The nation’s polity is twitching sequel to the extension of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) membership registration and revalidation exercise for a second time.
This is especially as some top shots and power brokers in the party are said to be uncomfortable with the development. But party officials say it is geared towards providing opportunity for more Nigerians to register with the party.
There are feelers that some APC bigwigs had tactically threatened the success of the exercise by allegedly hoarding materials and hijacking the process in some states in order to gain political capital.
Politicians with 2023 ambition were said to be manipulating the exercise to their own advantage ahead of the next general polls, a move that has met stiff resistance with the extension of the exercise by the Governor Mai Mala Buni-led Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee.
A credible source told Daily Trust in a telephone chat that some registration materials were being hoarded in some places in order to disenfranchise some persons.
A former National Chairman of the APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, was quoted as saying the exercise was contrary to the provisions of the party’s constitution.
Oshiomhole’s position came days after the pioneer chairman of the party, Chief Bisi Akande, had faulted the exercise. The National Leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, had also aligned with Akande’s position.
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, however, 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.
The Committee’s timeline was however extended by the National Executive Committee (NEC) on December 8, 2020, by another six months to enable it to accomplish its mandate.
The party had, on February 22, 2021, extended the nationwide membership registration and revalidation exercise to March 31, 2021.
The first phase of the exercise was earlier scheduled to end on Tuesday, February 23, 2021.
This was contained in a statement titled, “Extension of the nationwide membership registration, revalidation and register update exercise,” signed by Secretary of the Caretaker Committee, Sen. John Akpanudoedehe, in Abuja.
Similarly, on April 1, 2021, the party in a statement also announced the extension of the exercise, saying it became necessary because of the number of people willing to join the party.
Pundits hinted that some PDP bigwigs were planning to join the APC in no distant time, and wanted to use the opportunity of the on-going membership registration and revalidation exercise to join, hence the extension.
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 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.
There have been talks about the planned defection of Governor Matawalle, who became governor of the state on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), following the judgement of the Supreme Court on the crisis that trailed the primaries of APC in Zamfara.
Matawalle’s purported moves to join the APC predated the defection of the Ebonyi State Governor David Umahi to the ruling party in November last year.
A former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, former National Chairman of the PDP, Chief Barnabas Gemade, former Governor of Ogun State, Gbenga Daniel, are among many PDP bigwigs who pitched tents with the APC recently.
PDP spits fire over extension
But reacting, the PDP in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, asked the APC to end what it called ‘’dance of shame in the name of membership registration.’’
“Our party urges the APC leadership to listen to voice of reasons coming from elders of their party like former Governor Bisi Akande and end this dance of shame.”
“In any case, our party will, at the appropriate time, expose all the shenanigans of the APC, including the roles played by desperate individual APC leaders in this attempt to beguile Nigerians with a fictitious membership register,” the party added.
2023 winning strategy
A member of the APC National Caucus, Chief Sam Nkire, however told Daily Trust in a telephone chat that those saying the extension was Caretaker Committee’s move to sit-tight were enemies of the party.
He said the registration and revalidation exercise was part of APC’s strategies to win future elections including the 2023 general election.
“We will do anything to win elections. We will do it, provided it is not unlawful and that is what we are doing. I don’t know why our political enemies want to make a big deal out of it. The APC registration should not raise dust anywhere.
“Membership drive is supposed to be an on-going thing; an open-ended exercise. Even if it is postponed, it doesn’t mean there is a problem. If political parties had the resources they need, registration would be an everyday affair.
“If other political parties want to do membership drive or registration, they should go ahead with it. It is not a problem. It does not show disintegration of the party; it does not show weakness.
“The people are not APC members. They must be our opponents. We don’t take instructions from our opponents,” he said.
‘PDP drinking Panadol for another person’s headache’
A Chieftain of the APC and former presidential candidate of the United Progressive Party (UPP), Chief Chekwas Okorie, also told Daily Trust, in a telephone chat that the PDP should face its internal challenges.
“For the purpose of internal party democracy, if you say for instance, you are going to conduct primaries in a particular constituency, you should be able to know at least, how many members of the party are registered in that area, so that you don’t come and throw up figures and at the end of the day you end up in court and the court delays the party from moving forward.
“So I don’t understand why the PDP is drinking Panadol for someone else’s headache. They have their problems all over the place.
“When many people observed that the time was not sufficient for everybody to register, they extended it. The party set up a Contact/Strategy Committee that made that recommendation after going round. Remember there are about 63 of them drawn from different parts of the country. So the party cannot ignore recommendations of such a high-powered committee made up of serving governors, former governors and other past office holders.
“So the extension is in order. Three weeks is not three years. The party is also conscious of the fact that they have congresses and conventions and the time is not waiting for anybody. So it is a very acceptable intervention by the party to further give those who have not registered the opportunity to do so,” he said.
Reacting to the claim in some quarters that the extension was a move by the Buni-led Caretaker Committee to sit-tight, Okorie said, “All of these are coming from the opposition.”
According to him, “It is the NEC that has the power to extend the tenure of the caretaker committee. So if the NEC decides that that is the right thing to do, so be it. It is the second highest decision-making organ of the party.
“If the thing backfires and becomes counter-productive, NEC will be held responsible for a bad decision. But if it works out well for the party, NEC will be applauded for taking a good decision,” he added.
The timeline of the Buni-led Committee would elapse in June. Sequel to this, the committee is expected to organise a national convention not later than June.
However, the committee still has the herculean task of completing the registration exercise, conducting ward, local government and state congresses before the convention, which will throw up a new crop of NWC members that would lead the party into the 2023 general election.
But there are speculations that tenure of the committee would be extended beyond June, while the convention would be shifted considering the task before it.
However, the Jigawa State governor and Chairman of the APC Strategy and Contact Committee, Badaru Abubakar, said recently that the party’s national convention would be held in June.
In an interview with newsmen at the APC National Secretariat in Abuja, Badaru said the Caretaker Committee was committed to delivering on its mandate not later than June.
“It is very feasible. I know the national Caretaker Committee is committed to delivering in June. And we will support them and do whatever it takes to make sure we deliver by June,” he said.
At the same occasion, Buni said, “Our vision is to provide a wheel that will drive the party to go beyond 6th, 7th and even 8th term of office to effectively implement the party manifesto, improve the lives of Nigerians and, to remain Nigeria’s leading political party.”
Recall that in 2008, a former Chairman of the PDP, Chief Vincent Ogbulafor, said the party would rule for 60 years. But consequently, the party was defeated seven years after.
However, it is left to be seen whether the APC would weather the storms and retain power beyond 2023.
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