Nathaniel Zaccheaus
The National Vice Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the North West geopolitical zone, Salihu Moh. Lukman has raised the alarm over alleged plans by desperate aspirants for the presiding officers’ positions in the 10th National Assembly, to frustrate the incoming administration of the President-Elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
Lukman, who stated this in a statement made available to journalists in Abuja on Tuesday, further alleged that aspirants in their desperation, had reached out to members of the NWC of the APC to stop the proposed zoning arrangements that would produce the presiding officers of the two chambers.
He confirmed that some of the desperate aspirants had started buying gifts, and spending foreign currencies on both elected members of the 10th National Assembly and the leadership of the party to buy their ways to office.
He expressed the fears that the desperate aspirants might have their ways if not immediately checked because they have no respect for national unity and the person of Asiwaju Tinubu and Senator Kashim Shettima.
Lukman said rather than rendering service when they get into office, the cash and carry presiding officers’ aspirants if they had their way, could work with the opposition to bring down the incoming administration.
He said, “Once aspirants win leadership positions through cash-and-carry methods, their loyalty to the government led by Asiwaju Tinubu and the APC will be weak.
“Such a person could even hold the Government hostage in pursuance of their personal ambitions, which is known only to themselves.
“With all these worrisome developments, the passive and almost unresponsive calmness of members of the APC NWC led by Sen. Abdullahi Adamu is highly disturbing.
“It is giving credence to the speculation that some of these cash-and-carry aspirants for a leadership position in the 10th National Assembly may have bribed the NWC not to initiate actions to zone positions in the leadership of the 10th National Assembly.
“Otherwise, why is the NWC unable to convene meetings of organs of the party to invoke Article 13.4(vi) of the APC constitution, which directs the NWC to “propose electoral guidelines and regulations governing the conduct of elections to party offices at all levels, and procedure for selecting Party candidates for elective offices?”
“It is very disturbing and highly unacceptable that something as sensitive as electoral guidelines and regulations for electing leaders of the 10th National Assembly will be left to public speculations.
“This is a period when opposition political parties are practically taken over by combinations of religious bigots and political opportunists who will go to any length to manufacture lies aimed at manipulating gullible citizens to support them.
“We can’t allow the contest for leadership of the 10th National Assembly to continue unregulated. Everything must be done to mobilise all committed party leaders and members to call all APC elected representatives aspiring for positions in the leadership of the 10th National Assembly to order.
“Accordingly, the APC should take every step to sanction all those mobilising support for their so-called aspirations based on the cash-and-carry method.
“We must appeal to both President Muhammadu Buhari and Asiwaju Tinubu to promptly urge our National Chairman, Sen. Abdullahi Adamu and the whole NWC to immediately restore constitutional order within the APC.
“The audacious impudence of our elected representatives aspiring for leadership positions in the 10th National Assembly is only a reflection of the dysfunctionality of the organs of the party.
“This has been the cause of all the leadership challenges facing the party since the time of Chief John Odigie-Oyegun.
“So long as organs of the party are not meeting as provided in the constitution of the party, decisions required to regulate the conduct of party leaders and members, including the sensitive issue of zoning party leadership will be absent.
“Once that is the case, leaders and members can go to every extent to achieve their narrow objective of winning election into leadership positions even if that will undermine the peaceful co-existence of Nigeria and the electoral viability of the APC as a political party.
“Our Governors and all our party leaders must also be reminded about their abiding commitment to the unity and peaceful co-existence of Nigeria.
“This was responsible for their support for the emergence of Asiwaju Tinubu as the candidate of our party for the 2023 elections.
“It can be said without any doubt that the support of our governors and leaders of the party go beyond the emergence of Asiwaju Tinubu as our Presidential candidate, which was responsible for why they all mobilised Nigerians to vote for him and emerge the President-elect of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“Now that he is elected, that support must also translate to cooperation, partnership, and collaboration to ensure that his government succeeds in renewing the hope of all Nigerians irrespective of our differences across ethnic and religious divides.
“Therefore, everything must be done to regulate the conduct of all aspiring candidates for leadership positions of the 10th National Assembly to comply with the constitutional obligation of promoting national unity and peaceful co-existence.
“All APC leaders and members should be called upon to intervene individually and collectively.
“They should kindly call all aspiring candidates for leadership positions in the 10th National Assembly to strictly conduct themselves ethically with the highest respect for Nigerians and in compliance with the provisions of the constitutions of both the APC and the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“Both constitutions compel everyone to promote national unity and peaceful co-existence of the country.
“Promoting national unity under the Asiwaju Tinubu-led Federal Government to be inaugurated on May 29 would require that, at the minimum, the Senate President should be a Christian from either the South-East or South-South.
“In addition, any candidate who is mobilising support based on cash-and-carry methods will not be loyal to Asiwaju Tinubu-led government and therefore a potential risk to such a government.
“Everything must be done to ensure that the configuration of the Asiwaju Tinubu-led Federal Government commands the support of all Nigerians irrespective of our differences”
