There are glaring indications that Nigeria’s Niger Delta Affairs Minister, Usani Usani, may have lost full grip of the All Progressives Congress, APC, structure in Cross River State, after yesterday’s swearing-in of Matthew Achigbe as state chairman, by the party’s national chairman, Adams Oshiomole.
Confirmed sources within the party in Abuja informed www.calitown.com this morning that “Usani’s ambition to lord over all and sundry within the party, has pitched him against almost everybody who has something to do with the APC. Agreed he was the state chairman of the party at some point, but he was not the emperor and sole financier of the party. What he arrogates to himself is a political formidability that is not practicable and visible. If he desires to abandon his wild goose chase and work collaboratively with other highly placed members of the APC in CRS, he will be the better for it. I tell you, a tree cannot fight a whole forest, Usani is a tree, fighting a forest”, the source maintained.
Perhaps too, Usani’s political protégé, Etim John, APC state chairman at some point, has been running around with one Court Order or the order, to enforce the agenda the Usani camp in the party is pursuing. He was spotted at the national secretariat yesterday, during Achigbe’s swearing-in, attempting to serve Oshiomole a Court Order. “The man is now a bailiff in Abuja now, sweating to serve Court Orders. Something happens within a judicial division, the High Court in Akpabuyo gives a ruling, which has not been vacated, but Etim John and his band travel to Abuja, shop for another Order and attempts to serve it on the national chairman, because Usani said so; they had better look for something else to do”, another party chieftain told www.calitown.com.
However, Usani’s camp are maintaining that “some party members are about to be thrown in prison for disobeying a Court Order, served them. Because of their desperation, they think they can shift the goal posts, it will not happen. It is not about Usani Usani, our minister, it is about a false committed corps of people thinking they can subvert the truth. We are coming after them”, as we were told.
“See, after Achigbe’s swearing-in yesterday, Usani told his people that a presidential order will reverse what the party has done. These are the kind of lies he tells those within the party worshipping him. Which President Buhari will give a negative presidential order? Ask Usani. There was a caucus meeting at the Villa overnight, was he able to get the presidential order? He dreams a lot”, we were again informed.
Political observers believe the minister has cultivated too many political enemies within the party and has refused to change tactics and accommodate a broad band of APC members that clearly includes former CRS governor, Clement Ebri, former Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba, Owan Enoh, Paul Adah, Vena Ikem and several others. “His attachment to being addressed as the leader of the party in CRS, may become his undoing”, www.calitown.com was informed.
For now, Achigbe’s swearing-in is a political statement of fact to the minister that it is no more business as usual.