CHIEF OSARO IDAH is the interim chairman of the All Progressive Party (APC) in Edo State. In this interview conducted before the decision of the Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu led faction to defect, he said that everything was being done by the governor and leaders of the party to reconcile with the aggrieved members. He however said that the defection of the group would not in any way affect the fortunes of the party in future elections. Excerpts:

BY GABRIEL ENOGHOLASE

On allegation that Governor Adams Oshiomhole single-handedly picked APC interim leaders in the state.
That is a blatant lie. Even some of them who were in the first press conference could not have said what they said because they were members of the State interim committee, so, they could not have said that.  It is a blatant lie that the governor handpicked them.

Internal affair
The truth is that we all sat down at our national leader’s house where the meeting to set up an interim state committee was held and the list approved.

There has been a lot of misgiving following the outcome of the Ward and local government congresses of the APC in Edo State with some of your aggrieved members threatening to dump the party. What do you have to say?
In every contest, there must be winners and there must be losers. Let me quote from what former President Olusegun Obasanjo once said that, “If Jesus Christ comes to conduct elections in Nigeria, the losers will protest”; I am not saying that in this game, there was a loser because we are all winners.

As it is right now, it is an internal affair of the party and we are making efforts to appeal to all concerned, that is, those who are aggrieved and those who are not aggrieved, to meanwhile keep their fingers crossed while we make efforts to reconcile all the parties.

What effort is the governor making to reconcile all the factions in the crisis?
Let me not call it a faction; it is just differences between brothers and I know the governor has gone the extra mile as a true leader that he is to effect reconciliation. He has appealed to everyone that we should not let the house we collectively built to be destroyed as this will not good to anybody.

The governor has done well to reconcile all the parties involved and I hope that at the end of the day, we will also toe the part of peace.

What is your reaction to the seven day ultimatum given to the governor by the aggrieved members of your party which has since expired?
Just as I said earlier, it is a family affair and we are still handling it at an internal level. I hope that at the end of the day, there may be no need for the seven days ultimatum.

What actually went wrong starting with the membership registration exercise to the congresses?
Just as I said earlier, in any contest, the person who does not have the upper hand will always complain. This is the Nigerian syndrome. Meanwhile, I will appeal to the Nigerian media to exercise restrains to let us see how much we can reconcile our differences before we can begin to talk.

Do you think that the defection of the aggrieved members of your party will affect its fortunes in future elections?
Although I am not God, but I can assure you that from the performances of the Comrade Governor and our party, people are just making noise and I don’t think that will give us a sleepless night. And with what is happening to people who are not even known in their wards, not even in their units, and they are defecting!

One of them defected some few days ago and I laughed when I saw the level of exposure that the press gave to him. That is some body that is not even known in his local government. So, I don’t see how their defection will affect the fortunes of the APC.

What is the level of preparation for the State Congress of the party slated for this week?
The state congress will hold this week and we look forward to a very harmonious and peaceful congress and the press will be invited to participate as observers to see a true and fair congress being conducted.

I appeal to all APC faithful to remain calm and should be as much as possible to be their brothers’ keepers. Our brothers that are aggrieved should know that we are brothers and we cannot separate ourselves.