The All Progressives Congress (APC) held its Local Government Congresses across the country amid rivalry, sharp division and bickering among contending parties.
Although the exercise was largely peaceful in some states where consensus was reached, parallel congresses still held sway in many other states.
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The renewed hostilities are despite efforts made by the Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) led by Mai Mala Buni of the party to reconcile aggrieved members over the recently conducted ward congresses across the country.
Lack of updated membership list forces consensus in Bauchi
Daily Trust on Sunday reports that stakeholders in Bauchi adopted consensus method to choose their leaders for lack of updated membership register from the national secretariat and alleged fears of intruders from the opposition parties in the state.
The chairman of the congress committee, Jibrin Samuel, disclosed this to newsmen shortly before the commencements of the exercise.
He said 18 out of 20 LGAs had reached consensus, adding that stakeholders from the two affected LGAs were holding meetings to resolve their differences.
“In any local government where members disagree on the consensus the committee has come with all the necessary materials to conduct election to ensure fairness to our members.
Jigawa, Yobe APC adopt consensus
Consensus was also adopted in Jigawa state as the National Organising Secretary, Haruna Muhammed, said the headquarters was happy with the arrangement met on the ground.
The Chairman Local Organising Committee (LOC), Lawan Danzomo, revealed that the party stakeholders had already chosen the executives through consensus to avoid any rancour
Danzomo, who is the state Commissioner for Education, explained that the congress would affirm all those elected through consensus in accordance with the party’s constitution.
In Yobe state, members also adopted consensus in selecting party executives. In Damaturu LG, all the 24 party executives were put back into their previous positions.
3 injured as protest rocks congress in Niger LG
However, there was a protest in Wushishi Local Government Area of Niger State as the congress had been postponed till Sunday (today), following crisis among supporters.
Delegates, who stormed the state APC secretariat in Minna to register their grievances, told our correspondent that no fewer than three people, including an electoral official, were injured at the local government secretariat, the venue of the congress.
The local government chairman, Suleiman Nalango, was accused of imposing a candidate, Ibrahim Babangida
A delegate, Yahaya Gambo, told Daily Trust on Sunday that Babangida from Barwa ward was the favourite candidate of the LG chairman while Shehu Ciroma enjoyed full support of APC stakeholders and the youths in the local government.
He said a group of youth suspected to the thugs stormed the Secretariat when election was about to commence and started throwing stones, thereby disrupting the exercise.
Daily Trust on Sunday gathered that consensus was adopted in Mokwa and Borgu, while congresses were ongoing in Gbako and Agaie Local Governments as of the time of filing this report.
However, elections were held in Bida, Lapai, Chanchaga and Bosso and other local governments, peacefully.
Consensus in Osun despite Aregbesola’s camp protest
The congress committee in Osun endorsed the consensus arrangement agreed on by the leadership of the party against the wish of members of the party loyal to the former Governor and Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola.
Aregbesola’s camp under the auspices of ‘The Osun Progressives’ held elections in some locations in the state including Ife, Ede and Osogbo where they claimed that they elected local government executives of the party.
But the chairman of the congress committee, Gbenga Elegbeleye, expressed satisfaction over the peaceful conduct of members who supported the consensus.
He said, “There was no parallel congress anywhere in the state except on Facebook and other social media platforms.”
Elegbeleye had at a stakeholders meeting in Osogbo, the state capital, said the national secretariat encouraged the consensus and demanded to know if there were members against it.
At the meeting were Governor ‘Gboyega Oyetola; his deputy, Adegboyega Alabi; the state chairman, Adegboyega Famodun; the Senator representing Osun Central, Dr Basiru Ajibola; former Deputy Governor, Senator Iyiola Omisore; former Speaker of House of Representatives, Mr Patricia Etteh other political office holders in the state.
The leader of TOP Caucus, Adelowo Adebiyi, alleged that governor’s camp, IleriOluwa, manipulated the exercise and vowed that his camp would exhaust all possible internal means to make its case and hope to justice.
Abdulrazaq, Lai Mohammed’s group hold parallel congresses in Kwara
Although the congress was peaceful with impressive turnout in Kwara, parallel exercises were held by factional members loyal to the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.
At some of the centres visited across the metropolis, policemen were on ground to provide security and forestall breakdown of law and order.
At the Kwara state Council of Art and Culture – the venue for Ilorin West Local Government monitored by our reporter, some of the delegation from Abuja deployed by the party and INEC officials supervised the exercise.
Party delegates, it was gathered, in other centres across the state affirmed their consensus list in Baruten, Irepodun, Ekiti, Isin, Patigi, Edu, Moro, Kaiama, and Offa, among others.
SWAGA protests against Ekiti congress
The exercise was largely peaceful in Ekiti state with no incidents of violence.
The Secretary of the congress committee, Job Akindeke, said the unconfirmed report that a faction of the party called Southwest Agenda for Tunubu 2023 presidential poll (SWAGA) went to court to challenge the ward congress would not affect the outcome of the local government congress.
He said all the expected delegates in all the 16 local government areas of the state voted.
“The automatic delegates like the former governors and deputies, former and serving National and State Assemblies’ lawmakers , elected local government chairmen, deputies and councilors, elected party executives at the ward level all participated in Saturday’s election .
“We saw that everything was done in compliance with the law. Whoever has grievances can channel that to the National Caretaker Committee through the Appeal panel that will be sent to Ekiti soon.”
However, the Coordinator of South West Agenda for Asiwaju Tinubu, in Ekiti State, Sen. Anthony Adeniyi, said “Nothing happened in Ekiti.”
He said that the purported congress could not have taken place for some reasons.
According to him, the SWAGA and stakeholders numbering about 3,500 have approached the court on the ward congress and had also submitted a petitions to the national secretariat of the party through the committee in the state, nobody had said anything on the matter.
“You cannot build anything on nothing, saying the foundation to a local government congress, is the ward congress which they have challenged. The foundation is the delegates that would emerged from the ward congress, where did they get the delegates from?”
“Nothing happened in Ekiti”, advising that people should be very careful now that we are going to have the electronic transmission of results in our election, or else they would just collapse like a packs of cards.
Abiodun, Amosun groups hold parallel congresses in Ogun
In Ogun State, Governor Dapo Abiodun, and former governor Ibikunle Amosun’s groups conducted parallel congresses across the 20 local government areas.
Abiodun and Amosun have been at loggerhead over who controls the structure of the party in the state.
The groups had equally conducted and inaugurated factional ward executives during the exercise held on July 31.
Daily Trust on Sunday observed that the congress was peaceful in Abeokuta South and Abeokuta North local government areas.
In Abeokuta South, Abiodun’s loyalists held their congress at the Centenary Hall in Ake, Abeokuta while Amosun’s loyalists conducted their congress at the Panseke park.
In Abeokuta North, Amosun’s faction held their congress in the premises of the African Church Grammar school while Abiodun’s loyalists held theirs at Unity High school, Enugada, Abeokuta.
Ogun State governor, Dapo Abiodun, participated in the exercise at the St. Saviour Anglican Primary, Ikenne, venue of the congress in Ikenne Local Government Area.
Congress held in 23 LGA of Rivers State
The exercise was also largely peaceful across the 23 local government areas of Rivers state.
However, the Senator Magnus Abe supporters did not participate in the exercise.
Plateau APC adopt consensus
Stakeholders in Plateau State also adopted a consensus method to elect party officials in all the 17 LGAs of the state.
The Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Danladi Atu, said the orderly and peaceful conduct of the congress was to the delight of Governor Simon Lalong, who had urged all party officials to conduct themselves peacefully.
Factions hold parallel congress in Lagos
Two Factions in Lagos APC held parallel congresses in many local governments in the state in a repeat of what transpired during the ward congresses held last month.
Daily Trust on Sunday reports that the major factions of the party comprising the Tunde Balogun faction recognised by the national leadership and the Lagos4Lagos movement held their separate congresses where new officers emerged through affirmation.
While the caretaker committee in the state led by Balogun insisted there was no faction in the party, the Lagos4Lagos movement led by Olajide Adediran popularly known as Jandor went ahead to conduct separate congress in the 245 wards and 20 LGs.
Parallel congresses in Oyo
The chairman of the congresses in Oyo, Hillary Amodu, assured that the results of the congresses would be ready as soon as the election was concluded.
Daily Trust on Sunday recalled that members of the party across the country had yet to get the results of the ward congresses held on July 30.
But Amodu while speaking at a press conference shortly after the local government congresses was conducted said the peaceful conduct of the congresses was a resolution that the party was ready to defeat the ruling PDP in 2023 elections in the state.
Meanwhile, our correspondent observed that there were some local governments where members the party held parallel congresses.
Though the exercise held under peaceful atmosphere, but was conducted in each of the council areas by a three-man ad-hoc congress committee sent by the leadership of the party in the state.
The party spokesman, Dr. Azeze Olatunde, said those who held parallel congresses cannot be recognized by the leadership of the party in Abuja
Congress peaceful in Ebonyi, Gombe
Daily Trust on Sunday observed that the congress was peaceful in Ebonyi as stakeholders including party members came out to vote for the candidate of their choice, using option A4.
Addressing Journalists in the evening on Saturday, the acting state Chairman of the party, Stanley Okoro, said that distribution of materials started at about 8:30 am.
At the moment of filling in this report, Daily Trust observed that collation of results was still ongoing at the party Secretariat along Onwe road, Abakiliki.
In Gombe, the congress held peacefully across the 11 local government councils of the state.
From Hassan Ibrahim (Bauchi), Mohammed Abubakar (Dutse), Abubakar Akote (Minna), Ibrahim Saleh (Damaturu), Hameed Oyegbade (Osogbo), Mumini Abdulkareem (Ilorin), Raphael Ogbonnaiye (Ado-Ekiti), Peter Moses (Abeokuta), Victor Edozie (Port Harcourt), Ado Abubakar Musa (Jos), Abdullateef Aliyu (Lagos), Jeremiah Oke (Ibadan), Nabob Ogbonna (Abakiliki) & Haruna Gimba (Gombe)
