There is a crack in the National Working Committee (NWC) of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) as some members are not on the same page with the national chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu.
This is coming to the limelight ahead of the party’s presidential primary slated for June 6, 7 and 8, 2022.
The crack in the NWC is hinged on Adamu’s “leadership style” which is receiving heavy criticism.
A National Vice Chairman, North West, Salihu Mohammed Lukman, in a letter dated May 27, 2022 and addressed to Adamu, with the title, “Rebuilding APC: Need for new initiatives,” stressed the need to avoid past errors in the administration of the party.
He alleged that the new NWC under Adamu was gradually toeing the old path of the leadership style of former chairmen, Adams Oshiomole and Hon. Mai Mala Buni, whereby decisions were taken and left unimplemented and members not carried along in the scheme of things.
The letter reads in part, “Under your leadership, the current NWC is gradually snowballing into similar circumstances whereby decisions are taken and allowed to lay bare and, in some instances, changed without necessarily taking needed steps to carry members along.
“Presidential aspirants are yet to be screened. The official explanation is that you are awaiting final consultation with President Buhari. At the risk of sounding agitated, this is unfair to President Buhari because to the best of my understanding it is an attempt to use the President’s name to give excuses for failure.
“I find it necessary to send this letter to further appeal to you to review our approaches under the current National Working Committee (NWC) under your leadership. It is now two months since we came into office and you have so far raised a lot of expectations given that some of the problems, which undermined the support base of previous leadership, would appear to have been minimised.
“For instance, meetings of the NWC are now held almost every week. Members participate actively and where necessary engage and contest issues. It is to your credit that you accept the positions of members even when you disagree. This is a remarkable departure from what was obtained in the past where the National Chairman conduct meetings of party organs as Chief Executive and to that extent, therefore, exercises prerogatives and overrules members.
“The big challenge is ensuring that decisions taken are faithfully and implemented. The inability of previous leadership under His Excellency, Adams Oshiomhole and His Excellency, Mai Mala Buni to implement decisions taken were partly responsible for the leadership crisis that confronted the party.
“Under your leadership, the current NWC is gradually snowballing into similar circumstances whereby decisions taken are allowed to lay bare and, in some instances, changed without necessarily taking needed steps to carry members along.
“No doubt, given all the challenges inherited and coming at a time when it’s extremely difficult to control events and almost everything would appear to have been set against the party and its leadership, we need to take every measure to avoid past pitfalls.”
Lukman copied President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Senate President, Ahmed Lawan; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, Chief Bisi Akande, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Comrade Adams Oshiomole, Chief Ogbonayan Onu and all the NWC members.
