Female protesters on Friday besieged the headquarters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abuja, demanding the resignation of the National Women Leader, Dr. Mary Alile-Idele.
The protesters accused Alile-Idele of pursuing personal interests, and allegedly diverting part of the 24,000 wrappers donated by the First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, during a recent visit to the party secretariat.
The protesters chanted solidarity songs and wielded banners with inscriptions such as ‘Enough is Enough!’, ‘Mary Alile Resign Now’ and ‘APC Women Leader Must Go,’ the demonstrators urged the First Lady and APC National Chairman, Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, to remove Alile-Idele for what they described as her continual undermining of female party members.
Alile-Idele became the APC national women leader following the appointment of her predecessor, Dr. Betta Edu, as Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, a position from which she has since been suspended by President Bola Tinubu.
Dr. Ganduje had instructed that the fabrics be distributed fairly. But the protesters led by the Coordinator of ‘Concerned APC Women’, Rebecca Sheneni, alleged that only 9,000 of the 24,000 fabrics were shared.
Sheneni further criticised Alile-Idele’s alleged frequent travels to promote her NGO instead of focusing on party responsibilities.
“Since assuming office, Mrs. Mary Alile-Idele has displayed incompetence in her role. She appears more focused on promoting her NGO rather than the party,” Sheneni stated.
“Her Excellency the First Lady provided her with over 24,000 wrappers to distribute to women leaders and party members, but she only distributed less than 9,000. Where are the rest? We wonder how a UK-based person with no political experience and no record of membership in our party could be considered for this exalted position.”
The protesters also pointed out that Alile-Idele had prioritised personal interests, including securing a nomination for her husband to the University of Port Harcourt Governing Council and other party assignments.
“We call for her immediate removal from the position of the APC National Women Leader. She has demonstrated a high level of incompetence and we have had enough,” Sheneni added.