Buni and challenge of reconciliation in APC

By December, the Mai Mala Buni-led Caretaker Committee would have completed the six months tenure allotted to it when it was set up by the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC). TONY AKOWE looks at the challenges facing the committee and how far it has succeeded in discharging that responsibility

 

THE words of President Muhammadu Buhari at the National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) where the Mai Mala Buni-led Caretaker Committee was set up captured the need for genuine reconciliation within the governing party, which had been engrossed in internal crisis. President Buhari said: “The issues currently confronting our party at this time are such that should worry every party member. At the moment, our great party is faced with internal wrangling; there are on-going litigations amongst some party members and we cannot clearly ascertain the status of certain National Working Committee (NWC) members. What we see clearly emerging is that we are beginning to self-destruct. This, my dear party members, is not just regrettable but utterly gut-wrenching.”

Nevertheless, the idea of setting up the committee was criticised by several APC members and non-members alike. Such critics questioned the legitimacy of the committee, which has been saddled with the responsibility of carrying out reconciliation of members and conducting a national convention to elect a new executive for the party.

However, others argued that the Caretaker Committee derived its legitimacy from Article 13.3 (vi.) of the party’s constitution, which empowers the National Executive Committee (NEC), as the principal executive body with powers to “create, elect and appoint any committee it may deem necessary, desirable or expedient and assign to them such powers and functions as it may seem fit and proper”.

Incidentally, its chairman, who is also the governor of Yobe State, served as the National Secretary of the party before his election. This, it is said, puts him in a good position to understand the issues at stake because developments within the party obviously call for urgent measures to save it from collapse.

One of the issues that engendered crisis within the fold was the legitimacy or otherwise of holders of certain national offices of the party.  For instance, the crisis in the Edo State chapter between the faction loyal to Governor Godwin Obaseki who was then a member of the party and the former National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole led to suspensions and counter suspensions, as well litigations, with the court voiding the chairmanship of Oshiomhole. It was evident that the party was heading for the precipice.

While accepting the challenge to reposition the party and reconcile members, Buni said: “What happened to us as a party in the last few months is not totally strange in a big political party such as the All Progressives Congress (APC); internal disagreements are common in all political parties. So, ours is not an exception. lt is time for this committee, therefore, to commence the process of true reconciliation among leaders and members of the party at all levels. It is our belief that the decision by NEC to constitute this committee will mark the beginning of a new chapter in our great party. Change is inevitable and disagreement on issues and concepts are an integral part of the human and institutional relationship.

“As a political party built on strong ideology and parading men and women of enduring principle and integrity, we must prepare for real and anticipated changes and their consequences. The outcomes of changes that evolve in our party politics must be decided by us. From now onward, we will concentrate on medium and long term development of our strategies and internal organisation to support our public standing, as well as our chances of electoral successes in all future elections. This is the time for us to focus with determination to create adaptive institutional capacity to weather the current divisions in our party. I call on leaders and members of our great party to put the past behind us and strengthen ourselves for all current and future challenges.”

Immediately it was inaugurated, the Caretaker Committee met with key party stakeholders to chart a way forward. National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu welcomed the development. He told the committee on a visit to his Lagos residence: “When this matter first came to a boil a few months ago, I issued a statement against this litigious tendency. President Buhari and former Interim Chairman Akande published strong words against this misuse of the courts as being contrary to the spirit of the party and the letter of its constitution. Each of us knew nothing good would come of such conduct. Instead of listening to this counsel, party members increased their trips to the courts. While busy providing ample livelihood for a gaggle of lawyers, these actions cast the good of the party to the wind.”

Tinubu added: “The President has spoken and his decision has been accepted. It is now beholden on all of us, as members of the APC, to recommit ourselves to the ideals and principles on which our party was founded. While we recognise that people have personal ambitions, those ambitions are secondary, not sacrosanct. Members must subordinate their ambitions to the health and well-being of the party. Never should our party be defined by one person’s interests or even the amalgam of all members’ individual interests. A successful party must be greater than the sum of its parts.”

Everybody expected the ousted chairman (Oshiomhole) to take the decision harshly, but he did not. He said: “I am not going into the question of legality or illegality. The bottom line is that the President who invited me to lead the party and who mobilised all the support for my emergence as chairman also presided over the meeting where the NWC has now been dissolved.”

Oshiomhole also expressed his readiness to work for the building of a stronger party which the Buni-led committee was mandated to do.

Many believe that for a large and governing party like the APC, Buni and other members of the Caretaker Committee has always toed the line of compromise, temperance and internal democracy.  They have also been tackling the party’s internal squabbles as a family affair. Buni is described by party members as a stabilizing factor and a voice that is generally accepted. As a result, he has successfully forged a common ground among all the interests in the party.

To achieve the mandate given to it by the party, the Governor Buni-led APC Caretaker/Extra-Ordinary National Convention Planning Committee set out to carry out general reconciliation of members of the party across the land by creating a conducive, progressive and sincere environment to address many of the grievances among our party members.

It is obvious that the Caretaker Committee wants to be driven by the principles of internal democracy which is geared towards electing into public offices patriotic countrymen who will put the people first and contribute to achieving the Nigeria we all desire and deserve, a party which defends the fact that power belongs to the people and during elections, votes must count.

The chairman of the committee set out to assure members, especially those who left the fold that grievances were being looked into. He also enjoined them to return to the fold and join hands with other stakeholders to reposition the APC. Such efforts saw the return of the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara and Senator Barnabas Gemade among other top party leaders.

Another feat achieved by the Caretaker Committee is the successful resolution the factional and long-standing political disputes that rocked the Cross River State chapter. At the end of the day, Senator Matthew T. Mbu was unanimously mandated to assume the office of the state chairman. It also set up Reconciliation Committees for to reconcile aggrieved members in Oyo, Edo, Ondo, Imo, Ogun and Ekiti states.

The reconciliation committees for the conflict-ridden states are headed by the following: Sen. Ken Nnamani (Edo), Gov. Mohammed Bello (Ondo), Gov. Nasiru el-Rufai (Ekiti) and Gov. Mohammed Abubakar Badaru (Imo and Ogun). At the inauguration of the Imo and Ogun States Reconciliation Committees, Gov. Buni expressed the view that “the on-going reconciliatory initiatives of the All Progressives Congress will soon shock Nigeria’s political space with a massive return of former members who felt aggrieved and unwillingly went to other political parties”. This prophetic declaration is coming to fruition, as the reconciliatory initiatives continue to attract the former members who left the party to return.

The fact the party was able to resolve the dispute in the Ondo State chapter and forge a common front that saw the party emerging winner of the recent governorship election in the state is yet another feat, even though they were not able to reclaim the seat they lost in Edo due to the defection of Governor Obaseki to the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP). The prompt acceptance of defeat in Edo by the party has further given credence to the fact that the APC-led government at the centre wants to allow democracy to grow in the country.

But, the crisis rocking the Ekiti State chapter is a clear sign that there is much to be done by the Buni-led leadership. It was also not able to galvanize members in Edo State for a successful outing. The party failed for the first time to hold the grand finale of its campaign for the governorship seat. While some argued that leaders across the country were not happy with the Caretaker Committee for allowing Comrade Oshiomhole to lead the campaign, others believe that the party conceded defeat even before going to the polls by failing to conclude its campaign for the Edo governorship election.

The party has also not been able to address the crisis in its Zamfara chapter with the faction loyal to former Governor Abdulaziz Yari and that loyal to Senator Kabiru Marafa has continued their legal battle, despite the directive of President Buhari for members to withdraw all matters pending in court.

Even though many blame Oshiomhole for what the party has become in recent times, they, however, forgot that before the coming of the former Labour leader, the party was already neck-deep in crisis. The first crack came during the election of the leadership of the 8th National Assembly when candidates not anointed by the party took over the leadership of the National Assembly. The crisis got to its peak when the party went into the election to elect party leaders at the various levels, leading to the emergence of two state executives in many states.

While Buni and his team have succeeded in bringing harmony to the national leadership of the party and some state chapters, many states are still divided and would need reconciliation. The Caretaker Committee chairman also needs to ensure that many party leaders who appear to be working at cross purposes at the moment work in harmony.

One area the party must work on before the next round of elections is the zoning of party offices. Some leaders of the party are already poised to ensure that the position of the National Chairman goes to somebody from the Northwest. Buni and his team has said it was not within their mandate to zone party offices but the question is what are they doing to ensure that a new leadership emerge at the end of their six-month mandate?

Also, many members across the country expected that they would have come up with a clear-cut timetable for the election of a new leadership for the party. By December, the committee is supposed to be winding up and putting in place a new leadership. But, this does not appear feasible at the moment. Already, many members have insinuated that the Buni-led leadership was lobbying for an extension of its six months tenure.