JOSTLING FOR APC CHAIRMANSHIP BEGINS, OYEGUN, OSHIOMHOLE, EBRI EMERGE CONTENDERS
JOSTLING
FOR APC CHAIRMANSHIP BEGINS, OYEGUN, OSHIOMHOLE, EBRI EMERGE CONTENDERS
L-R National Chairman of APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun,
President Muhammadu Buhari and a national leader of the APC, Bola Tinubu at a
meeting...are they thinking the future
·
Governors,
Oyegun, Tinubu in battle of wits over convention list
Olawale Olaleye in
Lagos and Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja
Barely 24
hours after governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the National
Working Committee (NWC) seemingly resolved the quagmire that had arisen over
President Muhammadu Buhari’s rejection of the 12 months tenure extension
granted to elected and appointed executives of the party at all levels, APC
stakeholders have turned their sights on national chairmanship seat.
THISDAY reliably gathered Thursday that names of possible contenders for the post were already being bandied around among different interested groups in the party.
THISDAY reliably gathered Thursday that names of possible contenders for the post were already being bandied around among different interested groups in the party.
Prominent
among the contenders are the incumbent national chairman of the APC, Chief John
Odigie-Oyegun, who is eligible to seek another four years in office, the former
governor of Edo State Adams Oshiomhole, and a former governor of Cross River
State in the Third Republic, Clement Ebri.
A senior party official, who preferred to remain unnamed, informed THISDAY that
the party was already looking beyond the tenure elongation issue which has
distracted the APC for about six weeks, and was focused on the National
Convention and who would succeed Oyegun.
“Right
now, three persons are being considered – former Governors Oshiomhole, Clement
Ebri and Oyegun,” the source disclosed.
Providing
some insight on what the thinking is within the party on each of the possible
contenders for the chairmanship post, he said some of the governors and Buhari
loyalists are not very comfortable with Oshiomhole because of his strong
personality and independence.
“Oshiomhole
will make a good chairman because he is strong and independent minded, he
cannot be pushed around. That is why the presidency is pushing for him.
“But these
same attributes are considered a drawback among several of the governors and
Buhari’s loyalists who believe they will not be able to control him,” the party
official said.
He noted
that those opposing the choice of the former Edo governor have gone as far as
unearthing what Oshiomhole did during his campaign for his second term bid in
2012 when he refused to allow Buhari to come and join his campaign in Benin,
the Edo capital.
“They said
that the former Edo governor cannot be trusted with power to lead the party at
the national level,” the party source said.
He further
revealed that those opposing Oshiomhole’s candidacy are rooting for the
re-election of Oyegun, whom the governors, especially, believe is humble and
accommodating of varied interests.
“Alternatively,
there are others who are canvassing for former Cross River governor Ebri who
will add fresh blood and ideas to the party,” he added.
In addition to turning their focus of who will lead the party after its convention, the party’s chieftains, THISDAY learnt, are in a battle of wits over who should draw up the membership of the convention list.
In addition to turning their focus of who will lead the party after its convention, the party’s chieftains, THISDAY learnt, are in a battle of wits over who should draw up the membership of the convention list.
It was
gathered that in anticipation that Buhari would have his way on the conduct of
congresses and the convention before the 2019 elections, the National Leader of
the APC, Chief Bola Tinubu, had recently rushed a list of convention committee
members to the president.
Some of
the party members on the list he presented to Buhari, said sources conversant
with the development, included Alhaji Bidi Lawal and Malam Kashim Imam to
represent the North-east; the national vice-chairman of the party in the
South-west zone, Chief Pius Akinyelure, Oyo State Governor Abiola Ajimobi,
House Leader Femi Gbajabiamila, and a former party chairman in Ogun State,
Alhaji Tajudeen Bello, to represent the South-West zone.
According
to sources, the list drawn up by Tinubu came to light during the meeting Buhari
had with the APC governors on the tenure elongation issue on Tuesday.
At the
meeting, the president was said to have mentioned the existence of a convention
list, which no one knew about but himself.
“Upon
sighting the list, nearly everyone knew who had drawn it up and immediately
protested because it was considered deliberately tilted against certain
interests in the party.
“It was for this reason the meeting between the president and the governors ended in a stalemate on Tuesday,” said one source.
“It was for this reason the meeting between the president and the governors ended in a stalemate on Tuesday,” said one source.
He also
revealed that for the North-east, two names – Lawal and Imam –were said to have
angered the Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima, who immediately said he would
not standby and allow names to be submitted from his state without anyone
consulting him.
The same
development was said to have triggered a similar reaction to the South-west
list.
Sources hinted that the Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun was particularly livid at the fact that someone had drawn up such a critical list without consultations and was said to have consequently protested to the president about the development.
Sources hinted that the Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun was particularly livid at the fact that someone had drawn up such a critical list without consultations and was said to have consequently protested to the president about the development.
Amosun was
quoted to have told the president that the list negated the spirit of
collegiate leadership, which the South-west APC once propounded at an earlier
meeting.
It was
against this backdrop that the president was said to have consented to some of
the proposed changes on the list, leading to two of the substitution of two of
the names for the South-west, in order to balance the varied interest groups in
the zone.
Although
THISDAY was not informed about the names of the replacements on the revised
convention list with Buhari, sources said one of those brought in to balance
the contending interests in the South-west zone was the former governor of
Ekiti State, Chief Niyi Adebayo.
Amosun was also said to have replaced Bello’s name with someone else’s name.
Amosun was also said to have replaced Bello’s name with someone else’s name.
But on
learning that the list he had submitted to Buhari had been tinkered with,
Tinubu was said to have been very angry and threatened fire and brimstone if he
did not get his way.
Other than
the amended list already in Buhari’s possession, the governors of the party are
also pushing to select the chairman of the convention committee.
It was
gathered that before they met with Oyegun privately on Wednesday, preparatory
to the larger meeting with the larger NWC of the APC, the governors had picked
Jigawa State Governor Abubakar Badaru as the convention committee chairman.
However,
during their private meeting with Oyegun where they tried to convince him to
shelve the tenure elongation for him and other executives, the APC chairman had
made it very clear that it was the responsibility of the NWC to pick members of
the convention committee, in accordance with the party’s constitution.
On this
issue, said a source, Oyegun was very adamant and could prove to be another
flash point that the APC would have to skillfully navigate in the days ahead.