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The senator representing Oyo South under the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adesoji Akanbi, has called on members of the party to shun distraction, saying the President Muhammadu Buhari administration needs to move Nigeria from the current economic doldrums without delay.
Akanbi, who is a staunch supporter of the National Leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, told The Nation yesterday that in spite of the fear of splitting gripping the party leaders and Nigerian observers, what should be paramount to President Buhari and all APC members now is how to fix the economy.
Though he acknowledged that some party leaders and members may be dissatisfied, Akanbi said the idea of the party splitting still remains a rumour because no leader or bloc within the party has come out to confirm parting ways with others.
His words: “Sincerely speaking, all these talks about leaving the party are all speculations. Muhammadu Buhari is the president of all Nigerians. If he is building a relationship with people of Southeast origin, there is nothing wrong in that.
“Bola Tinubu has not said he was pulling out of APC. It is all rumour. He is still the National Leader of APC today. And I believe that he has a cordial relationship with President Buhari. Year 2019 is still far away.
“I believe that what is paramount now is for Buhari to pull Nigeria out of the current economic doldrums.
“We politicians can be restless. It is a normal thing in politics. Politicians always want to prepare for the future; and sometimes, we can over-prepare. The press can also misinterpret political moves. No concrete statement has been made from any quarters.
“For me, supporters of our great party should first and foremost unite to make this Buhari administration succeed because we all campaigned in our villages for this administration. Buhari must succeed. The onus is on all of us.
“But when it comes to politics, my own position always goes along with my people and my leader. ”
Media reports have recently suggested that Tinubu and his supporters were moving out of APC.