Can El-Rufai panel paper over cracks in Ekiti APC crisis?

The national leadership of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has inaugurated a six-member peace panel headed by the Kaduna State Governor Malam Nasir El-Rufai with a mandate to reconcile warring party’s members in Ekiti State chapter. RASAQ IBRAHIM examines the issues within the chapter and the uphill task before the peace panel.

 

THE ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has been wallowing in a long-drawn and fierce self-inflicted political storm. The crisis has inexplicably defied spirited attempts made to ensure that peace reigns in the chapter. This had led to the widespread public perception that the party, perhaps, is jinxed.

The seemingly intractable crisis has no doubt breed unnecessary rivalry which is currently shaking the foundation of the party. The issue at stake is the struggle for political relevance and the control of the party’s soul.

The party was recently embroiled in a fresh crisis following the suspension and counter-suspension of party leaders by factions. This situation prompted swift interventions of the APC caretaker panel led by Yobe State Governor Mai Mala Buni to halt the crisis in the Ekiti chapter.

A faction of the party loyal to Governor Kayode Fayemi had suspended the Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Babafemi Ojudu; Oyetunde Ojo, an in-law to the National Leader of the APC, Bola Tinubu, and nine others. In response, they also suspended Governor Fayemi and other party leaders loyal to him over alleged sundry allegations.

This, observers believe, may not be unconnected with a subtle quest to control the state ahead of the 2022 governorship poll. The crisis is a fallout of the intrigues that led to the emergence of Fayemi as the party’s governorship candidate in 2018. His emergence against all odds raised a lot of dust but thanks to the reconciliatory efforts of both President Muhamnadu Buhari and Asiwaju Bola Tinubu which calm frayed nerves.

However, rather than close ranks after Fayemi’s inauguration and work together for the benefit of Ekiti people, the aggrieved members have been engaged in divisive politics.

Key members under the aegis of the Ekiti APC Stakeholders are up in arms against Governor Fayemi. They included former Minister of Works, Senator Dayo Adeyeye, Senator Ojudu, Senator Tony Adeniyi, former House of Reps members Oyetunde Ojo, Bimbo Daramola and Robinson Ajiboye, as well as former Ekiti State Assembly Speaker, Adewale Omirin.

Others are former Chief Whip, Femi Adeleye, an Australian-based physician, Dr. Oluwole Oluyede, Akogun Bunmi Ogunleye, Shoga Owoeye, Bamgboye Adegoroye, Mr. Ben. Oguntuase, Chief Akin Akomolafe, Ayo Ajibade, Dele Afolabi and Tayo Oluwasola.

The stakeholders, under the leadership of Ojudu, have become an albatross around Fayemi’s neck. The effect of the rivalry is still unsettling the chapter.

Before the crisis became full-blown all the parties had been playing the ostrich, claiming that all was well. But the cat was let out of the bag when Ojudu and others approached the court to challenge the validity of the party’s executive members at state, local governments and ward levels.

In the suit, the plaintiffs alleged that the party did not conduct wards, local governments and state congresses and that they were handpicked by Governor Fayemi. They prayed that the court should declare the process that produced the executives null and void. They alleged that the executive members were handpicked at the private residence of the Minister of Trade and Investment Otunba Niyi Adebayo in Iyin Ekiti.

Justifying the court action, the aggrieved stakeholders said they had exhausted all the internal mechanism to resolve the matter before approaching the court.

One of the aggrieved stakeholders said the litigation was part of a series of plans to neutralise Fayemi’s grips within the party ahead of the 2022 election. He said: “I can confirm to you that politics in Ekiti APC will be intense in a few years to come. It’s all about power struggle. The crux of the matter is the next governorship election, which is two years away. You know Fayemi won’t contest but he surely has an unbridled interest in who succeeds him. So, this is what we want to prevent. It’s going to be a fight-to-finish.”

Apparently miffed by the constant verbal attack on the Fayemi’s government, the party’s national leadership called for a stakeholders’ meeting to discuss the matter. But, the aggrieved chieftains did not attend, claiming they were not invited for the meeting.

But, sources said the notice of the meeting was sent to all statutory APC members, including the aggrieved members except those on suspension. Though, there have been several peace moves to unite the chapter, they have not yielded positive results.

To calm the situation, the state executive committee set-up a 10-man panel led by the former chairman, Chief Jide Awe to reconcile the warring factions. Shortly after its inauguration, the Awe-led panel swung into action. But, the group led by Ojudu neither made themselves available before the peace committee nor submit any memoranda.

A member of the peace panel said all efforts to meet the aggrieved chieftains were thwarted. The source noted that the aggrieved chieftains deliberately ignored a series of proposed meetings within and outside the state. He said: “The fact is that they didn’t appear. The committee wrote to them that they will meet them at the residence of Senator Tony Adeniyi in Akure, Ondo State. But, they were indifference to it.”

A source within the Ojudu-led camp said the group was indifference to the Awe-led reconciliation panel owing to the fact that almost 98 per cent of its members were loyalists of Governor Fayemi. He said the troubleshooting effort was not a genuine one.

Worried by the recalcitrant posture of the aggrieved members, the Buni-led caretaker committee wrote a letter to the state chapter, instructing regional leaders to commence the process of suspension for erring members.

A top-ranking member who confided in our correspondent said that the caretaker committee has already written two letters asking state chapters to ensure compliance; the third may be a call for action. He said: “I think it was in view of the above that the national leadership ordered all the state chapters, including Ekiti to set up a disciplinary committee to begin the process of suspension of the erring members.”

With this development, the Omotosho-led executive committee inaugurated an eight-member panel chaired by a former House of Assembly Speaker, Patrick Ajibolamu to find out why some members violated the National Executive Committee’s resolution on litigation against the party.

The State Director of Publicity, Sam Oluwalana said the action followed the directive of the NEC to the state chapter to “immediately set up a disciplinary committee to commence and complete the process of suspension of the affected members from the party”.

The affected members are Ojudu; son-in-law to Senator Bola Tinubu, Oyetunde Ojo; former governorship aspirant, Dr Wole Oluyede; Ayo Ajibade; Femi Adeleye; Chief Akin Akomolafe; Bamigboye Adegoroye; Olusoga Owoeye; Dele Afolabi; Toyin Oluwasola; Ben Oguntuase and Bunmi Ogunleye.

But, in a swift reaction, the aggrieved chieftains described the action of the state chapter as a nullity and of no effect. They vowed not to appear before the disciplinary panel which described as ‘kangaroo’.

In a September 16 three-page letter to the Patrick Ajigbolamu-led panel, the chieftains said the decision to begin the expulsion process was not only an illegal contraption alien to the provisions of the APC constitution but also contemptuous of the existing case still pending in court.

The embattled chieftains, in the letter written by their lawyer, Chief Ademuyiwa Adeniyi, faulted the constitution of the panel, saying the state Chairman, Paul Omotosho was interested in the crisis. They said Omotosho could not be a judge in his own case, adding that the leaders would not get a fair hearing, considering comments from members of the panel and leaders of the party pre-empting the outcome.

The aggrieved leaders said they would not honour the panel’s invitation ‘as it is subjudice in law with consequences’, insisting that they would continue to fight the matter in court.

They explained that they have exhausted the party’s internal conflict resolution mechanism before opting for a legal option to fight for justice, adding that although they were open to a genuine reconciliation but withdrawing the case could not be by fiat.

The crisis, however, took a perilous twist on September 24 when the state APC wielded the big stick by slamming an indefinite suspension on Ojudu and 10 other leaders for alleged disobedience to the directive of the party’s NEC.

In a statement by the party’s Publicity Secretary, Ade Ajayi, it said the action was taken against Ojudu and others for defying NEC over their refusal to withdraw their suit in court.

However, in a deft political counter move, the suspended leaders on September 25 announced the suspension of Governor Fayemi over alleged anti-party activities. They said the governor had violated the provision of the party’s constitution by working against the interest of APC in the just-concluded governorship election in Edo State by supporting the candidate of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), Governor Godwin Obaseki.

The governor was accused of hosting former Minister of Aviation and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode in Ekiti for days before the Edo poll, “where they perfected the coup against our party in Edo State”.

They also announced that the executive committee led by Omotosho should stop parading itself as the party’s executive, describing it as an illegal party executive.

Reacting to the purported suspension, Fayemi described it as a joke taken too far, saying that those who carried out the alleged suspension are unknown to Ekiti APC. He said the APC is being governed by laws, noting that members of the group cannot hide under their recent suspension to announce a dubious suspension they lack the locus to handle.

He said: “While one would have dismissed their claims as another failed attempt to polarise the party in the state, it is also important to put it on record that the action of the group smacks of criminal impersonation as none of those who signed the purported suspension letter were executive members of the party at ward, Local government or state level.

“The action is but a joke taken too far as they never had such power they want to arrogate to themselves while they were members of the party much less now that they have been suspended.

“Governor Fayemi, however, remains unperturbed by this antics of suspended members. Well-meaning members of the public, as well as members of APC, are urged to disregard the news of the purported suspension as it only exists in the imagination of members of the group.

Meanwhile, the national leadership has waded in to stop the situation from further degenerating. The Buni-led committee nullified the suspension of Governor Fayemi and the earlier indefinite suspension on Ojudu and 10 others.

Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Yekini Nabena said: “The attention of the National Secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has been drawn to a purported and widely-reported “suspension” of Governor Fayemi, as well as an earlier reported ‘indefinite suspension’ of some other party members. For the avoidance of doubt, the Omotosho-led executive is the authentic, valid and the duly recognised executive, as no factions or divisions exist in the state.”

In a bid to return peace to Ekiti APC, the national leadership had set up a six-member panel to broker peace in the state chapter. The panel saddled with the sole mandate of calming frayed nerves was chaired by Governor El-Rufai, while Ini Morgan was named Secretary.