By Thompson Agu in Abuja
Intrigues of different sort is playing out in Abuja, especially at the National head office of the All Progressive Congress, APC as fresh developments concerning who gets what in Imo State APC hosts up.
As aspirants brace up to pick party nomination forms to contest for various positions of the party in 2019 election, another dimension is being witnessed which may likely usher in new predictions about APC leadership in Imo State.
Trumpeta gathered on good authority in Abuja that the rosy affair between the National Chairman of the party, Comrade Adams Oshiomole and Imo State governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha has nose- dived leading to altercation between the two.
Reasons for the frosty relationship between Oshiomole and Okorocha is said not to be unconnected to the mode of conduct of the party primaries scheduled for the latter part of this month.
According to details of the fresh war rocking the health of the party, Oshiomole is said not to be happy with Okorocha for leading the APC governors where he functions as the chairman to kick against the Direct primaries method advocated by the National Working Committee, NWC of the party under Oshiomole.
It would be recalled that at the last NEC preceding the guidelines, the party leadership has favoured Direct primaries where all the party members shall be involved but the governor led by Okorocha think otherwise by favouring indirect primaries.
The position of the governors, especially his alleged role at ensuring that indirect primaries method should be adopted pitched him against Oshiomole who has started shopping for other leaders to hand over APC structure in Imo State.
To cap the position of Okorocha on the indirect primaries method, the faction loyal to him on Thursday in Owerri met and took a unanimous resolution agreeing to adopt the pattern for the primaries.
An aggrieved Oshiomole was said to have made a U-turn on his earlier stand to keep away from other leaders of the party in the State, especially, those of the Coalition to now romance Araraume.
Sources close to the Senator revealed to our correspondent in Abuja that alarmed by the Araraume’s purported move to APGA and the consequences of shifting the APC Coalition structure to another party, and coupled with the differences with Okorocha over method of primaries, the national chairman of APC has met with Araraume on shelving his defection.
Apparently worried that a former National Organizing Committee of the party, Senator Osita Izunaso and one of the Senator’s from the state, Senator Ben Uwajumogu would likely join Araraume to part, Oshiomole met with the Senator who represented Okigwe zone in the upper legislative Assembly.
Through the outcome of the meeting was not made public, but Trumpeta was told that it was a fruitful one for Araraume and others in the Coalition.
However, Okorocha, who appears not to be comfortable with the new face of Oshiomole, is reported to have stepped forward in his desire to control affairs of Imo APC by solidifying his relationship with President Buhari.
To possibly call off the bluff of Oshiomole, Okorocha was said to have joined Buhari to China. Trumpeta has it that the China trip will afford Okorocha chances of cementing a perfect relationship with Buhari which would likely rubbish whatever efforts Oshiomole have been doing with the Coalition to tamper his hold of APC structure in Imo State. Okorocha is one of the governor’s in President Buhari’s delegation to China.
Meanwhile, the news movement of APC members loyal to Araraume and his campaign structure into APGA has been halted for now pending the outcome of final discussions in Abuja. It was learnt that the new turn of event, especially the efforts of Oshiomole and APC leadership stopping Araraume’s defection resulted to the halt.
