SaharaReporters reliably gathered that the enlarged meeting of the party, held on Friday in Oleh, headquarters of Isoko South Local Government Area of Delta State was attended by all in the defunct Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) and its dissolved State leadership; also in attendance were those in the APC as well as top State and Federal government appointees, all from the senatorial district.

Controversy has trailed the Delta South unity and stakeholders meeting of the All Progressive Congress, (APC), over the alleged hijack of "$50,000 kola-nut money" by leadership of the party in connivance with some leaders who had defected from the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), SaharaReporters has learnt.

SaharaReporters reliably gathered that the enlarged meeting of the party, held on Friday in Oleh, headquarters of Isoko South Local Government Area of Delta State was attended by all in the defunct Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) and its dissolved State leadership; also in attendance were those in the APC as well as top State and Federal government appointees, all from the senatorial district.

The meeting, it was gathered, centered on peace, unity and the 2027 general elections.

It was gathered that during the meeting the party raised over N200 million through donations in dollars and naira by party members as kola-nut wedge. 

However, the sharing formular generated what some aggrieved members described as "fraudulent, stealing and corruption" which left members in a state of murmuring and anger.

A former APC aspirant, who attended the meeting and pleaded for anonymity, expressed displeasure over what he said "the way and manner the over $50,000 kola-nut wedge was hijacked by the leadership of the APC in connivance with some leaders of the ex PDP State executive who are from the district. This is very condemnable and shameful." 

"Corruption hasn't come to stay in Nigeria. You will be ashamed if you were present to witness how these men hijacked the over $50,000 kola-nut money that everybody was supposed to share from. Now, fom the naira kola-nut money, how much was given out.? They shared mere N9 million each to the eight local government areas that made up the senatorial district, amounting to just mere N72 million only out of over N200 million kola-nut money and what happens to the rest money? This is nothing but broad daylight stealing."

Condemning the act, a former House of Assembly member in the state who also does not want his name mentioned, confided in SaharaReporters that the dollars were allegedly shared among the APC leadership and defunct PDP State executive members from the senatorial district.

"This is very shameful my brother, Nigerian politicians can never learn and can kill for dollars. The chairman of Maton Engineering and the Executive Director of Fenog Nigeria Limited, Chief Matthew Tonlagha, he's an Ijaw man, not a politician and was not in the meeting but he sent a donation of $30,000 cash as a son of the district, donations in dollars by other Ijaw men amounted to about $10,000 with others persons who donated $5,000, $4,000 and $2,000. This is outside the naira donations running into over N200 million. And at the end the APC and former PDP State leadership from the district pocketed all the dollars. Is that not corruption and stealing?" he asked.

However, when contacted on the alleged hijack of the over $50,000 kola-nut money, the State chairman of the APC, Omeni Sobotie, simply said "This is very strange, you can ask the senatorial chairman."

Meanwhile, speaking at the meeting which was presided over by the Delta State chairman of the APC, Omeni Sobotie, the senator representing Delta South senatorial district in the Senate, Joel-Onowakpo Thomas, expressed joy and commended members of the party for coming together to deliberate the way forward for the party.

The Senator thereafter moved a motion on behalf of all the members of the National Assembly in Delta South senatorial district for a vote of confidence and endorsement of President Bola Tinubu and the State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori as the sole candidates of the party comes 2027 and was seconded by James Manager, immediately past Senator representing Delta South senatorial district and was unanimously affirmed.