*As APC begins reconciliation in Niger, Imo, Ogun
The Presidency of Nigeria says it has no partisan interest in the forthcoming governorship election in Edo State, South South of the country billed for September 19.
According to it, the repeated sentiments displayed by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over a recent video clip is a complete waste of time.
The PDP, in the last few days, had been holding several press briefings over a video clip showing the chief of staff to the President, Ibrahim Gambari, chatting with former national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, along a walkway in the presidential villa.
In one of its press conferences, PDP’s national chairman, Prince Uche Secondus called on the United Nation (UN), the European Union (EU) and other international bodies to place visa restriction on Gambari, Oshiomhole, and other individuals as punishment for allegedly plotting to truncate democracy and good governance in Nigeria.
But a top presidency source told State House correspondents that the opposition party made a mistake by trying to malign the person of the President’s Chief of Staff Professor Ibrahim Gambari, stressing that all the efforts directed at discrediting him have failed in the face of his solid credibility.
The source, who did not want his name in print, said the Chief of Staff was only doing his job of leading the former APC national chairman to meet with the President.
The Villa source further added that Oshiomhole had repeated what he said in the video at a press briefing after meeting with the President.
It would be recalled that Oshiomhole, while briefing State House correspondents after meeting with President Buhari, explained that he came to plead with the President to ensure security for the upcoming Edo State governorship election, citing threats of violence by PDP.
The Presidency source, however, wondered why the PDP decided to mudsling with “an incomplete information”, saying no one knew how the conversation started or how it ended.
The source added: “What PDP is doing is called ‘playing the devil’s card’, which is all about suggesting ideas into people’s heads, the truth does not matter in such an atmosphere. What I am convinced of is that even the leaders of the PDP know that what they are doing is wicked and unethical, but since it is politics, they believe anything goes.
“How do you know the ‘arrest’ in the conversation is for PDP elements? The target in this mudslinging is the chief of staff to the President, but their mistake is that this is not a man for this sort of politics. He is way above petty politicking. He is a career diplomat and hardly interested in this kind of politics, those who know him, know this much about him”.
In the meantime, as part of measures to fortify its structure ahead of 2023 general elections, the ruling APC has commenced moves to reconcile aggrieved members in Niger, Imo and Ogun States.
Caretaker committee chairman of the APC and Yobe State governor, Mai Mala-Buni, started the process by inaugurating a reconciliation committee made up of governors at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja over the weekend.
The reconciliation committee chaired by Jigawa State governor, Alhaji Abubakar Badaru, also has Governors Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa, Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti, Simon Lalong of Plateau and Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe as members.
Chairman of the APC caretaker committee expressed confidence in the committee’s capacity to execute the assignment with a sense of fairness, justice and responsibility, noting that they will place party interest above personal interest.
He said, “The ongoing reconciliatory initiatives of the All Progressives Congress will soon shake Nigeria’s political space with massive return of former members who felt aggrieved and unwillingly went to other political parties.
“Therefore, it is in the spirit of the ongoing reconciliation that the chairmen and members of the Imo and Ogun reconciliation committees were carefully selected to reconcile aggrieved members and groups within the party.
“You are enjoined to be guided by the terms of reference as contained in your letters of appointment,” he said.
Responding on behalf of the committee, Governor Badaru, while thanking the party leadership for giving members of his team an opportunity to serve the party, assured that the committee would make aggrieved members see the need for the reconciliation.
He said, “Strengthening and making the party strong is more important than individual interest and I’m sure they will see that, and they will agree to come to table and resolve all differences.
“And then we will have one single party that is committed and dedicated to fight for the people and continue to help people of Imo and Ogun States”.
In a related development, APC stakeholders in Niger State, comprising founding members, met in the state capital to interface on how to save the party from implosion.
The party leaders who met over the weekend in Minna, the state capital, blamed the crisis rocking the party on the antics of those they described as being desperate to achieve political ambitions in 2023.
Speaking at the meeting, Niger State APC chairman, Engineer Mohammad Jibrin Imam, said the allegations made against the party executive members are unfounded.
“The plan by some people is to ensure they do away with me to actualise their dreams of 2023 ambition,” Imam noted.
He noted that the state executive under his leadership remained the recognised body by the APC national secretariat in light of article 20 of the party’s constitution on the election of officials through congress or convention.
The Founding Fathers Forum chairman, Alhaji Abubakar Katcha, however declared the support of stakeholders for the party state executive led by Engineer Imam.
Secretary of the forum, Barrister Yusuf Lakpeni read a nine-point resolution of the meeting including “that Niger State APC as the ruling party in the state should work assiduously to retain power in 2023 and that party supremacy should be respected.”
