APC Crisis: Oyegun, the sacrificial lamb

The controversies surrounding tenure elongation for all national officers of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) had enjoyed considerable public discourse for some weeks until Presidential fiat offered those seemingly favoured, both the carrot and the stick. In this article, ABDULRAHMAN ZAKARIYAU, adduces reasons why Chief John Oyegun may have been sacrificed for Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu
The birth of Trouble Significantly, the All Progressives Congress (APC) was formed in February 2013, as a result of an alliance of Nigeria’s then four biggest opposition parties, the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), a faction of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and faction of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) referred to as the New PDP (NPDP). From the merger, it was obvious to many political observers that the new political party that will be trouble or crisis prone was just given birth to.
This was probably because of the personalities involved and the parties. But surprisingly, the party quickly appointed the former Governor of Osun State, Chief Bisis Akande to help lead the Interim Team, that was expected to cement the merger. Consequently, Akande laid the foundation for the merger to rest on and for a while, the party was able to manage its troubles. However, in the early hours of 14th of June, 2014, the first executive governor of Edo State, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun emerged as the new National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), at the party’s first elective convention which took place in Abuja.
His emergence was historic, as he was able to get the support of most party stalwarts including that of the former Governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu; the last support he received was probably that of the former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who’s most preferred candidates. Chief Tom Ikimi withdraw from the contest. Oyegun became the first elected National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress. Under his watch, the All Progressive Congress was able to coast to victory, as the unseat an incumbent President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and his party, the People Democratic Party (PDP) Oyegun vs Tinubu About four years after his emergence and after the party’s emergence at the central level, the party has witnessed some development and challenges. Interestingly, the relationship between the national chairman of the APC, Chief John OdigieOyegun and that of the party National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, lingered to the extent that, the later called for the resignation of the former.
The genesis of their problems can be traced down to Kogi state gubernatorial election. Tinubu has not hid his feelings against the party chairman since the death of then-candidate Abubakar Audu in 2015. After the demise of Audu, Tinubu wanted his anointed candidate Abiodun Faleke, who was to be Audu’s deputy during the elections, to be sworn-in as governor against the Nigerian Constitution, but his plan was allegedly cut short by Oyegun, in favour of the incumbent Governor Yahayah Bello. Similarly, they had another faceoff in the 2016 Ondo State gubernatorial party primary. When the process did not favour Tinubu’s preferred candidate, Oke, he revolted and called for Oyegun’s resignation.
Tinubu accused Oyegun of sabotaging the will of democracy in Ondo State by allegedly overriding the decision of the appeal panel which asked for a fresh governorship primary, following investigations that showed that the delegates’ list used for the exercise was tampered with. In the communiqué, Tinubu said “Evidently, some errant members believe promises and vows are mere words to be easily spoken and more easily broken. Chairman John Oyegun has breached these good pledges in a most overt and brazen display. In doing so, Oyegun has dealt a heavy blow to the very party he professes to lead. “It is an awful parent who suffocates his own child for the sake of a few naira.
The party was supposed to buttress APC members elected to government at all levels. Because of Oyegun’s conduct of our affairs, the party is rapidly becoming an albatross to those it was meant to help”, Tinubu said. In his response Oyegun, described Tinubu’s letter to him about the Ondo election as “reckless falsehood.” Despite all these, President Muhammadu Buhari appointed Asiwaju Bola Tinubu to reconcile all the aggrieved party members. Surprisingly, after its first reconciliatory meeting with the party National Working Committee (NWC), pundits expressed hope, that both Oyegun and Tinubu had shelved their swords for a lasting peace within the party. Interestingly, a letter dated February 21, 2018, addressed to President Buhari, copied to the Vice-President, Yemi Osinbajo, Senate President, Bukola Saraki and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara from the office of the Chief mediator was leaked to the press. In the said letter, Tinubu accused Oyegun of “sabotaging his Presidential assignment”.
Though, Oyegun after his meeting with President Buhari sometimes last week, assured Tinubu of his total support in reconciling all aggrieved party members. On this note, analysts are of the view that, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is using his new “Presidential Assignment” to plot for the downfall of Chief John Odigie Oyegun led National Committee. Political observers and Nigerians in general, are left to wonder whether Chief John Odigie was about to be sacrifice for peace within the ruling party.
NEC moves As usual, the All Progressive Congress (APC), did not discussed Oyegun’s NWC tenure elongation and Tinubu’s stand at the caucus meeting that was held on Monday, 26th February, 2018 at the Presidential Villa. But, most party governors and members of APC National Executive Council (NEC) notably passed a vote of confidence on the Chief John Oyegun and other members of the National Working Committee. However, on Tuesday 27th February, 2018 the party after the NEC meeting announced the elongation of the tenure of the national working committee (NWC) of the party led by John Oyegun by 12 months. A pro Oyegun Governor immensely benefited from Oyegun’s magnanimity Kogi state Governor, Yahaya Bello, who addressed the press noted that the extension would take effect from June 30.
According to him, “The NEC met today and major decisions in line with the constitution of the party. We all aware that the tenure of current NWC and the executive members of this party both elected and appointed come to an end June this year. “Considering the time left for the party to conduct all the congresses and conventions and considering that our leader Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been charged with the responsibility of reconciling all aggrieved members of our party, we cannot afford to approach the general election with more disputes and crises adding that party have decided on line with article 13 which empowers the NEC to carry out the functions of its convention and the NEC has decided to extend the tenure of current NWC other executive committees at various levels for another 12months starting from June 30th.” June 30th.
” It was later revealed that some pro-Buhari governors who are also benefiting from Oyegun’s NWC subtly persuades the President that it was better to elongate Oyegun’s tenure than risk a new convention that could further fracture the party. Though for a while now, many analysts opined that for a lasting peace to return to the ruling party, it depends largely on the ability of the Oyegun-led NWC and the Governors who are party leaders at their various states.
The decision of the NEC on elongation of Oyegun’s tenure elongation appears as if they were all prepared to sacrifice some else, until the game changed. President Buhari’s constitutional observation It was obvious that the President was either convinced or confused to accept Oyegun’s NWC tenure elongation, as after giving it an afterthought and its possible implications on his political ambition as alleged by pundits, President Buhari reconsidered his earlier stand on tenure elongation. President Buhari on 27 March, 2018 at another NEC meeting in the party secretariat firmly raised a constitutional observation to kick against the tenure elongation of the All Progressive Congress (APC) National Working Committee (NWC), led by John Oyegun, chairman of the party.
Surprisingly, the President said “on my own part, I have taken some time to review and seek advice on the resolution. And what I found is that it contravenes both our party Constitution and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. While the APC Constitution, in Article 17(1) and 13.2(B), limits the tenure of elected officers to four years, renewable once by another election, the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (as amended), in section 223, also prescribes periodic elections for party executives at regular intervals, which must not exceed four years.
He added that, “in this circumstance, what is expected of us is to conduct fresh elections, once the tenure of the current executives approaches its end. A Caretaker Committee cannot remedy this situation, and cannot validly act in place of elected officers. He insisted that, “I am therefore of the firm view that it is better to follow strictly the dictates of our party and national constitutions, rather than put APC and its activities at grave risk. Many pundits described the President’s as an afterthought and a political move.
To them, President Muhammadu Buhari has decided to sacrifice Chief John Oyegun for his second coming. Governors backslide Consequently, sometimes last week the 24 governors of the party threw their weight behind President Buhari’s decision to end the tenure of the incumbent National Chairman of the party, John Odigie-Oyegun and other members of the party’s executive.
This was after a meeting witg President Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Tuesday 3rd April, 2018. Interestingly, the Governors decision came on a day the 10-man committee set up by Chief OdigieOyegun, to resolve the tenure elongation logjam, promised to submit its report. Addressing State House correspondents after the meeting with President Buhari, Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum, NGF, and Governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari, said “Gentlemen of the press, you know yesterday (Tuesday), we left you in the dark after the meeting and today we have seen so many captions that there is disagreement among the governors over the issue of party chairman or about the party leadership. No.
We had a meeting with Mr. President yesterday (Tuesday), and we extended the meeting till night and we followed up with the consultations with the President now. According to Yari, “We consulted and all the 24 governors of the APC are on the same page with Mr. President — that we are going to respect our party’s constitution; we are going to respect the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Therefore, we collectively agreed that we will have congresses at all levels, local, state and national.
In what appears like a defence for the party, chairman of APC Governors Forum and governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha, said: “I just want to let you know that there is no crisis in the APC at all. And we want to use this opportunity to advise media operatives to stop spreading rumours of crisis in APC. There is no single crisis in APC. The backsliding of the APC Governors has generated many discourses among political analysts.
To some of them Oyegun is standing alone as both the President and all the APC Governors seems to have sacrificed him for their second term ambition. The 10th Colloquium The 10th Bola Tinubu colloquium was a political carnival of some sort. It was attended by the APC Governors, Ministers, former Governors and Ministers, Lawmakers, indeed the crème-dela-crème of the nation’s political twilight that were on parade. Though it was on the surface a celebration of a politician and his politics, yet it was about the imminent succession politics of 2019. Pointers that were the calibre of politicians that graced the occasion and the utterances made the political stars on parade. President Buhari’s, who flew in to attend the ‘August’ occasion, description of Asiwaju Tinubu inevitably captured the mood and person of Tinubu and the in fact the larger implication of the gathering.
He said: “I call on Nigerians to join me to celebrate Asiwaju, a man who is widely known as a political strategist and I have come to see him as a man who cares about people and is a fountain of ideas for the economy and for the common man and woman. He is a true democrat and we appreciate his contribution for Nigeria’s capital progress.”
The President praised the contributions of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu to national development, adding that his working relationship with Vice President Osinbajo, has been very fruitful and cordial. He added that after listening to the Vice President’s speech, he felt there was nothing more to add. President Buhari glossed over the initial hiccups of his administration explaining that when “we came in as APC leaders, we put our heads together, thinking and believing in ourselves that we can change Nigeria for good. We believed in ourselves and our country.” When Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu mounted the rostrum, the real purpose of the carnival became too obvious to be missed even by the blind. Taking a swipe at the PDP, he took the main opposition to the cleaners in ways and means only him could have done.
Dismissing the alleged plans by the opposition to take over power, Tinubu declared: “Forget about those parties, they won’t come back.” And sounding dismissively about the socio-economic challenges in the country in the past three years, Tinubu explained, “no nation is without challenges, even America is facing challenges under President Donald Trump.” Further deflecting all accusations against the APC federal government he said: “We didn’t say we will not be challenged. But, we need to report to Nigerians that they looted, wasted our resources.
They did not do what they promised, the market gave you the maximum returns on oil.” “We are on a mission to rescue, we have a good leader to emulate. We are people to invest in that what we must do. You don’t have to paint a house of N10m same day with cash. We are going to work on the person, plan to stimulate growth and the economy.” The celebrant argued that every thinking Nigerian will know that Nigeria has challenges, but also what we are doing about it. “We must make a promise to Nigerians that hope is back. We will bring Nigerians to the right path prosperity and banish poverty,” he added. Asiqaju applauded Nigerians for “being patient with us,” and noted that there is a “difference between us and them, like night and day.” Further he established the gulf between the PDP and the APC.
In fact, Tinubu taunted the opposition party and dismissed the open apology the party made to Nigerians. “Don’t take their apology, they lied, they falsified, changed figures. For 16 years, gave us fake figures, then they said, don’t talk about it. What loyalty, what faith in the APC, its government and President Buhari, Asiwaju demonstrated! It means the National Leader is not one to be not treated with kid gloves nor be ignored for some political nonentities who happened to be occupying some positions of spotlight at the national level.
Of course, because all fingers are truly not equal and there are leaders and movers of things and events, such leaders are obliged, tended to and in fact genuflected to if one must remain in power and position of reckoning. In all ramifications, the distinction between Chief Oyegun and Asiwaju Tinubu was a clear as day from night. Oyegun in reality could hardly holds the political candle light for Tinubu and easily the sacrificial lamp. A son gone awry from Asiwaju’s political confines.

 

Leave a Reply