ACN Sold Ribadu’s Presidency Bid To Goodluck Jonathan For N16 Billion, Says Embattled Kaduna ACN Chair

The embattled chairman of Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Kaduna State, Alhaji Mohammed Musa Soba, has described the national leadership of the party as a “rogue leadership,” and accused them of selling the candidature of its presidential candidate in the 2011 election to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for one hundred million dollars.

In that election, the ACN states voted for President Jonathan, not their own candidate, Malam Nuhu Ribadu.

“A rogue leadership is one that collected one hundred million dollars (N16 Billion) from the PDP, delivered the south-west to the PDP in the 2011 presidential election and shamelessly turn round to accuse the PDP of corruption and stealing of public funds,” said Alhaji Soba, whose removal was announced by the ACN spokesperson, Lai Mohammed.

Firing back at the national leadership in a statement sent to SaharaReporters, Alhaji Soba claimed that he is being witch-hunted for asking them to explain why they sold the bid for the presidency.

He described ACN as lacking a Board of Trustees and visionary leaders and always abusing its own constitution while shamelessly labeling others as clueless and dictatorial.

“We challenge Lai Mohammed and the national secretary of the party, Senator Lawal Shuaibu, to tell the whole world why state chapters like Enugu, Ebonyi, Abia, Cross Rivers, Bayelsa, AkwaIbom, Nassarawa, Plateau, Bauchi, Gombe, Yobe, Borno, Adamawa, Taraba and Kaduna states are all facing national leadership induced crises,” he said.

Alhaji Soba insists that he is still legally the chairman of the Kaduna ACN, stating, “Their own decision on the Kaduna leadership crisis is a nullity, void ab initio, and an exercise in futility for its violent conflict with the party’s constitution, NEC’s resolution of May 11, 2011 and all the civilised norms of a democratic practice.”

He also described as empty, the threats by the ACN national leadership to sue the Kaduna State Independent Electoral Commission for recognizing him.

“The threats by some national officers of the ACN to drag the Kaduna State government and the Kaduna State Independent Electoral Commission (SIECOM) to court to stop the forthcoming local government election over the latter’s recognition of Barr. Mohammed Musa Soba as the duly elected chairman of the party in Kaduna State, is an empty threat and an emotional blackmail that exposes Lai Mohammed as an impostor whose intellect has been badly infected by intellectual virus to the extent that he does not know the definitions of law and democracy anymore,” he said.