The Kwara State chapter of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) yesterday said the “removal” of its Chairman, Kayode Olawepo, was based on “framed-up allegations by a few members of the Caretaker Committee”.

It passed a vote of confidence in the chairman.

In a statement in Ilorin, the state capital, by members of the state Caretaker Committee and Chairmen of Local Government Caretaker Committees, Alhaji Raimi Idera and Chief Ayanda Fajenyo, the party said the purported removal existed only in the imagination of the movers of the motion and a former governorship candidate of the party, the alleged sole sponsor of the sack.

The statement reads: “The desire to remove our party chairman in Kwara State is being nursed by a former governorship candidate of the party and his cronies using the media to achieve what they could not achieve in the real sense of it.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the same feckless people announced the dissolution of the party structure at a ramshackle rally on March 28, 2013, only to use the same structure to remove a legally appointed official of the party.

“There was no meeting of the state or Joint Meeting of the Local Government Executive Committee where an arrangement was made for the removal of the chairman. Therefore, we remain loyal to the leadership of Mr. Kayode Olawepo and stand firmly by his leadership.

“We are particularly piqued by one of the signatories to the obnoxious document, Alhaji Amosa Okolo, who claimed to be representing the 16 local government caretaker committee chairmen. His claim fell flat because the local government caretaker committee chairmen met last sometime in 2012 and since then no meeting has been held to discuss the suspension/removal of our able chairman, Gabriel Kayode Olawepo.”

The party, following a meeting in Ilorin yesterday, passed a vote of confidence in Olawepo and urged necessary sanctions against those who allegedly sacked him to serve as a deterrent.

“Again, we want to state unequivocally that after our meeting today (yesterday), we passed a vote of confidence in Mr. Olawepo, who we have found to be cerebral, dedicated and loyal to the party.

“We hope, therefore, the national secretariat of the party will initiate necessary disciplinary measures against the meddlesome four, especially Aslhaji Oklo, for taking the Committee of the Kwara State Local Government Chairmen of the ACN for granted,” the party added.

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