January 02, (THEWILL) – The governing All Progressives Congress (APC) has been swimming in crises, which have left its future in uncertainty. Almost two months after the party announced February 2022 as the date for its national convention, no concrete programme of action has been mentioned.
The Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum (PGF), and Governor of Kebbi State, Atiku Bagudu, as well as the Chairman of the Caretaker Committee and Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) of the party and the Governor of Yobe State, Mai Mala Buni, recently met with President Muhammadu Buhari and chose February 2022 as the date for the party’s national convention.
The party said the decision to host the convention in February was the outcome of a meeting of APC governors with President Muhammadu Buhari at State House, Abuja.
Bagudu disclosed that he led two of his colleagues to the meeting where President Buhari, acting in his capacity as leader of the party, approved February for the convention.
Bagudu said the month was chosen to enable four outstanding states to conclude their congresses and allow for festivities in December.
He however said that the party’s leadership had yet to decide on a specific date in February for its national convention because of the need to write the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Buni also gave the assurance that all stakeholders would be involved in the choice of a particular date in February for the convention.
Another reason given for the continuous postponement of the national convention of the APC is the preponderance of crises arising from its congresses.
The party said the February date would further give the Senator Abdullahi Adamu – led reconciliation committee, which was set up on September 15, 2021 room to reach out to aggrieved members across the nook and crannies of the country.
It would be recalled that the party recorded parallel executives in many states and at the last count, there are crises in its chapters in Enugu, Ekiti, Kwara, Bauchi, Taraba, Imo, Ogun, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Zamfara, Lagos and Rivers States.
The Congress Appeal Committees, which was earlier set up to mediate in the crises was rebuffed by aggrieved members of the party in various states. It was due to this that the party also inaugurated the Senator Abdullahi Adamu- led reconciliation committee to go round the states and reconcile the aggrieved members.
The reconciliation committee, however, has failed to curb hostilities. It has not made any headway, three months after it was set up.
Political observers have also noted that the announcement of February 2022 as the convention date has not stopped the party from further descending into a deeper crisis. In the APC nowadays, it is one day, one problem.
With only a few weeks to the February date, the CECPC has not announced the timetable for activities leading to the convention. This has led to the insinuation that the February date for the convention may be unrealistic.
Only few days ago, a group within the APC known as the Progressive Mandate Movement (PMM) appealed to the Mai Mala Buni-led CECPC to ensure that the party’s national convention is conducted on February 5, 2022.
The PMM made the appeal in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Alhaji Abdullahi Mohammed, and Secretary, Mr Adekunle Fijabi, on Sunday, December 26, 2021 in Abuja.
The group also urged the APC CECPC to ensure the immediate release of processes leading to the national convention, latest by Jan. 5, 2022, to avoid crisis within the party’s ranks and files.
The PMM, which claimed to be a foundational group of the APC, called on the Buni-led CECPC not to prolong the date for the party’s national convention a day beyond February 5, 2022.
The statement said the group is in possession of the instructions given to the committee by the presidency on the need to conduct the party’s national convention on Feb. 5.
It, therefore, appealed to the CECPC to respect the party’s leaders and President Muhammadu Buhari by releasing to the public all the necessary information concerning the forthcoming national convention.
“We also warn that if nothing is made public before Jan. 5, 2022, we shall launch aggressive operation #occupy national secretariat to force our leaders to do the right thing”, the group said.
It would also be recalled that shortly after the announcement of February 2022 as the new date for the national convention, a youth wing of the ruling party which christened itself, Progressive Youth Movement, PYM-CECPC led by Mustapha Audu announced the ‘sack’ of the Buni-led committee and inaugurated a new Caretaker Committee led by him and which include the Senate President, Senator Ahmad Lawan and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt.Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila.
The PYM-CECPC also announced its decision to conduct the national convention of the ruling party on February 26 at the Eagle Square, Abuja.
However, the party wasted no time in reacting to the development, describing the attempt by the CECPC led by Audu as criminal.
The APC through the National Secretary of the party, Sen. John Akpanudoedehe, in a statement said the party would not join issues ‘with a misguided group’, noting the focus of the committee was to prepare the ground for a rancour-free convention.
He said the purported group and membership are unknown to the party, its structure or as a registered support group.
“However laughable, the criminal attempt of the purported group to usurp the leadership of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC now bothers on treasonable felony. Relevant security bodies must now check and address their unscrupulous activities”, Akpanudoedehe said.
Litigation Threatens Convention
There are concerns that many court cases instituted against the APC may affect the party’s forthcoming national convention. It would be recalled that aggrieved members from Zamfara, Ekiti, Osun, Lagos, Kaduna and Taraba States have either filed cases or they are threatening court actions against the party leadership at national and state levels.
No fewer than seven cases are pending before the Federal High Court, Abuja challenging either the legitimacy of the Buni-led party leadership or the outcome of decisions taken by the committee since its inauguration on June 25, 2020.
Senator Kabiru Marafa, a factional leader of the Zamfara State chapter of the APC, has already dismissed plans by the party to hold its national convention in February 2022.
Chairmanship aspirants walking in the dark
Despite the uncertainty trailing the convention, many chairmanship aspirants are showing their faces and going round to lobby other members of the party. The February 2022 convention is an elective one. The convention will produce the new executive of the party that will replace the caretaker committee that took over the running of the party, following the sack of the Adams Oshiomhole – led National Working Committee in June 2020.
But the APC is yet to announce its zoning policy. It is believed within the party that its presidential candidate will come from the South. So all the aspirants that have indicated interest in the chairmanship so far, either through open declaration or their body language, are from the North. Most of them are from the North-Central states of Nasarawa, Kwara, Niger, Plateau, Benue and Kogi.
The leading contenders among the aspirants include Senator Ali Modu Sheriff; former Nasarawa State governors, Tanko Al-Makura and Senator Abdullahi Adamu; former Benue State Governor, Senator George Akume , Senator Sani Musa from Niger State and Alhaji Saliu Mustapha from Kwara State.
Speaking with THEWILL, a chieftain of the party and Director-General of the Voice of Nigeria, Mr Osita Okechukwu, said there was no cause for alarm, adding that the February date was realistic.
“To be honest there is no cause for alarm as far as the fixed February date for our national convention is concerned. There is a limit to shifting the date, as all of us are aware that 2022 is the eve of the 2023 general election and year of primaries.
“Don’t forget that every disappointment is a blessing. Consequent upon that today BVAS is Vaccine to Vote Rigging. In spite of the controversy over the 2010 Electoral Act Amendment Bill, electronic transmission of results is retained. For instance, the Anambra State governorship election has made it clear to any political party leadership that if you don’t put your house in order, the electorate will do it for you,” Okechukwu said.
Also speaking with THEWILL, a chieftain of the APC from Osogbo in Osun State, Alhaji Kabiru Lawal, described the February date for the convention as unrealistic. .
“The February date for the national convention of our party is not realistic. There are too many problems. For me, it is not possible to have a unified house by February 2022. The party has degenerated into crisis and it is neck deep in it. To achieve unity in the party will require more time and energy, as well as more seriousness from the managers of the party at the federal level. Things have gone terribly bad in many states,” he said.
About the Author
AYO ESAN, has been actively reporting and analyzing political events for different newspapers for over 18 years. He has also successfully covered national and state elections in Nigeria since the inception of this democracy in 1999.
