Fintiri erstwhile ally, Idi Hong warns against leadership takeover by new APC member

The much touted move of Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State to defect from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the All progressives Congress, APC, has attracted a negative reaction from his erstwhile supporter and new entrant into the party, Dr Aliyu Idi Hong.

Idi Hong, a former Minister of State for Health who played a key role for Fintiri during the the 2023 election when there was a plan that threatened Fintiri’s re-election, has cautioned against allowing Fintiri into the APC and granting him the role of leader in the state.

Hong said during a ceremony at the APC Secretariat in Yola where the state leadership officially welcomed him into the party following his defection earlier, that allowing new entrants into the party to assume leadership of the Adamawa State chapter would amount to grave injustice to long-standing members.

He urged President Bola Tinubu, the APC National Chairman and the party’s National Working Committee not to permit unmerited annexation of the Adamawa APC by ‘ranking outsiders’.

Making a veiled reference to Fintiri, Hong contended that it is morally wrong to allow Fintiri to take over the party which others painstakingly nurtured.
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‎“We have learnt that some people want to join the party with the condition that they must become leaders. That is a gross injustice. This party has been built, nurtured, watered, fed and kept alive by committed members over the years. It is morally wrong for someone to come from outside and take over its leadership,” he said.
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‎Hong hailed the leadership of the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu who he said is the natural leader of the party in the state.
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‎”Ribadu’s longstanding contributions and sacrifices for the party cannot be overlooked or derided by usurpers and political voyagers. The leader of our party in Adamawa State is Mallam Nuhu Ribadu,” Idi Hong stressed.
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‎Emphasizing that the Adamawa APC is not a weak or dormant platform in need of rescue but a formidable political structure deeply rooted across the 21 local government areas of the state, Hong expressed confidence that the party is well positioned to reclaim power in 2027 without compromising its internal integrity.
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‎The former minister explained that his own decision to leave the PDP followed wide consultations with his supporters who told him that remaining in the PDP was no longer in their best interest.

‎“This move is about development, progress and aligning with a platform that can deliver for Adamawa and Nigeria. The APC provides that opportunity,” he said.
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‎The Adamawa State chairman of the APC, Shuaibu Idris assured Hong of equal rights and opportunities within the APC.