Fresh facts have emerged on why the leaders of the party from the South-West, including Vice-President Yemi Osinbanjo; the former Lagos State governor, Bola Tinubu and former interim National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Bisi Akande, failed to attend the meeting of the party’s National Executive Council (NEC) in Abuja.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed, who briefed journalists at the end of the meeting which was attended by President Muhammadu Buhari, APC state governors, National Assembly members, said that “Invitation to the meeting was at the discretion of the National Working Committee (NWC) on who to invite or not to invite and it is not out of respect to question why they are not here but the bottom line is that neither of them are members of the executive of the party.”
Mohammed, who was clarifying the absence of the leaders on the sideline that the crisis rocking the party had prompted the three leaders to shun the meeting, said there was no ill-feelings on the part of the leaders to shun the meeting.
Although Mohammed said Tinubu was absent because he was not a NEC member, it was also alleged that some former governors and elders of the party had risen from a meeting to kick against the position of Tinubu as the national leader of the party, a position they said was not in the party’s constitution, claiming that it might have been the main reason for the crises rocking the party, especially at the National Assembly.
Tinubu and Akande had at separate fora expressed their dissatisfaction with the National Assembly leadership election held on June 9, which eventually plunged the party into crisis, eliciting verbal attacks and cold war amongst leaders of the party.
The National Assembly crisis centres around the emergence of Senator Bukola Saraki as the Senate President and Yakubu Dogara as the Speaker, House of Representatives and the appointment of the principal officers of the Assembly on the platform of the party.
Mohammed said further that “NEC has provided an enabling environment to look into ways of resolving the National Assembly lock jams. Later in the day, the governors will be meeting with the speaker and the senate president in a further attempt to find a lasting solution to the lingering lock jam at the National Assembly.
“Also, it is important to let you know that everybody in the party is united on two issues which are party supremacy and the need to ensure that this government delivers its campaign promises.”
When asked whether the leadership of the Senate and House would now consider the position of the party on the selection of principal officers in the both chambers of the National Assembly, Mohammed said: “I have told you that the NEC has provided a platform to resolve this issue and part of the resolution is the meeting that will be held today between the governors, the Senate president and the speaker of the House of Representatives.
“The president said he believes in party supremacy, we have a problem on our hands and we must find the best means to resolve it. One thing I can assure you is that, this house (the APC) shall not fall.”
Asked to comment on when to draw a line between party’s supremacy and the sanctity of the party’s constitution in the selection of principal officers at the National Assembly, he said: “The less we talk about this logjam the better it’ll be not only for this party but the whole nation.
“It is for the interest of everyone who voted for change. I would not want to go into the knitty-gritty of what the resolution will be because as I speak for now I don’t know. When you talk about party’s supremacy, it is derived from the constitution.”
However, the NEC meeting, which is the second highest decision making body of the party aside from President Buhari, also had in attendance Saraki, Dogara, Deputy Speaker, Hon. Yusuf Lasun, Senate Leader, Senator Ali Ndume.
Also in attendance were Governors Abubakar Sanni Bello (Niger), Simeo Lalong (Plateau), Jibrilla Bindow (Adamawa), Ibrahim Geida (Yobe), Ibukunle Amosun,(Ogun), Aminu Bello Masari (Katsina), Akinwumi Ambode (Lagos), Abdullahi Umar Ganduje (Kano), Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto), Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi), Adams Oshiomhole (Edo), Abdulazizi Yari (Zamfara), Rochas Okorocha (Imo).
Other persons in attendance at the NEC were Deputy Governors of Bauchi, Nassarawa, Borno, Kwara, Oyo and Benue states.
Also, the former National Chairman of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu; Senator Chris Ngige, Alhaji Abubakar Baraje and members of the APC National Working Committee were in attendance.
But President Buhari, who arrived the party’s secretariat at 11a.m. in his remarks, emphasised on party supremacy, stressing that he was produced by the party and therefore believes in the superiority of the party.
Addressing members of the NEC on the party’s victory and the National Assembly crisis, he said: “The APC has won the battle but has lost the war.”In his speech delivered extempore, President Buhari, who was addressing the NEC for the first time as the President, said: “The elections have come and gone, the APC has won the battle, but lost the war.
“This is the paradox of democracy, and we shall see how we can manage it going forward. I have already addressed you through the chairman, through the leadership of the party, through your excellencies, the governors and through our Senators and House of Representatives members.
“The APC must not disappoint its constituency, that is the nation state. We have to convince our various constituencies that we are individually worthy of the sacrifices that they have made.
“They stayed awake day and night, travelling all over the country and made sure as a party, we emerged victorious. What subsequently happened is human, and as human beings we are not perfect, but let our collective actions in this party prove that we have won the elec-tions, the battle and we will win the war.
“As for me as a president, I have to clearly understand the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the constitution of the APC, and having tried three times and successfully lost three times and successfully ended up at the Supreme Court, I think I have tasted the bitter disappointments and the sweetness of success. What happened to APC the glory must be given to God almighty.
Earlier, the party’s National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, had said it was unfortunate the first NEC meeting was convened hurriedly as an emergency meeting. He said: “The main item on the agenda is the ratification of aspects of members of the BoT.”
Commenting on the outcome of the meeting, the Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha, said: “Many people think that there will be problems between APC members at this meeting. But I am assuring Nigerians that we have met and discussed what affects all of us and we have understood ourselves. We have also reiterated our support and loyalty to our leadership.
“We are also going to meet on the issue of the National Assembly crisis and it will be resolved amicably. So, I can confidently say that the crisis facing the party is almost over now.”
Meanwhile, NEC of the APC passed a vote confidence on Odigie- Oyegun, just as Akande has canvassed for the dissolution of the Odigie- Oyegun-led NWC.
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