APC Ward Congresses Have Set Stakeholders Further Apart

The recently ward congresses of the All Progressives Congress have deepened the crisis in the ruling party, writes Adedayo Akinwale

If what is happening at the moment in the All Progressives Congress (APC) is anything to go by, the fallout of the ward congresses of the party held recently might be the beginning of another long drawn crisis, if not well managed. The ward congresses which were held on July 31 has further deepened the crisis in the state chapters of the party.

Prior to the congresses, the party had warned members that any purported parallel congress, parallel party organ and/or parallel party office would not be tolerated by the national leadership ahead of ward congresses held on Saturday, July 31, before the Supreme Court judgement on Ondo governorship election almost put the conduct of the exercise in jeopardy.

Initially, the Supreme Court judgement on the Ondo State governorship election petition held that the party would have lost the state to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had the main opposition party’s governorship candidate, Mr. Eyitayo Jegede (SAN), joined Buni in the suit. The technicality of the case had split the seven-man Supreme Court panel to a four-three majority decision, with the minority judgement led by Justice Mary Odili, arguing that the apex court should have sacked Governor Rotimi Akeredolu since Buni acted on behalf of the party. But the majority judgement delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim contended that since all the issues revolved around Buni, he should have been joined for the argument to be valid.

As expected, the crux of the debate followed the position held by some members of the party that as governor of Yobe State, an executive position, Buni could not at the same time act as the APC chairman, another executive office. They alleged that Buni contravened both Section 183 of the 1999 Constitution and Article 17 (iv) of the APC constitution.

But a counter position held by Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN), the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation insists that Malami maintains that Buni is not in an executive position, but only chairs an ad-hoc caretaker committee which is controlled by the NEC of the APC.

In spite of the fear of uncertainty hanging over the conduct of the congresses, the Caretaker Committee stood its ground and insisted on the conduct of the exercise, despite the fact that party members called for the postponement of the exercise in order not to jeopardize the chances of the party ahead of the 2023 elections. Rather than heeding the advice, the Buni-led CECPC of the APC on the eve of the exercise warned members against the conduct of parallel congress as the leadership of the party won’t tolerate it.

The National Secretary of the CECPC of the party, Sen. John Akpanudoedehe, in a notice to party members, said the party would deploy the full weight of the law as stipulated in Section 21(D) of the party’s Constitution on any one who engages in such an act. Akpanudoedehe said it was important to draw attention of all members to the resolution of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of December 8, 2020, which subsists and extends to the conduct of party members during the congresses.

For the purposes of clarity, it re-stated that all pending litigations instituted by members against the party should be withdrawn forthwith; and going forward, no member should institute matters against the party, without exhausting the internal mechanism for conflict resolution, as enshrined in the party’s constitution. The ruling party said as a consequence of the above, party members should note that all activities that may be carried out by persons to put the party and its officers in bad light, before, during and after the congresses should be jettisoned.

It added: “All activities or processes congresses and thereafter which do not have the approval of the CECPC are exercises in futility. This is to say that: any purported; parallel congress, parallel party organ and or parallel party office, is, to say the least, a nullity. These divisive activities will not be tolerated. For the avoidance of doubt, the party shall deploy the full weight of the law as stipulated in section 21(D) of our party’s Constitution on any one who perpetrates such unlawful Act(s) and also on their sponsors.”

Relying on the assurances from the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), the ward congresses of the ruling party were held amidst endless controversies. Across the six geo-political zones, the exercise was characterised by hijack of electoral materials, crisis, intimidation, threats of boycott, litigation, use of brute force, deaths and conduct of parallel congresses; the very infringement the CECPC feared and warned members against.

Due to fear of litigation and crisis that may arise from the conduct of the ward congresses, the leadership of the party during the inauguration of the ward congress committees urged state governors and leaders of the party in the states to encourage consensus arrangement; where possible.

Akpanudoedehe said the Caretaker Committee reserveed the power to recall the team or any of its members whose conduct was below expectation, after all, he who hires, can also fire.

“You’ve been urged to encourage consensus arrangements, where possible. Article 20 of our party’s constitution and the guidelines for the congresses shall be your guide, “the National Secretary added.

The exercise did not hold in Anambra and Zamfara due to the leadership crisis in these states chapters of the party. Eventually, what the CECPC feared most became evident as tension heightened in states like Rivers, Kwara, Enugu, Ekiti, Osun, Ogun, Abia, Imo, Benue, Kano, Katsina and Gombe. However, the situation was mild and relatively peaceful in some states. Above all, the political machinery of some leading politicians in these states who have been having running battles with their governors were uprooted and dismantled through the congress.

For instance, in Osun State, it was a battle of the titans between the camp of the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola and his estranged godson, Governor Adegboyega Oyetola. Aregbesola, from all indications, wants to replicate the political structure in Lagos in Osun. Through his actions and inactions, he wants to continue his control of the party structure. Already, there is an ongoing cold war between the two men. Their animosity climaxed during the recent ward congresses which led to the death of a member of the party, an indication that there may be no end in sight to the crisis rocking the state chapter of the party.

The situation in Rivers states was not different as protests erupted over the alleged hijack of congress material by the faction loyal to the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi. This forced the faction loyal to Senator Magnus Abe to secure an interlocutory injunction stopping the congress with the threat to drag the party through the same route it passed during the 2019 general election which denied it the opportunity to field any candidate for the poll.

It was a battle royale in Ekiti State between the governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi and Presidential aide, Babafemi Ojudu and his allies, Senator Dayo Adeyeye and Anthony Adeniyi, among other stakeholders which allegedly resulted in casualties as they battled to control the leadership of the party at ward levels.

The supremacy battle in Kwara state between the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed and the state governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq over who controls the party structure at the grassroots, caused tension in the state. There were reports that parallel congresses were held in a clear violation of the party’s directive.

In Benue State, the Minister of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs, Senator George Akume and Emmanuel Jime fought the battle of their lives over who would take charge of the party’s structure. The exercise apparently widened the crack in the state chapter of the party.

Ogun State was another war zone, as Governor Dapo Abiodun and his predecessor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun allegedly conducted parallel ward congresses in renewal of their rivalry over who the bonafide leader of the party in the state is.

President Muhammadu Buhari’s home state of Kastina was not immune to the crisis, which also surfaced in Kano, as well. In Imo State, loyalists of the immediate past governor, Senator Rochas Okorocha dragged the party to court in an attempt to stop the exercise. Also, in Enugu and Abia, the situation deteriorated to the extent of conducting parallel congresses.

In Akwa Ibom, the National Secretary, Akpanudoedehe of the party was accused by Senator Godswill Akpabio, Minister of Niger Delta Affairs of hijacking the exercise. Buni’s home state of Yobe, adopted a consensus arrangement and no dissenting voice was recorded.

But the ward congresses were not all lamentations as it recorded seamless and peaceful processes in some states like Oyo, Edo, Kogi, Ondo, Borno, Yobe, Nasarawa and Bauchi among others where a consensus option was adopted and implemented.

The delay in the conduct of the exercise, according to a member of the caretaker committee was part of the grand plot to deplete the ranks of the PDP. However, the crisis that characterised the ward congresses of the party spells a doom of not well managed.

The riotous outcome of the APC ward congresses in many states portend a tortuous road ahead for the APC. Some stakeholders have gone to court to challenge the congresses and Buni’s continuation as chairman of CECPC.

A chieftain of the party, Mr. Kalu Agu Kalu, prayed an FCT High Court for “an order of perpetual injunction restraining the APC from going ahead with its planned Ward congress scheduled for Saturday July 31, as well as, subsequent local government, state, zonal congresses and the party’s national convention.”

In suit number CV/1812/2021 of July 29, 2021, the plaintiff also asked the court to declare as null and void any of the APC’s congresses and convention held under the current acting national chairman of the Caretaker Committee, Buni. It was filed on his behalf by Ukpai Ukairo. The 38-paragraph affidavit to support his claims joined APC and Buni as first and second defendants respectively. Agu, who claimed to be an aspirant for the post of National Legal Adviser of the APC said his ambition could be affected by Buni’s position as chairman of CECPC that would conduct the convention.

QUICK FACTS

**The All Progressives Congress held its ward congresses in many states across the country on Saturday, July 31

**The Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee had warned members that purported parallel congress, parallel party organ and/or parallel party office would not be tolerated

**The Supreme Court judgement on Ondo governorship election has put the conduct of the ward congresses in jeopardy on account of Governor Mai Mala Buni serving as executive of a state, as well as the National Chairman of a political party

**Both Section 183 of the 1999 Constitution and Article 17 (iv) of the APC constitution forbids an executive governor from holding another executive position

**Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN), the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation holds a counter position that Buni is not in an executive position, but only chairs an ad-hoc caretaker committee which is supervised by the NEC of the APC

**Relying on assurances from Malami, the APC ward congresses were held amidst endless controversies. Across the six geo-political zones, the exercise was characterised by hijack of electoral materials, crisis, intimidation, threats of boycott, litigation, use of brute force, deaths and conduct of parallel congresses

** The exercise did not hold in Anambra and Zamfara due to the leadership crisis in these states chapters of the party

**The ward congresses recorded seamless and peaceful processes in some states like Oyo, Edo, Kogi, Ondo, Borno, Yobe, Nasarawa and Bauchi among others where a consensus option was adopted and implemented

**A chieftain of the party, Mr. Kalu Agu Kalu had prayed an FCT High Court for an order of perpetual injunction restraining the APC from going ahead with its planned ward congress scheduled for Saturday July 31, as well as, subsequent local government, state, zonal congresses and the party’s national convention

QUOTE

The exercise did not hold in Anambra and Zamfara due to the leadership crisis in these states chapters of the party. Eventually, what the CECPC feared most became evident as tension heightened in states like Rivers, Kwara, Enugu, Ekiti, Osun, Ogun, Abia, Imo, Benue, Kano, Katsina and Gombe