Plateau APC moves to reclaim power in 2027

Political bigwigs of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Plateau State have started the process of reclaiming power from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2027, sequel to their resolve to bury their differences and have a common front in the state.

Recall that the APC lost the 2023 governorship election to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state following internal crisis.

Daily Trust reports that the crisis, which triggered the party’s defeat at the poll, was ignited prior to the primary election that consequently divided stakeholders due to conflicting political interests.

Party leaders have confirmed that the battle among the political gladiators on who should succeed the then Governor Simon Lalong was the major cause of the crisis.

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It was observed that close to the governorship primary, the fight among party members became glaring. While Lalong was leading one camp in the state, a former governor of the state, Joshua Dariye, was leading another camp, which consisted of many aggrieved members.

Sequel to this, Lalong and Dariye both had their preferred candidates for the APC ticket.

It was gathered that Lalong and the state party executive threw their weight behind the candidature of Prof Nentawe Yilwadat, who emerged as the APC governorship candidate, while Dariye on the other hand, backed Dr Patrick Dakum to succeed Lalong.

The crisis completely strained the relationship between the two, who had in the past shared common political interests. Recall that Lalong was a two-time Speaker when Dariye was governor between 1999 and 2007.

The political feud between Dariye and Lalong wasn’t the only factor that divided the party in the state. Analysts have argued that Lalong’s refusal to allow Paulen Tallen contest for a senatorial seat was another issue that pushed her to allegedly work against the party.

Pundits have said that Tallen was denied the opportunity to contest for senatorial election because of Lalong’s own ambition to contest for the same seat.

More than 10 APC governorship aspirants, including Lalong’s former deputy, Prof Sonni Tyoden, who protested against the emergence of Lalong’s preferred candidate, became aggrieved and threatened to either challenge the primary or leave the party.

However, stakeholders in the party had convened in Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital, to reconcile their differences and forge a common front towards reclaiming the state in 2027.

Those in attendance were Dariye; former deputy governor, Prof Sonni Tyoden; former minister, Tallen; former Deputy Speaker Idris Wase; state party chairman, Rufus Nature and many others.

At the opening of the meeting, the leader of the party and immediate past governor of the state, Senator Lalong, said the gathering became very important to address various issues, including the grievances of some members.

He explained that the Idris Wase-led reconciliation committee had done a great job by reaching out to critical stakeholders and aggregating their concerns.

Senator Lalong said that as the leader of the party, he was willing to take responsibility for any mistake he made, and was equally ready to apologise so as to create the path to genuine reconciliation that would give the party the strength to recover from its losses during the last elections.

While welcoming the stakeholders, the chairman of the reconciliation committee, Idris Wase, expressed appreciation for the support he received from all party members who opened up on issues bothering them.

He said the committee created a free atmosphere for all party members and groups to freely and frankly talk about the issues bothering them, adding that the full report would be presented at the closed-door session to the stakeholders for further deliberation and consideration.

In separate goodwill messages, Dariye, Prof Tyoden, Tallen, among others, called for true reconciliation, and urged the stakeholders to be open and true about things that were causing discord among party members.

The state chairman of the party, Rufus Bature, during the meeting, appealed to members of the party to close ranks for a more cohesive party that would have the capacity to win the next election in the state.

We’ll dislodge PDP in 2027 – APC spokesman

Speaking about the meeting in an interview with Daily Trust, Shittu Bamaiyi, the spokesperson of the APC, expressed optimism that the meeting would make the party strong enough to dislodge the PDP in 2027.

Bamaiyi said, “Where there is misunderstanding in a family, there will be a problem, but once there is peace, certainly, there will be unity.

“During the 2015 elections, this same group of APC aggrieved members formed a formidable team and kicked the PDP out of office; that is why the PDP is not happy with the development.

“When there was misunderstanding within the APC prior to the 2023 elections, the party did not face the general elections as a united family. That gave the PDP the leverage in the governorship election. After the election, a lot of people felt that the APC had the potentials to move Plateau State forward; and therefore, saw the need to resolve their differences.

“So, the same group that supported the APC in 2015 is coming back together. Definitely, if they come together, it will be a thing of the past for PDP because these are grounded politicians who made impacts.”

Analysts speak

Similarly, some political analysts said the meeting was a good development for the party, adding that if the reconciliation was genuine, the party would win future elections in the state.

Sheriff Omotayo Oyewopo, a lecturer in the Department of Political Science, University of Jos said, “As it is, any attempt at reconciliation is always the best. No organisation, especially a political party, can move forward or make a significant progress when members have divided themselves.

“So, whatever differences they have, the best way is to resolve the problem internally and march forward together. It is only when they are together as a political party that they can make impact within the political space.

“And the reconciliation will make it very difficult for their opponents to penetrate them. So, reconciliation is a welcome development to the party. If the reconciliation is sincere, it will certainly make positive results.”

Another analyst, Shu’aibu Doro, said the meeting was a strategy to form a formidable team ahead of the next general elections.

He said, “It is a very good strategy on the part of the APC. One of the factors that benefitted the PDP and helped them to clinch power was the division among APC members in the 2023 elections. That internal wrangling was a problem for the APC.

“However, the reconciliatory meeting aims to mend the differences among party members, and it is a good development. So, bringing party members together, including the aggrieved ones, will surely yield a positive impact as there will be forgiveness. I believe it is a right step in the right direction.”