The Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, Davies Ikanya, has said since the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, has insisted he won’t support Senator Magnus Abe’s governorship aspiration, the party cannot coerce him.
He also said Abe had to secretly lobby Amaechi if he wants him to support his governorship ambition.
Ikanya told the Guardian Newspaper: “Amaechi and Abe have not complained to me that they have any problem. But I think Abe said he wants to be governor and Amaechi said no, that he has another person in my mind. Supposing Amaechi turns back tomorrow and says, ‘Abe, I support you.’ What am I going to settle? What people think requires settlement does not.
“If Abe wants Amaechi to support him, he will go secretly to lobby Amaechi. It is not the party that must tell Amaechi to support Abe. It is personal.
“People are not lobbying; they are just sitting on the wall. For instance, in the United States, the leader of the House of Representatives did not support Donald Trump at the primaries, because they were quarrelling.
“So, if someone says I am not going to support you, you begin to quarrel with the person? This ought not be so. If you are requesting for something, the person has the right to either accept or reject your request.
“No individual is dictating who will go for any position. Amaechi is not dictating, but simply saying he is not supporting Abe. That does not mean he is dictating who will go for any position. After all, how many votes will Amaechi cast on the day of primaries? So, the noise they are making is unnecessary and I have told them to go and look for delegates, to talk to and lobby them.
“What Amaechi and Abe are doing now is what people should be doing during general election, and not during primaries, where delegates are sought and lobbied. Not every party member is a delegate. The social media is also compounding the situation.
“Instead of lobbying for their preferred candidates, they are presenting matters in a way to cause problems. It is just like a student, instead of reading and preparing for his exams, he wants to submit his papers without writing any exam, which can only guarantee failure.”
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