Again, Lukman attacks APC Chairman, Adamu, over party funds

National Vice Chairman (North-West) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Salihu Lukman, has again slammed the National Chairman of the party, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, accusing him of refusing to release funds in support of President Bola Tinubu and all candidates of the party during the campaign towards the 2023 general election.

Lukman who made the accusation at a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, further called on Adamu to render a financial account of the over N30 billion the party realised through sale of forms and other donations prior to the elections.

While reacting to separate interviews granted by Adamu and National Secretary of the party, Senator Iyiola Omisore, in which the two chieftains accused him of being a nonentity and black sheep in the party, Lukman said Adamu should come clean on his handling of the party funds.

“We are expected to present a proposed national budget to the National Executive Committee, NEC, for approval by the provisions of Article 13(3A)(14) of the APC constitution,” Lukman said.

‘’I felt embarrassed when I heard the National Secretary, Omisore, say the budget of the party has been sent to the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC.

‘’INEC is not the approving authority of the budget of the APC. The approving authority is the NEC. Till today, we don’t have a national budget. Yet we made over N30 billion from sales of forms.

‘’Till date, as a member of the NWC and majority members of the NWC, maybe except for the Financial Secretary, Treasurer and or the Auditor, who may have inside knowledge of how much was expended on the renovation of the national secretariat of the party, we do not know what is being expended.

READ ALSO:Lukman accuses Adamu, Omisore, of squandering N30bn APC funds

“Talking of national budget, we are just coming out of elections where we were not able to sustain past precedence. What was the past precedence? Under Comrade Adams Oshiomhole in 2019, every candidate of the party received something from the national secretariat.

‘’In the last election, no candidate of the party received a dime from the party. Talking of finances, in our constitution, the NEC is supposed to approve some form of sharing formula.

‘’I am aware that each state chapter has received about N20 million out of the N30 billion. Put together, that is about N700 million, less than a billion, which is less than three per cent of the income earned.

‘’Yet we want to sweep this under the carpet. We are having states, zonal, local councils and ward levels, who are left on their own. The whole question of funding of the party has not been addressed.

“Adamu starved Tinubu and other APC candidates of funds during polls. Tinubu didn’t get a dime from the party. I am making this public. Let them challenge and contradict me.”

“Look, in 2015, the party was truly a model party. President Buhari didn’t have money. People were assigned responsibilities to raise money. It is just like Asiwaju and you say Asiwaju has money.

‘’So there were people assigned with the responsibility of mobilizing money for the party. If anything was done in 2023 based on that, it would be the initiative of Asiwaju. I am not aware of it as a party.”

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