The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), on Monday, February 22, 2021, extended its ongoing membership registration and revalidation exercise which commenced on February 9. It was expected to end on March 13, 2021.
The exercise was earlier scheduled to close on February 22.
A press statement issued by the Governor Mala Buni-led Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC), signed by the National Secretary, Sen. John J. Akpanudoedehe, explained that the extension of the exercise was in response to the massive turnout of party members and intending members across the states, which led to the shortage of registration materials.
However, 365Daily relying on reports from the exercise nationwide, writes that the party called for an extension to enable it manage the numerous crises arising from different factions, thus leading to failure to meet its projected membership strength.
Convergence of unlike minds
The APC, since its emergence in 2014 from a merger of four different political parties, has not always enjoyed an easy intra-party relationship. The varied interests among the groups that congregated within the party have ceaselessly pulled and tugged it in different directions since its emergence, manifesting at its congresses and primaries. It is, therefore, not surprising that the ensuing outcome and reactions to the re-registration and revalidation exercise show pockets of deep-rooted disagreements.
From the beginning, the decision to conduct the exercise was met with opposition within camps in the party. While some members and stalwarts argued that it was unnecessary, others contended that it was simply a ploy to whittle down the influence of national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and set the grounds for the emergence of a new leadership of the party.
Tinubu had enjoyed a strong hold on the APC under immediate national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, until he was shoved out of office under controversial circumstances and replaced by the Buni-led caretaker and extraordinary convention planning committee. Governor Buni, like President Muhammadu Buhari, belongs to the CPC wing of the ruling party.
…as party heavyweights engage in cold war
While the caretaker committee says the exercise is to determine the actual membership of the APC, as well as win over new members, recent happenings indicate otherwise. More than anything else, fallouts of the exercise seem to indicate that it may be a scheme by the caretaker committee to consolidate the CPC wing’s position, and by so doing deregister those considered a threat to their absolute takeover.
Already, Tinubu, former interim national chairman of the party, Bisi Akande, Oshiomhole and some others have openly raised objections to the exercise, citing varied reasons including the unconstitutionality and irrelevance of the exercise.
Other top members, including Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State and Minister Osita Okechukwu, have also raised their voices on the constitutionality of the exercise.
In Kwara State, the exercise witnessed violence, with the caretaker executive committee members loyal to the suspended state chairman, Bashir Bolarinwa, describing the exercise as a sham. Similarly, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, openly called for the cancellation of the exercise, citing irregularities. He also alleged that registration materials were been hoarded by the governor’s camp.
Vice-Chairman of the state caretaker committee, Chief Sunday Odebiyi, told reporters in Ilorin, the state capital, that the executive members were not carried along.
He said: “Assuming, without conceding, that the chairman, Hon. Bolarinwa is suspended, are we all also suspended? Are the majority members of the executive committee here present also suspended?
“So, why did the Senator Danboyi-led team sidestep all of us?”
In Imo State, Dan Nwafor, a factional chairman, insisted his faction was not in a hurry to commence the exercise. He stated that they were rather waiting for the courts to decide which faction was the authentic one in the South east state.
It was gathered that until the last-minute extension of the exercise, former Governor Rochas Okorocha and the likes of Hon. Paschal Obi (Ideato Federal Constituency) and Hon. Chima Uju Kingsley (Ohaji/Egbema/Oguta, Oru West Fed. Constituency), who won the House of Reps seat under the platform of the Action Alliance (AA) before defecting to the APC, were yet to be spotted in their respective localities undertaking the exercise.
The member representing Isu, Nwangele, Nkwerre and Njaba, Hon. Ugonna Ozuruigbo, had also not submitted to the exercise as at the time of this report.
It would be recalled that two camps have been at daggers drawn for the soul of Imo APC. While the former governor and the aforementioned three lawmakers are part of the Dan Nwafor-led exco, Governor Hope Uzodinma, alongside members of his political group, are behind the caretaker group led by Prince Marcon Nlemigbo.
Upon the commencement of the revalidation exercise, the Okorocha group opted not to take part except the national arm of the party respected the court decision that gave Nwafor the nod to lead the party and conduct the registration; but as it turned out, the Uzodinma group were handed the registration materials.
Apparently, not satisfied with the decision of the national body to allow Nlemigbo take charge, Okorocha and his followers kept away from the revalidation exercise.
In Delta, the exercise was suspended as the camps of the Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege and that of the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, remained locked in a fierce battle for supremacy over the exercise.
Likewise in Ogun State, where the crisis rocking the state chapter appears to have taken a toll on the exercise. Some loyalists of former Governor Ibikunle Amosun were reportedly denied registration in some local governments. They alleged that they were not allowed to partake in the exercise, while in some wards, the registration officials were accused of deliberately delaying the exercise for unknown reasons.
Addressing the issue, the Chairman of the Ogun State Membership Registration Committee, Ademorin Kuye, said there was no reason to deny anybody participation in the exercise, saying there were enough forms to capture all intending members of the party.
Amosun on his part called for calm among his supporters.
In Benue State, there are also claims of disenfranchisement. In Gboko Local Government Area of the state, the situation got some tense, leading to the murder of a ward chairman during the training of the ad-hoc staff few days ago.
The local government party Chairman, Tarnongo Bam and Secretary, Terver Kyermum, openly traded insults over the crisis that resulted in the death of Tersoo Ahu, the Gboko South Council Ward Chairman.
Bam, in a statement, condemned the attack, accusing a certain individual of complicity in the crisis that led to the death of the ward chairman, Ahu.
The party Secretary, Kyermum, in a swift response, counter-accused the party chairman, Bam, of being the cause of the crisis in Gboko.
In Anambra State,
the controversy centred around the composition of the membership registration committee, with violence recorded in some places. Gubernatorial aspirant, Senator Andy Uba was pointedly accused of hijacking the process.
In Ebonyi State, the struggle for the party structure is between Governor Dave Umahi and the camp led by Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, minister of Science and Technology.
A group in the state led by Sylvester Oketa, Linus Nweze and Joseph Nweke, have called out the governor’s backed Okoro Emegha-led committee as illegal and unconstitutional and want the restoration of the former NWC.
In Rivers State, the rivalry between the Chibuike Amaechi and Magnus Abe factions resulted in opposing views over the exercise. The Abe camp insists there is a subsisting court order restraining the party (APC) from going on with the exercise.
From Osun State, the exercise resurged the rivalry between the camps of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola and his predecessor, Minister of Interior Affairs, Rauf Aregbesola. There were reports of pockets of violence, with Aregbesola lamenting after registering at his ward, that hoodlums and criminals had been allowed into the party, allegedly by Governor Oyetola.
He vowed not to work with such ‘’characters.’’
There had been disquiet between the two camps for months, with supporters of both men at loggerheads over the replacement of the Oranmiyan Campaign group of Aregbesola with Ileri Oluwa Campaign group of Oyetola.
Similarly, ex-commissioners and aides during the administration of Aregbesola and 13 other chieftains opposed the alleged inclusion of a Social Democratic Party (SDP) member in the APC registration committee.
The culmination of the above listed events, 365Daily gathered, contributed in no small measure to the decision of extend the closing date of the re-registration and validation exercise.
Due to the warring factions, many people have been restrained from participating in the process, especially in places where the judiciary was used to halt the process. This is in addition to the alleged hoarding of materials by factions, as the battle for supremacy continues.
But the APC has insisted that the exercise was extended in order to allow as many people are willing to join the party to do so.
“It is an open-door policy. Hence the need for extension as demand increases. The recent press release of the party has expressed the state of things. There has been increased activities at our Secretariat currently as a result of the outbound movement of materials for the exercise,’’ a source within the party who did not want his name mentioned, told 365Daily.