APC Leaders and the National Assembly Debacle -By Olukayode Thomas

Olukayode Thomas

In this season of political correctness, when many of our elites and thousands of political jobbers and hustlers with ‘excellent resume and contacts’ are looking for all manners of appointments, speaking against the interest of the ruling class is an abomination.

The reason we abhor or are stingy with the truth is simple; it could affect our breakthrough. So, when a man chooses to be different, he not only deserves to be praised, but we must also admire the courage of APC Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Timi Frank, who was bold enough to blame the party’s national chairman, John Odigie Oyegun, and some members of the National Working Committee (NWC) for the current crisis engulfing APC and rightly called for their resignation.

Frank, with the benefit of insight, revealed that APC leaders embarked on an embarrassing mock election that never had the blessings of the entire party’s leadership. Events of the last few weeks support Frank’s assertion. APC leaders’ shenanigans since April are enough to prove to discerning and unbiased observers that some of the party’s leaders are bent on thwarting internal democracy in the party, as revealed in the process of electing consensus candidates for the election of the national assembly principal officers.

After the governorship elections in April, the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC rose from a meeting to announce that they had zoned the position of Senate President to the North-Central and Speaker of the House of Representatives to the North-East. Some leaders of the party rubbished the decision of the NWC and insisted that merit rather than zoning would determine who became the next Senate President. Later, the same party’s leadership informed the media that the decision of the NWC would only stand if endorsed by the NEC of the party.

Not done with double speak, the leaders subsequently said the position would be zoned to the North-East and that Senator Ahmed Lawan was the preferred candidate because he is the most senior APC senator, and is thus favoured by ranking. Secondly, they pointed out that North-East voted massively for the APC and lastly, that the zone has been ravaged by insurgence in the last few years, and therefore deserves to be compensated. When all these shenanigans failed to fly, they concluded that at the party retreat for elected senators, there will be a mock election to select a consensus candidate for the party.

At the retreat, two groups emerged, the Senate Unity Forum led by Barnabas Gemade backing Lawan and the Senators of Like Minds led by Dino Melaye backing Bukola Saraki. The Like Minds, 35 in number, arrived at the venue as a group with the determination to vote for Saraki at the end of the retreat. When the Gemade led Unity Forum realised that their candidate, Lawan, would lose, they stormed out of the retreat and went to address a press conference where they unveiled Lawan as their candidate for senate president and George Akume as his deputy. If the party leaders were unbiased, they ought to have sanctioned members of the Unity Forum for walking out on the party and boycotting the retreat; but to the dismay of Nigerians, they were not even reprimanded.

Another meeting was slated for the selection of a consensus candidate, this time at the International Conference Centre, on the Thursday preceding the Saturday mock election. Again, the Lawan group not only boycotted the meeting, but the party did not sanction them. Between that Thursday and the Saturday of the mock election, some leaders of the party who were bent on foisting Lawan on the party as a consensus candidate intimidated and coerced some of the Saraki supporters to back Lawan. In the run up to the election, the number of senators rooting for Lawan and Saraki were not clear.

Though some members of the Like Minds promised to vote for Lawan after being coerced and intimidated, APC leaders were not comfortable with their words, like those of the members of the House of Representatives who promised to vote for Femi Gbajabiamila.

To be on the side of caution, the party leaders decided to use a secret ballot for the election of the Speaker of the House of Representative and a open ballot for that of the Senate President. Also, news had filtered to the APC leaders that the ‘new converts’ from Like Minds to the Lawan group had decided to vote for Saraki after all, since it was going to be a secret ballot and no one would know how they had voted.

When the APC leaders insisted on a open ballot, Saraki’s group knew some of the senators might not be bold enough to dare certain leaders who had been pressuring them to vote for Lawan and they decided to boycott the election unless a secret ballot was used. A open ballot system, they argued, was not only against the party’s tradition, but was also unconstitutional. Also, at that point, the Like Minds probably concluded that the party had made up its mind to foist Lawan on members as consensus candidate, and that further participation in meetings or mock elections would be an exercise in futility, thus their decision to align with Senators from other parties.

Would Senators of Like Minds have aligned with the main opposition party, PDP, if the process had been transparent? It could probably have swung either way, due to the unpredictably of politics and politicians, which perhaps is one of its strong attraction for some. However, the following are some lessons for the APC and the party’s leaders.

The leadership of ruling parties must realise that they are like parents with many children, once they show affection for a particular child, or preference for one against the others, this would lead to the rebellion of the others. APC leaders must also realise that they are in power today because the PDP shot itself in the foot by killing internal democracy. The National Assembly crisis must be a huge lesson for the party. Going forward, justice and fair play must their watch word.

As a former First Lady of Lagos, Remi Tinubu has been the darling of millions, but two ugly incidents at the National Assembly are changing that perception. First was the harassment of Musiliu Obanikoro, a former party member and friend, on the floor of the Senate Chamber; many excused that because of Obanikoro’s antecedents, but refusing to shake Saraki’s hand was one incident a bit too much.

For earlier declaring on live television that, ‘Buhari is a product of the APC, not its leader,’ Alhaji Lai Mohammed would continue to regret this statement in certain moments. Maybe, he might require a crash programme in crisis management to prevent future errors in this mould.

Bola Tinubu as APC leader must start being a leader of all. In the run up to the National Assembly elections, it was crystal clear that he was behind the candidacy of both Ahmad Lawan and Femi Gbajabiamila. He ought to have emulated Buhari by standing clear of the politics of who leads the National Assembly. The remark attributed to him that he would never recognise Saraki as Senate President is not expected of a leader.

Now that Bukola Saraki is Senate President, he must realise that he is no longer representing Kwara Central and Senators of Like Minds, but his constituency is Nigeria and the entire senate. All the senators, irrespective of the group they belong to or their party affiliations must be carried along in the workings of the Senate. Any attempt to victimise a member could lead to a divided senate, and if the senate collapses, the head takes the blame; likewise if it succeeds.

For the Nigerian public to use the occurrences at the National Assembly on inauguration day to judge the leadership of Senator Saraki and Hon. Yakubu Dagora may be a bit harsh. Following the sequence of events that led to that decision will be a fair and just assessment.