All hail, President Tinubu as the country’s number one citizen gets applauded by fellow party members at the recent National Executive Council (NEC) meeting for his efforts in steering the ship of the state in the right direction, however, there appear to be wide cracks in the walls of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as many prominent chieftains of the party shunned the NEC meeting
By Udoka Ekelem, Abuja
In pursuit of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s second term in 2027 by the All Progressives Congress (APC), the odds appear not to be falling in place in favour of the president. His party at the moment looks fragmented. But despite the discontent by a caucus of the ruling party and the general public hard pressed by the government’s policies, the APC has passed a vote of confidence on both President Tinubu and the party’s National Chairman, Umar Ganduje, as it technically endorsed a potential second term candidacy of the former.
The endorsement emerged as the National Executive Committee (NEC) rose from its meeting at the party’s National Secretariat at No. 40 Blantyre Street, Wuse 2, Abuja, late February.
Prominent members who attended the NEC meeting, were, incumbent governors of Edo, Monday Okpebholo, Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo State, Hyacinth Alia of Benue State, Biodun Oyebanji of Ekiti State, Musa Sani of Kaduna State, Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State, Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State, Usman Ododo of Kogi State, Dapo Abiodun of Ogun, and Mohammed Umar Bago of Niger State, among others.
Former governors who attended the NEC meeting were Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari, his Kebbi counterpart and Minister of Budget and National Planning, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, Kogi, Yahaya Bello, Zamfara, Bello Matawalle, among others.
Present at the meeting also include Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu, former Deputy President of the Senate, Ovie Omo-Agege, and other principal officers of the National Assembly, Ministers, among others.
In a bid to win back the confidence of the massive vote bank of the North-West geopolitical zone, as well as quench the growing angst of major stakeholders from the zone, NEC affirmed the official zoning of the position of the National Chairman to the only district that comprises seven states.
Many notable party top shots from the North-West showed their resentment against Tinubu after he went to the North-East geopolitical zone to pick the former Borno State governor, Senator Kashim Shettima, as his running mate for the 2023 presidential election.
Feeling disappointed, about five outgoing state governors, particularly Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi), Muhammadu Badaru, Nasir el-Rufai, and the current national chairman, Ganduje, started grumbling. It took the intervention of former President Muhammadu Buhari to encourage the governors to continue to work for the electoral success of the party in the last general election.
Recall that at a meeting with the governors in Abuja shortly after Shettima was chosen, Tinubu was said to have told the North-West governors that it would not be proper and equitable to select a running mate from their zone after close to 16 years in office as President and Vice President, respectively.
When one of the governors observed that if equity was an issue, the presidential ticket should have been taken to South-South or South-East, to which Tinubu responded that neither South-South nor South-East won the ticket.
However, after Tinubu emerged as President, an expanded meeting of northern political stakeholders was held at the home of a former North-East Governor, where it was reportedly resolved that President Tinubu should concede the post of Senate President and APC chairman to the north.
While Tinubu agreed to grant the demand for party chairmanship, he opted for the former Kano State governor, instead of allowing the northern stakeholders to nominate their choice candidate for the chairmanship position.
Again, President Tinubu’s insistence on the former Minister of Niger Delta, Senator Godswill Akpabio as his choice for the Senate presidency, pitted him against APC members from North west and North central.
During the NEC meeting, former national chairman and current Senator representing Edo North District, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, eloquently spoke about President Tinubu’s policies, stressing that the administration’s programmes were good enough to earn the President another term in office.
Oshiomhole, who was seconding the motion for a vote of confidence on the President as moved by the Chairman of Progressive Governors Forum, Senator Hope Uzodimma, declared that the masses of Nigeria would be glad to invest another term of four years on President Tinubu.
Oshiomhole enumerated Tinubu’s performance, saying that his chances of reclaiming his seat for another four years would be guaranteed with the support from the vast majority of Nigerians.
Instructively, as if they were privy to the planned endorsement of Tinubu’s second term at the NEC meeting, the President’s former rivals in the 2022 presidential primary, former Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo; former Transportation Minister, Chibuike Amaechi; former Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi and former Senate President, Dr. Ahmed Lawan, all shunned the NEC meeting.
Former President Muhammadu Buhari, who had complained that his administration was made to look bad by his successor’s cabinet members, did not send word on his absence.
As the meeting progressed, chants of “on your mandate, we stand, no vacancy in the villa” rent the air at the Secretariat as President Tinubu was chauffeur-driven into the make-shift hall of the venue of the NEC meeting. Addressing the NEC, President Tinubu expressed gratitude to the members, as he declared that he was living up to the progressive ideals of the APC, even as he assured on his administration’s determination to strengthen security and reduce the prices of food items.
Tinubu said, “I thank the leadership of our party for letting the NEC find a way to celebrate our progressive ideals. “The place we are gathering today is too small for us and I agree with you that we need a bigger location. I think the Minister of National Economic Planning is here, we discuss it with the minister in charge, and we will do something about it.
“The National Working Committee (NWC) is doing a good job, and I am happy with them. In all the various states, let us set up reconciliatory committees to liaise with these aggrieved leaders. I am appealing to them, to please be calm. I am very happy, and I promise not to let any of you down.” On his part, Ganduje, disclosed that his NWC inherited a whooping N8.98 billion in liabilities ranging from legal engagements during the pre-election litigations, election cases and appeals for legislative, governorship and presidential elections.
On the need for a new national secretariat building, Ganduje, who equally enjoyed the vote of confidence of NEC noted: “As part of the commitment to secure and own a national secretariat complex befitting of a ruling party and one that would conveniently accommodate our national officers, the newly established the Progressive Institute as well as the three wings of the party, we have formally applied for a land at the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) that will drive this project. May I therefore appeal for the kind intervention of Mr President for this project to materialise.”
Meanwhile, notable founding members and former political officeholders of the APC, including the likes of Buhari, Osinbajo and others apparently angry with the party were conspicuously absent at the party’s NEC meeting. Other heavyweight party members notably absent during the meeting also included Amaechi of Rivers, El’Rufai of Kaduna, Fayemi, Lawan, former Speaker and current Chief of Staff to the President Femi Gbajabiamila, among many others.
The curiosity over their absence was because as statutory members of the party’s NEC they were expected to be in attendance. Their absence at the NEC meeting without meaningful excuse is interpreted in political quarters as a sign of silent division rocking the party.
