CPC CRISIS: BUHARI, AHAMBA PART WAYS

Buhari
Abuja lawyer and long standing associate of former military head of state, General Muhammadu Buhari, Chief Mike Ahamba (SAN) has parted ways with the presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) following the internal crisis rocking the party.

Besides, the frontline politician who, for the past eight years, had been fighting the several legal battles instituted by Buhari said he had quit active politics to practice his legal profession.

While speaking in Abuja at an interactive session with newsmen Ahamba anchored his decision to part ways with his political friend on the betrayal of the noble objectives behind the formation of the party.

In his resignation letter to the Ward Chairman of the CPC, Lorji Chapter in Aboh-Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo State dated January 25, the one time minority chief whip of the defunct National Party of Nigeria (NPN) in Imo State House of Assembly wrote:

'I regret to inform you that with effect from the date of this letter, I have ceased to be member of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and, by implication, all the positions held therein are also resigned.

'Painful as this decision is to me, I have come to the conclusion that I am really left with no viable alternative, given the events that have occurred in the party since late December 2010.' Ahamba, who had left the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) with Buhari to form the CPC following irreconcilable differences with the party (ANPP) regretted that the lofty ideals and objectives of the CPC had been betrayed.

'In forming the CPC, the ideals were lofty, the expectations high, and the objective unambiguous. Most of us believed that, at last, Nigeria would witness an ideologically- based party. We had set out, as most of us believed, to prove that internal democracy was possible. 'I, for one believed, and still believes, that it is only when a party is able to manage its internal democracy that it can hope to instill same in the national polity. But unfortunately, the presumption of discipline, integrity and transparency as the foundation of the party has been largely rebutted, and the noble objective betrayed. This definitely is not what we set out to achieve, and I will not wallow in self deceit.

'Having considered the extensive departure from the original goals, and critically evaluated the events within the party in recent times, I have, after due consultation wit my family, friends and supporters taken a decision… I have come to a painful conclusion that a political parting of ways with those whom I have journeyed these past eight years has become inevitable.'