Jamiu Yisa
Former Minister of Information and chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Tony Momoh has come to the defence of the national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, saying that the ex-Lagos governor will never leave the APC for any proposed mega party ahead of the 2019 general elections.
Momoh, who described the mega party as a storm in a tea cup, added that he is unsure whether former Vice President Atiku Abubakar will remain in APC based on his past political antecedents.
Speaking on plans by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) championing the mega party drive, Momoh said the PDP having lost the centre can only collapse and will not rise again to form a mega party.
According to him, ”those mentioning Tinubu’s name don’t know what they are saying. They don’t know Tinubu at all. I cannot defend former Vice- President Atiku Abubakar for the simple reason that he has been in PDP, AC, he went back to PDP and now in APC”.
“So, because of that type of movement, people think he is going to leave the APC. I don’t know if he will leave the APC but I know for sure that Tinubu will never leave the APC for any mega party. Tinubu and Buhari are basically the owners of APC because they groomed, and supported the APC through their respective national chairmen”.
“Tony Momoh in CPC; Bisi Akande in ACN and Ogbonnaya Onu in ANPP, these people midwife the APC and I don’t think someone like Bisi Akande can be told to leave APC for one mega party today and he will listen.
“I also don’t see Tinubu or Buhari leaving the party they so much labored to build which is now the ruling party for a non- existent mega party. You think anybody in his right mind will leave the centre, the ruling party for a new party?”.
“Is it PDP that will form a mega party? PDP has lost the centre and it can only collapse. It can’t rise again” he said.