Fact Check: Is Okorocha Truly The Founder Of APC?

“I just heard from media reports that I have been suspended from the party (APC). I think Adams is seeking for relevance and attention. He doesn’t have such powers to remove somebody without following due process. I think Adams is the biggest player of anti-party in APC. The man has simply destroyed the party to a great extent. So, I have sacked him from the party. If he thinks he can just stand up and say he has suspended me from the party I founded, without following the due process, in the same manner, I have sacked him from the party.”

The above statement was made by the Governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha in reaction to his suspension from his party, the All Progressives Congress, APC.

Okorocha, you will recall, was suspended from the party last week by the National Working Committee of the party for alleged anti-party activities.

The APC had said the suspended members worked against the interest of the party despite steps taken to ensure they desisted from such.

The Imo governor has been severally rebuked for campaigning for his son in law, Uche Nwosu who is running for the state governorship under the umbrella of the Action Alliance, AA party, instead of the APC candidate, Hope Uzodinma.

Okorocha had accused the national chairman of the party of being the brain behind his suspension, hence, his outburst that he had no right to suspend him.

The governor, who said his sack did not follow due process, further claimed that he founded the APC and therefore “sacked him” (Oshiomhole) from the party.”

This is however, not the first time Okorocha has claimed to be the founder of APC. Sometime last year, Okorocha, during a chat with newsmen on the clamor surrounding the state gubernatorial candidate had said, “How can I build a house and leave it for someone else? I am in APC; I founded APC; I gave the name APC and so this is our party and we continue with the party and build the party for victory.”

According to Wikipedia, APC was formed in February 2013 in anticipation of the 2015 elections. The party was formed as a result of an alliance of Nigeria’s three biggest opposition parties – the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) – and a faction of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). The resolution was signed by Tom Ikimi, who represented the ACN; Senator Annie Okonkwo on behalf of the APGA; Ibrahim Shekarau, the Chairman of ANPP Merger Committee; and Garba Shehu, the Chairman of CPC’s Merger Committee.

According to data from the APC’s website, five serving Governors, in November 2013, along with Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, former vice president of Nigeria, from the governing PDP, defected to the APC, as well as 49 legislators who joined the ranks of 137 legislators in the APC as a result of the prior merger of the smaller opposition parties.

The governors who defected to the APC at the time were Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State, Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara State, Rabiu Kwankwaso of Kano State, Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State and Aliyu Wamakko of Sokoto State.

Research by THE WHISTLER shows that in the gubernatorial elections of April 2011, Okorocha under the platform of APGA (one of the three parties that formed APC), was elected governor of Imo state.

However, the governor, in 2013 decamped to the APC.  In 2015, he won the Imo rerun election fixed for April 25, 2015 under the APC after the initial election was declared inconclusive.

Information gathered shows that Okorocha, on 2 March 2013, had led the APGA faction to form the APC. This shows that the governor indeed, had a hand in the formation of the ruling party.

However, claims that he founded the APC and gave the party its present name could not be verified.