Party Chieftain says Tinubu has made no financial contribution since inauguration

The crisis currently rocking the Nigerias ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) seems to have taken a new dimension.

Bola Ahmed Tinubu, national leader of the APC had called for the resignation of the national chairman of the party, John Oyegun.

Oyegun replied by saying that allegations levelled against him by the APC national leader were reckless and baseless.

There were also allegations that a certain cabal had taken over powers from President Muhammadu Buhari, which was part of the reasons why Tinubu had been sidelined.

The First Lady, Aisha Buhari seemed to have supported this allegation when she said in her interview with BBC that said those that worked hard for her husband to come to power have been sidelined by some powerful people.

The President's response to his wife, Aisha however sparked reactions from Nigerians.

Well, fast forward to a recent report.

Vanguard had reported that the national secretariat of the APC in Abuja has been thrown into darkness following the party’s failure to offset the N1.7 million debt owed Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (ABDC).

According to Vanguard newspaper, the electricity company decided to wield the big stick, cutting off electricity supply to the secretariat and worsening its already decrepit state.

A party chieftain, however, attributed the cash crunch in the APC to Tinubu’s decision to withdraw his financial support to the party.

“Things have gone from bad to worse. Ever since the refusal of President Buhari to fund the party activities, Asiwaju has been the sole financier of the party. But he has withdrawn his support due to the way he was humiliated by the party chairman in the Ondo primary," a chieftain told NAIJ.com on the condition of anonymity.

But speaking to journalists at the party's secretariat in Abuja, a member of the National Working Committee said that Tinubu had not made any financial contribution to APC since its inauguration.

The NWC member who spoke on the condition of anonymity, however, noted that Tinubu only gave financial contributions to his candidates contesting elections.

He said: “I can tell you authoritatively that the Party’s National Secretariat has not officially received any financial contribution from Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu since its inauguration; hence the report of Asiwaju Tinubu withdrawing financial support for the Party does not arise.

“Asiwaju probably individually gives financial contributions to his candidate's contesting elections, but definitely not the Party’s national leadership," he added.

Meanwhile, Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo state has revealed that some members of the ruling APC feel they have been marginalised.

Okorocha also noted that the APC has not managed its 2015 election victory very well, adding that there is hunger in the land.