The All Progressives Congress is enmeshed in a major bribery allegation over the zoning of the leadership positions in the incoming National Assembly.
One of the party’s highest decision mankind organs, the National Working Committee, is in the eye of the storm.
Facts emerged on Tuesday that an earlier zoning proposal submitted to the NWC has been trailed by allegations of bribery and forgery.
Members of the committee were alleged to have been induced by would-be beneficiaries of the exercise, who deployed millions of naira.
The National Executive Committee of the party is expected to meet on Thursday to consider a report of the NWC on the zoning arrangement for the leadership of the National Assembly.
It could be recalled the NWC of the party on Thursday set up a five-man committee to fashion out the zoning formulae for the leadership positions of the National Assembly positions.
The committee turned in its report to the National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, on Thursday night.
It was gathered that another meeting was reportedly held in Odigie-Oyegun’s house same night.
The meeting was, however, unable to resolve the zoning arrangements.
But there are allegations and fear that the report submitted was doctored.
A member of the NWC, who was privy to the report, disclosed that “the zoning formula in the public now did not emanate from the NWC.
“This is not 1993.
“The present realities do not support ceding the Senate president and the Speaker of the House of Representatives to the North alone.
“What we did was to cede the Senate president to the North East and the Speaker to the House of Representatives to the South West.”
A source close to the NWC alleged that members of the committee were compromised by between $50,000 and $100,000.
While some members of the committee considered to be very influential got $100,000, others considered less influential were given $50,000.
The allegation is reportedly being investigated by top party leaders.
On Monday, the party’s spokesman, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, urged Nigerians to disregard media reports about zoning of leadership offices of the National Assembly.
Mohammed said: “No appointments have been made and no offices have been zoned.
“The main concern of our party at the moment is to ensure a smooth transition and to hit the ground running in the overall interest of the long-suffering people of Nigeria.
“At the appropriate time, Nigerians will be informed of the appointments made and the offices zoned.”