Crisis rocking the national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has deepened as the party’s National Secretary, Iyiola Omisore, has issued a 48-hour ultimatum to North West zonal chairman, Salihu Moh Lukman, to retract the allegation that he mismanaged Osun State governorship election campaign funds.
Omisore also demanded an apology and payment of damages for what he described as libelous statement against him.
The party’s scribe, through his solicitors said the retraction and apology should be published in two major newspapers and several online news outlets not later than 48 hours with the payment of N5 million as damages.
The letter from Lord and Temple Chambers on behalf of Omisore read: “We are Solicitors to lyiola Omisore on whose instruction we write in relation to the above subject. Our instruction is that during an interview on AlT on the 14th of March, 2023 which was published in several online news blog, social media platforms, television stations and news media outlets.., you made a libelous and defamatory statement of and concerning our client.
“Our client has informed us that your statement is not only false, misleading and without any factual basis, but malicious in all material respect. It is by the reckoning of our client, a deliberate attempt sponsored and/or designed to malign his image and his political stature as a leader of note in Osun State, the South-West geopolitical zone and Nigeria as a whole.
“It is important to reiterate that the spurious allegation made in your statement of 14th of March 2023 against our client is false in all ramification as our client was neither given any money to prosecute the Osun State governorship election nor did he mismanage the non-existing campaign funds. It is clear beyond doubt that your statement and publication was a political ploy with the intent of to impugn the reputation and integrity of our client and unjustifiably and unwarrantedly assassinate his character in the eyes of right-thinking members of the public.”
However, responding to the Osun State born politician, Lukman, claimed that Omisore was out to bully him, adding that he would respond to the request properly.
“My immediate reaction is that this is an attempt to bully me but I will respond to him properly,” he said in a message.