The silent division within the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Kwara state blew into the open on Wednesday with a directive from the party’s chairman, Mr. Kayode Olawepo, cancelling a meeting and rally organised by supporters of the party’s gubernatorial candidate in the last election, Mr. Dele Belgore.

Belgore and his supporters have reportedly been engaged in a cold war with followers of Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, over the latter’s purported interest in the 2015 gubernatorial race in the north central state.

Both Belgore and Mohammed have at different times in the past denied any rift but on Wednesday, Olawepo, who is believed to be working with Mohammed, issued a statement to newsmen in which he described as ‘illegal and divisive’ a meeting slated for today by those believed to be supporters of Belgore and meant to hold at the party’s secretariat along Asa Dam road.

Olawepo’s statement, in the form of a letter to the chairman of correspondents chapel and distributed to newsmen in Ilorin, the state capital, came on the heels of information that the Belgore group had invited some newsmen to the event.

Text of the letter reads: “It must have come to your notice or be invited to a general meeting/rally of the ACN tomorrow 28th March, 2013 at the state party secretariat. The party hereby dissociates itself and its entire members from the meeting and all arrangements made to that effect on the meeting.

“The meeting is unauthorised, illegal, and divisive and should be treated as such. We also request that you please seek clarification on all news items emanating from ACN as to its authenticity with the state chairman either in writing or through his telephone.”

It would be recalled that in December 2012, Olawepo had petitioned the state police command asking for the arrest and investigation of some of the leaders of the party in the state. Those mentioned in the petition dated December 12, 2012, a copy of which was sighted by our reporter, include Chief Iyiola Oyedepo, a former Chief Whip of the Kwara state House of Assembly, Dr. Saad Omoiya (Ilorin West), Alhaji Hassan Atanda Zhoro (Ilorin West), Hon. Agboola Ismai (Ilorin South), Alh. Ibrahim Magaji (Ilorin West) and Alhaji Kola Onimago also from Ilorin West.

Others include Hon Dele Abiodun (Ekiti), Alhaji Gani Onikere (Ilorin South), Funsho Saad (Ilorin South), Rev. Bunmi Olusona (Oke-Ero), Alhaji Ajimoti Ahmed Adebayo (Oyun), Alhaji Amasa Okolo (Ilorin West), Alh. Mustapha Kobe (Ilorin West), Mallam Issa Musa (Baruten), Engr. Shaba Abubakar (Edu) and one Alhaji Adefalu from Ilorin West.

The petition claimed that the party leaders were allegedly members of a group called “Stakeholders” which the petitioner claimed was illegal within the party’s structure, adding that members of the group had allegedly done everything they could to destabilize the party. They were also alleged to have collected unused registration materials from the ACN headquarters to conduct a registration that was not sanctioned by the party. Oyedepo was described as leader of the group within the party.

Furthermore, the party chairman claimed in the petition that members of the “Stakeholders” also allegedly printed registration materials for the party while it is only the national headquarters that has the right to do such. They were also alleged to have illegally dissolved caretaker committees of the party at both local government and ward levels and allegedly replaced same with their own men in contravention of the position of the national headquarters of the party.

The petitioner asked the police to invite and thoroughly investigate the aforementioned leaders, cause them to sign an undertaking that they will ensure and guarantee the security of lives and properties of those threatened and also cause them to sign an undertaking that they will maintain peace and be law abiding and obey all party leadership and will not disrupt party activities henceforth.

The petition was the outcome of a violent clash among members of the party at Bovina Hotel, Ilorin during which a young man was brutally wounded. The petition also included a report of an alleged threat against the chairman and some other party leaders including the following people: Mr. Kayode Oyin-Zubair, Alhaji Saka Salau, Mr. Samuel Adewoye, Mr. Tunde Agboola, Mr. Saka Babatunde, Dr. Sesan Durojaiye and Mr. Dare Aransiola.

Supporters of each faction of recent have not failed to finger the other side for the lingering crisis. There are those who believe that Mohammed is preparing to take over the party structure ahead of the 2015 election, a development the Belgore group are said to be resisting because it will truncate his possible chances of contesting the next election.

A party source who sought to contest earlier impressions in the media about the ambition of Mohammed for 2015 alleged that contrary to what has been said so far, Belgore has actually not shown sufficient commitment to his relationship with the party’s chairman and had allegedly demanded in the past for a proper election into the executive council of the party.

When the crisis broke out last year, Rafiu Ajakaiye, spokesman for Belgore, denied the claims. He said in a statement: “I can tell you that the party remains very much intact. Alhaji Lai Mohammed and MDB (SAN) talk every day on how to move the party forward. But we leave people, as is typical in politics, to speculate all they want. We are not ruling out the possibility of the PDP sponsoring negative reports for reasons you know too well. They can go as far as spreading rumour of non-existent fracas to cause disaffection. But the party remains intact and the leadership forever cordial.”