By David Lawani
The day the All Progressives Congress (APC) had its state congresses election would be remembered for different reasons. One of the reasons is that on that Saturday, October 16, 2021,, most of the states had parallel congresses, and that signalled danger ahead of its national convention. Again, a party that prides itself as the ruling party could not practice what it preaches to its members by way of respecting the party constitution. To that extent, it has become clear that all is not well with the party as the congresses were a show of disappointments.

An examination of what transpired in the various states where most of these parallel congresses took place it only points to what is to be expected during the national convention. Although no date has been fixed for it. It is good to state that on or before April 2022, the convention should have been held. The following states; Kano, Akwa Ibom, Niger, Lagos, Osun, Kwara, Ogun had their congresses marred due to power of supremacy among political forces who do not want their political hold on the party to be challenged irrespective of the issues.

In the case of Kano state, the sitting governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, and the Senator representing Kano Central district, Ibrahim Shekarau, slogged it out. The senator accused the governor of manipulating the whole process to the disadvantage of other members of the party. He said he has written to the national headquarters of the party to express his misgiving over the congress’s right from the ward, local, and up till state congresses that was just conducted recently.

What this purports is gloomy days ahead of the APC family in the state. Senator Shekarau had shortly after the congresses in a statement, said they were standing firm on their earlier decision to pursue justice and would not submit to the newly elected officials of the party in the state until the National Headquarters respond to their request and their members are fairly served. “We will only listen to the national headquarters of the party whom we earlier reported our grievances to and our factional elected executives under the leadership of Ahmadu Danzago remain,” the two-time former governor said.

Also, in Akwa Ibom, there was confusion as four APC state chairmen emerged following the state congresses held by the party. They are Augustine Ekanem, Steve Ntukekpo, Douglas Pepple, and another who is said to have emerged from the group loyal to Bishop Akpan, another APC chieftain in the state.

Ntukekpo emerged from the congress held by a group loyal to the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs and former governor of the state, Senator Godswill Akpabio, while Pepple emerged from the congress held by the group loyal to a Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Ita Enang.

Meanwhile, the state Caretaker Committee Chairman, Dr. Ita Udose, in a statement, however, said Augustine Ekanem is the authentic chairman of the party in the state.

According to him, “In line with the Constitution of the APC, I wish to bring to the notice of all APC members and the general public that the official results of the state congress elections conducted through open secret balloting on October 16 at Sheergrace Arena, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State as announced by the seven-man state congress committee from Abuja, who conducted the exercise. “The attendance cuts across all the major shades of opinion in our party and there was no one left in doubt as regards the authenticity of the congress which was very peaceful.

“The party implores any member who has anything against the conduct of the party congresses to get ready to present it before the 5-man state congress appeal committee that will be set up very soon,” the statement said.

Reports gathered by ThisNigeria stated that Akpabio and Enang, whose groups held parallel congresses were, however, listed among party members who attended the congress that produced Ekanem.

In the case of Delta, some stakeholders of the party have asked the APC Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee to cancel congresses held in the state. The stakeholders include the Minister of State for Labour and Productivity, Festus Keyamo; a former Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly, Victor Ochei; Delta APC Caretaker Committee Chairman, Elvis O. Ayomanor; the Secretary of the state APC Leaders’ Council, Cairo Ojougboh and 15 others.

In a statement addressed to journalists, the stakeholders said as leaders of the party in the state, they were not part of the “kangaroo” state congresses organized by some politicians in the state. The Bauchi State experience was not different as stakeholders failed to agree on the position of the state chairman of the party. It was said that failure by power brokers to reach a consensus on the matter led to the emergence of two-state chairmen as parallel congresses were held in the state.

Babayo Misau, who is said to have the backing of the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, emerged at the Pali Suite, while Sunusi Kunde, said to have been supported by Nigeria’s Ambassador to Germany, Maitama Tuggar, emerged after two other contestants stepped down at their congress held at Zaranda Hotel.

While declaring Misau as the new chairman, the Secretary, State Congress Committee, Alkali Kolo, said they were mandated by the APC National Secretariat to conduct a rancour-free election.

On their part, the stakeholders under the leadership of Adamu Noma, from Bauchi Central Zone, insisted that Sunusi Kunde is the duly elected chairman of the state.

Noma claimed some of the critical stakeholders of the party attempted to hijack the congress through “a rancorous meeting” in Abuja, that sought to produce a consensus candidate anointed by the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu.

But APC Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Yekini Nabena, reportedly said the party would recognise the executives that emerged from the congresses conducted by its state congress committee. In another dimension to the crisis rocking the APC in Niger State, some dissatisfied members of the party who were denied from being screened for the state congress went ahead to conduct a parallel congress.

The members are those who accused the screening committee of doing the bidding of the state government, Muhammed Bello, thereby denying them screening and accreditation for participation in the congress. The parallel election which resulted in new executives had 1,500 APC members in attendance. The parallel executives were sworn in at a building in Bay Clinic road in Tunga after they were prevented from gaining access to the Abdusalam Youth Centre which was locked up by the state government despite it being booked and approved by the management.

The new Factional Chairman, Nasiru Yusuf Ubandiya in his speech noted that the election they held is legal as there were INEC representatives, Congress Committee from Abuja, security agencies, CSOs, and other stakeholders who witnessed the election. He said the election showed that he scored the highest vote in the 1,467 votes cast and was returned as the democratically elected chairman of the APC in Niger State.

He said he will take the state chapter of the APC to the next level while calling on all party stakeholders and members to give the new administration all the necessary support and cooperation, adding that they have forgiven all those that have wronged them and the party. Also, the factional Secretary, Noami Dauda, maintained that they were the real elected executives of the APC in Niger State, adding that they are not fractionalised with any group.

The Niger South APC Chairman, Mohammed Saba in his acceptance speech said everyone who contested the election had bought their forms at the APC National Secretariat, stressing that those who emerged are not a faction but real executives of the APC in the state. In Lagos, the Executive Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu to do the bidding of the national leader of the party, Bola Tinubu, led a group that had their congresses. Another led by former governor, Akinwumi Ambode, also conducted theirs.

ThisNigeria gathered that there were reports of two additional congresses that were also conducted in Lagos state. All this points to the fact that there is inherent infighting in the party in Lagos and when these crises will be resolved before the convention no one can readily tell

The situations were not different in Enugu, Osun, Kwara, and Ogun where parallel congresses were conducted. The courts will be busy either nullifying or declaring some factions to be the authentic and well recognised executive of the ward, local and state executive members. An indication that the party crisis in the states was not abating.

Every leader belongs to a camp and this is showing clearly that dangers are waiting to make the party implode expectedly. The party needs to sit up if it doesn’t want the opposition waiting in the wings to snap victory from her hands as the nation prepares gradually ahead of the general election in 2023.

Lagos APC: Much ado about a state congress

It is no wonder that recently after the National Assembly has empowered the Independent National Assembly to deploy any use to conduct its elections using technology to facilitate the process, the Senate has also mulled the idea of ensuring political parties use direct methods in conducting their primaries which will give every member of the party a sense of belonging, according to the argument.