Stakeholders of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Abia State have initiated efforts to reconcile their disputes that led to the factionalization of the party in the state.

A peace gathering held in Abuja was attended by the party’s 24 candidates in the 2023 State House of Assembly election in Abia.

The stakeholders demanded an end to the factionalization of the APC in the state, urging the party leadership to guarantee that all factions are fairly represented in the party’s state, local council and ward positions.

Anderson Akaliro, the initiator of the meeting and the sole elected APC lawmaker in the House of Assembly, urged the national party leadership to promptly convene a meeting with all leaders and stakeholders to resolve the deadlock.

In a communique titled ‘Abia APC Crisis Peace Initiative’, Akaliro stressed the importance of involving the South East zonal leadership, party figures from Abuja, key stakeholders, and all 2023 APC candidates for the Abia House of Assembly and National Assembly in a roundtable discussion to secure a peace agreement.

This, according to him, would be a prelude to free and fair party primaries in 2026, while calling all gladiators in the crisis to sheath their swords and embrace peace and unity in Abia APC.

“All individual factions within the ranks and files of the party should be resolved, and all factions should fall back into the party as one indivisible unit.

“We are aware of the forthcoming Congress, and we employ the party leadership to commit to ensuring that all interest groups are duly represented in the state, LGA, and ward party positions.

“We want peace in the Abia APC because there are multiple factions, which is why we lost the election.

“24 of us contested for the state assembly election and 23 lost; the faction contributed to our loss.

“We only have one person as an APC member who won the election,” he said.

According to him, those things responsible for the factionalism, including the imposition of candidates, greed, and pride anchored on personality clashes of interests, were among the issues bedeviling the party.

He appealed to President Bola Tinubu, as the leader of the party, and the national chairman, to call all stakeholders, including 2023 candidates of the party in Abia State for a truce.

According to him, “the facade of unity is but a veil over the fissures that have led to our collective losses in political contests” and it is time for introspection and action.

“It is our firm belief that through reconciliation and unity, the APC in Abia State will emerge stronger and victorious in future electoral endeavors,” he added.

Akaliro added that the increasing number of new party members signals a need to reconcile differences and create a peaceful atmosphere that promotes unity and enhances the chances of success in upcoming elections.