The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has started the process of reinventing itself ahead of the 2023 general polls.
This is sequel to the intense crisis that ravaged the party’s ranks and left it with a caretaker/extraordinary convention planning committee at the helms of its national affairs.
The dissolution of the Adams Oshiomhole-led National Working Committee (NWC) and the inauguration of the Governor Mai Mala Buni-led interim committee on June 25, 2020, gave hope to the party as it was mandated to reconcile all aggrieved members, embark on membership drive and organise a national convention within six months.
But the committee’s tenure was extended by the National Executive Committee (NEC) on December 8, 2020, by another six months to enable it to accomplish its mandate.
The committee, on assumption of office hit the ground running by commencing the process of reconciliation nationwide and recorded significant milestones in the process.
On August 23, 2020, the Buni committee summoned the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi and the Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva, to the APC National Secretariat in Abuja, where they were reconciled and asked to work together for the party.
Similarly, the Buni committee received some PDP bigwigs who jumped ship into the APC following moves by the ruling party to whittle the structures of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other opposition parties.
Most of the defectors attributed their decision to pitch tent with the APC to alleged poor handling of issues and injustice in the PDP, a claim that was denied by the opposition party.
Unveiling his scorecard recently, Buni said the committee had resolved some “life-threatening challenges” in 11 of its state chapters, adding that reconciliation effort was still ongoing in the party.
A member of the APC National Caucus, Alhaji Hashim Ubale Yusufu, in an interview with our correspondent recently in Abuja, expressed satisfaction with the Buni-committee.
Daily Trust reports that APC has not renewed its membership register since the initial registration exercise of 2014 despite the surge in its membership.
However, activities such as the constitution/inauguration of the state membership registration committees/train the trainers, distribution of registration materials, electronic gadgets and consumables to all designated registration centres nationwide have already been commenced by the Buni committee.
The registration is scheduled to kick-off on February 2, and end on February 16, 2021, while the report of the exercise from each of the states would be submitted to the Buni-led committee between March 2 and March 8, 2021.
It is imperative to state that President Muhammadu Buhari had on November 11, 2020, during a meeting with the Buni committee and some governors at the Presidential Villa in Abuja approved the new membership registration.
The challenges
Despite the reconciliatory effort of the caretaker committee, there are still challenges bedevilling the party as some state chapters, like Zamfara, are still neck-deep in crises.
The Buni committee has the herculean task of putting things in proper shape and organising congresses where new ward, local government, state and zonal executives would emerge.
This is sequel to the dissolution of the party’s structures from ward to zonal levels at the NEC meeting of December 8, 2020, which was held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
There is fresh anxiety in the APC as controversy rages among top party leaders over which zone should produce the party’s 2023 presidential candidate.
But impeccable sources told our correspondent that the 2023 zoning formula would be made known and ratified at the party’s national convention likely to hold not later than June 2021.
Discussions around alleged lack of reward system in the APC is equally generating tension and gaining momentum by the day.
Party stalwarts are grumbling over the issue and asking the national leadership of the party not to allow new entrants to hijack the system, but recognise and reward old members who contributed to the growth of the party.
Five months into the Buni committee’s initial timeline of six months, a former national vice chairman, South-South, Ntufam Hilliard Eta, instituted a suit in an Abuja High Court against the party.
While the case is still active in court, pundits say the leadership of the party has the challenge of tackling the issue as some stalwarts and lawyers argue that he has a good case.
Our correspondent also learnt that the party was proposing amendments to its constitution this year to bring sanity and discipline among card-carrying members.
The committee is expected to, within its remaining five months in office, reconcile all aggrieved members, complete the new membership registration and revalidation exercise, and organise a national convention.
However, it is left to be seen whether the Buni committee would tackle all the challenges before June, and organise a crisis-free national convention.
Northern APC chairmen meet, strategise for 2023
Chairmen of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 19 Northern states yesterday met in Jos, the Plateau capital, to brainstorm on how the party will win the 2023 general elections.
Welcoming his colleagues, chairman of the forum, Chief Letep Dabang, said ensuring an authentic database that would enhance the registration of party members across the country was the first step to be taken to ensure the success of the party in the next general elections.
Letep, however, warned party members to ensure that the registration is not hijacked, saying any attempt to do that would bring down the party.
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