- Sets up peace committee
Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has nullified all the sanctions meted out by the state chapters of the party, including the suspension and expulsion clamped on key officers.
Ahead of the national convention of APC tentatively fixed for April, the National Working Committee (NWC) of party said it had decided to set up peace and reconciliation committees to intervene and resolve intra party crisis bedeviling some state chapters. Crises in some of state chapters of the APC have lingered for a while and in some cases threatening to engulf the national leadership,
Some of the states where the APC is experiencing intra party crisis presently include, Kano, Ondo, Rivers, Kaduna, Bauchi, Kogi and Katsina States. In addition, some notable personalities in the party have either been suspended or expelled.
For instance, persons like Senator Shehu Sani, representing Kaduna Central, the Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Timi Frank, and Chairman of the Kano State chapter, Alhaji Doguwa were suspended by the relevant state and zonal organs of the party for various allegations bordering on anti-party activities.
A statement issued monday by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said the order to seeks to reverse all actions taken as a result of the internal crises, leading to suspensions of party leaders and other members.
The party, however, directed the state chapters to ensure that where such actions were already taken, the state chapters should be strictly guided by the relevant provisions of the party’s constitution on disciplinary procedures.
“Concerned by this ugly trend and as part of preparation for its non-elective national convention which is expected to hold not later than April 2017, the NWC has decided to set up the committees to resolve all outstanding issues in order for the party to have a united front going to the convention.
“The committees will be made up of senior members of the party and the some members of the National Executive Committee (NEC). They will have the mandate to investigate all issues with view to finding a lasting solution and reconciling members in the affected states.
“In the interim, the party has directed that where actions have been taken and disciplinary measures applied, state chapters should be strictly guided by the relevant provisions of the Party’s constitution on disciplinary procedures.
“Therefore, where those actions have been taken in breach of the processes and procedures that are laid down in the party constitution, such actions should be reversed and the status quo maintained pending the intervention of the peace and reconciliation committees.”
