Silenced! APC govs lose control of party

Olusesan Laoye

With 40 days to the presidential primaries of the All Progressive Congress (APC), the the National Executive Council (NEC) of the party has transferred its entire powers to the National working Committee of the Party (NWC). Although the party is careful to avoid running foul of the law, indications have emerged that the party is working toward a predictable outcome.

There is no doubt that President Buhari has a preferred candidate to succeed him, but the new Electoral Act, particularly, Section 84(12), which he had objected to before signing has tied his hands. The Section says in part that where a consensus method is adopted, all the aspirants must sign a written document indicating their withdrawal.

Although the president succeeded in imposing his candidate on the leadership of the party, it was a tortuous endeavour that could have easily backfired. But given the high stakes involved in the presidential primary, it would be near impossible to undertake such gambit, especially with the calibre of the expected gladiators in the race, which include Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Vice president Yemi Osinbajo and Chibuike Amechi, as front runners.

From what transpired at the 11th NEC meeting of the party, the final organ of APC will no longer carry out its functions as it has ceded its power for 90 days to the NWC. Before now, it was the NEC, the highest decision making body of the party, which has the President, the vice President, governors, and key officers of the National Assembly as members, that takes major decisions for the party and as well ratifies the decisions made by the NWC.

The action of APC NEC was seen as the first of its kind in the political history of Nigeria and which has never happened, since the beginning of this political dispensation in 1999. It was even viewed as unprecedented with serious and far reaching implications.

Political watchers believed there is more to it, as those who mooted and executed the idea knew what they wanted to achieve. It was learnt that the action was an ambush by the new NWC led Senator Abdullahi Adamu to curb the overbearing power of the governors on the party, an indication of what the Chairman said at the meeting when he accused them of destroying the party.

Also, the action is meant to insulate the president from being directly involved in party decision making as happened in the convention. This, observers said is necessary to ensure a “level playing” field, although the party may already know the president’s choice for the position.

Although top notchers of the party like the national Secretary, Senator Oyiola Omisore, argued that it was done in the interest of the party and to prevent undue interference, it was believed in some quarters, that the action of NEC was meant to serve the interests of some powerful clique in the party backed by the Presidency.

Sources within the party declared that unknown to other members of the party, some NEC members including governors, the plan was hatched at the presidency to underplay the influence of the governors and other powerful members who have constituted themselves as kords in the party.

It was said that since the convention of the party when the governors dictated the pace and other prominent players were relegated to the background, some powerful clique have determined that it was pertinent to change the scenario before the presidential and other primaries for the 2023 general elections.

It was, therefore a big shock to some governors and other stake holders of the party, when the motion to transferred NEC’s powers absolutely to NWC was moved by the Senate President Ahmed Lawan and seconded by the Kaduna State Governor Mallam Nazil El-Rufai, which could not be opposed by any member of the NEC especially none of the the governor mostly affected. .

It was argued that from what was experienced during the convention, the governors were absolutely in control and that even President Buhari was not pleased with their arrogance. Though the position of his choice for the chairmanship was conceded to him, other positions which he and his clique could have wanted some people to occupy were taken over by the governors, in their respective states and zones.

Going by the motion moved by Lawan, the powers of the NEC under Article 13(3)(ii)(iii) (iv)(v) and (vi) was transmitted to the NWC, giving it the right to discharge all functions of the national convention in Articles 13.3 (ii) of the APC constitution.

Elaborating, on the motion, the National publicity secretary of the party, Barr. Felix Morka, said its ratification with little amendment, “now stands as a resolution of the NEC of our party.”

According to him, “that resolution, essentially, has devolved the powers of NEC under Article 13 paragraph 3, S2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 respectively, of our Constitution. But those powers of NEC in those provisions will now be invested, or are now vested in the National Working Committee of the party.

So, in other words, the NWC of the party is authorised for the period specified to exercise the authority that is constitutionally assigned to the NEC on behalf of the party.

“The NEC also devolved its authority, as enshrined in Article 13, paragraph 3, sub-paragraph 2 of the APC constitution to discharge all functions of the national convention as constituted in between conventions.

“NEC also devolved its powers to NWC as enshrined in Article 13, paragraph 3, sub 4 of the APC constitution to consider reports from national, state and local government areas and area council chapters of the party and to take such decisions as are necessary to protect, advance and consolidate the gains and interests of our party.

“NEC further devolved its powers to the NWC as enshrined in Article 13, paragraph 3, 5 of the APC Constitution to exercise control and take disciplinary actions on all organs, officers and members of the party, and determine appeals brought before it by any member or organ of the party.

“Finally, that NEC has devolved its powers to the NWC as enshrined in Article 13, paragraph 3, sub 6 of our Constitution to create, elect and appoint any committee it may deem necessary, desirable or expedient and assigned to them such powers and functions as it may deem fit and proper.”

Sources hinted that the the NEC’s action could be described as an ambush to replay of the script carried out during the National convention of the party but this time, it would be the other way round. Some members of the party especially some governors could not talk because they had to protect their second term.

Also the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Ekiti state governor Kayode Fayemi and host of others who were member of NEC could not raise an eyebrow because they too have presidential ambition. Some members in the National Assembly too, with governorship aspirations could not also challenge that motion which was engineered from the top to control the party.

A legal luminary, who was also the former chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association Ikeja Branch, Barrister Ade Ademuwagun told the BusinessHall- mark that in this era of democracy someone ought to have shown his displeasure with the motion.

He argued that those affected should have known where the pendulum would swing with the statement of President Muhammadu Buhari and that of the National Chairman, Abdullahi Adamu, who castigated the party leaders especially the governors, for their dictatorial attitudes which have been running in contradictions to the growth of the party.

President Buhari had warned APC leaders against imposing unpopular candidates on the party. He cautioned members of the party to be more mindful of the pitfalls that led to the ouster of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2015.

He stated: “The PDP thought that only time could remove them, and the time actually came. They thought it was impossible to lose elections,” he stated at the 11th NEC meeting of the governing party.

“I enjoin you all to follow due process in all the party processes and more importantly to develop more mechanisms against corruption. I call on all party members to abide by all extant laws, rules, and regulations and to leaders of our party to avoid imposition of candidates that cannot win popular elections.

“This dictatorial behavior cost us many strategic seats in the past. In the recent past this led to some of our strong members unfortunately opting to go elsewhere because of unfairly oppressive behavior of party leaders at state level.

“I must caution strongly against any tendency towards developing cliques, in-fighting within the party. We want to win well not succumb to factions on account of personal ambitions and desire to retain control at all costs. That surely is not the road to win.”

He assured the NWC of the party of his full support saying “now that NEC has vested its powers in NWC for the time being, as requested, and in compliance with the party constitution in the overall interest of the party, I want to assure Mr. Chairman and the entire NWC members of my full support.”

Also Lawan who spoke in the same direction with that of President Buhari, had blamed governors for party crisis. According to him, numerous crises that had rocked the party came from serving and former governors, saying they worked at cross purposes to divide the party.

But Ademuwagun argued that from the look of things, it is that ego which both Buhari and Lawan complained about that the NEC actually removed from the governors, for the 90 days crucial to the nomination of candidates and to remove completely their influences in the process.

With this development, the governors have been shut out of power in the party and they could not with one voice as it used to happen determine who gets what in the party, even in their states because the provisions in the party’s constitution which the NEC willingly handed over to the NWC, covers the wards and even local governments in their areas.

A public affairs analyst, based in Ibadan Oyo State who was the former Chief Press Secretary to the former governor of Oyo State Dr. Omololu Olunloyo, Elder Moses Olorode, said that with what happened in APC, the egos of the governors have been totally cut off.

According to him, “that was a very serious indictment on the governors and some leaders of the party at the National Assembly, who have before now been dictating what happens in their domains.”

Also speaking on the implications of the action of APC NEC surrendering its power to the party’s NWC, Comrade Wale Alao, who is the President of Youth for Change clamouring for the emancipation of youths in governance, told Business Hallmark in a telephone chat that what that means is the fact that the governors would be politically cut off for that 90 days and they will have nothing to do in deciding election procedures.

He said “since the 90 days covers the process of selecting candidates, it would be difficult for the governors to make any impute and that would make them look like a toothless bulldog.”

He pointed out that the action of NEC has empowered the NWC to deal with the Presidency alone w, as its adviser.

Also commenting a source in the party revealed that the NWC has so much been empowered to monitor and determined the mode and the criteria to be adopted in conducting the primaries.

“From what is on ground, NWC now has final say on all electoral matters which could make it dance to the interests of the Presidency. The body can decide whether the primaries would be direct, indirect or consensus as stipulated in the electoral law.”

The NWC would also be in the position to monitor who voted who in the primaries, especially during that of the presidential, through ballot papers to be printed. The ballot could be numbered to identify who ABCD voted for in the primaries.