a well attended Joint Press Conference in the state, Matamaiki Tom-Maiyashi, Chairman of the Akida group, announced the decision of the two groups.

At the press conference, Tom-Maiyashi disclosed that, they left the APC because, the party was not ready to accommodate alternative opinions or, allow democracy to take its course in the conduct of party affairs.

Among prominent members of the two groups are Senators Shehu Sani (APC Kaduna Centra), Suleiman Hunkuyi (APC Kaduna North), Tijjani Ramalan, owner of Liberty Radio and Television stations, Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, Chief of Staff to the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki.

"This joint Press Conference is the culmination of extensive reviews and consultations over the state of the All Progressives Congress, APC in Kaduna State as well as in the nation", the Akida group chairman stated.

“As you will appreciate, groups such as ours that had been part of the efforts to keep our Party along the lines of survival, accountability and integrity, will be diligent in ensuring that whatever steps we take, are consistent with our high sense of responsibility".

Tom-Maiyashi further stated that, “We are satisfied that the positions we have arrived at, are in the best interests of our members and the on-going efforts to create options and strategies that will rid our nation of undeserved and avoidable challenges".

“Members of our two groups have decided to leave the APC because, it is incapable of accommodating and responding  to well-meaning dissent, criticism and demands for inclusiveness and internal democracy“.

It would be recalled that the frosty relationship between the factions in the APC had defied reconciliation efforts by both the Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu committee which visited Kaduna to broker peace while other attempts by prominent leaders failed to achieve the desired results.

The Akida group chairman while addressing the gathering, criticized the party, saying it had failed the millions of people who labored to put it and who expected genuine change.

“We are hereby advising all our teeming members to formalize their withdrawal from the APC".

“We are engaged in serious discussions with parties which share our values and principles towards political collaboration that best suits our interests, and in due course, we will make public the outcome of these discussions".

“We want to commend the resilience and commitment of our members in the face of institutionalized exclusion, marginalization and abuse.We urge them all to keep faith", Tom-Maiyashi said.

It also could be recalled that, Haruna Sa'eed Kajuru, a former Governorship candidate of Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, and a strong ally of President Muhammadu Buhari had, some months ago, dumped the APC following irreconcilable differences and the lack of internal democracy in the party.

With this latest development, all seems set for the final collapse of the APC in Kaduna under the leadership of Nasir Ahmed el-Rufai whom many have accused of running a one man show.