‘Gov Bello real enemy of Kogi APC’
Chief Clarence Olafemi, former Acting Governor of Kogi state and a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in this interview with newsmen speaks extensively on the crises rocking APC and why it’s necessary for President Muhammadu Buhari to mend fences with aggrieved members of the party before 2019 general elections. OYIBO SALIHU was there
Recently, you travelled overseas where you stayed for long which is unusual of you, hope nothing has gone amiss?
Usually, I do go abroad twice every year to see the better size of my family members who are in abroad. One of my children is based in Australia, (Sydney), three others are in United Kingdom and one is in United States of America.
I used to visit them in summer period, between June and July and also in the month of December, to enable me rest during the winter period. But, this time around I have health challenges because as one ages in life, the body system starts complaining, especially people like us who do not rest because of political activities.
So, I have to travel abroad to see my people in order to attend to my health issues. The problem of our country is lack of health facilities, but we have competent and efficient manpower which make many people who can afford the expenses to travel out and access quality health care.
Sir, two days after your returned back to Lokoja, Kogi state, a meeting of APC stakeholders was held in your house, what was the meeting all about?
Actually while I was in abroad I received a lot of calls from political associates complaining vehemently about the state of our party- APC in Kogi state particularly, the recently conducted adhoc delegate. The complaint was so tensed that I had to beg them to exercise patience till I return from my journey.
I was a member of Board of Trustee of the party before we were dissolved. But that alone shows that I am an elder in the party that should be respected. Again, I was a member of the presidential campaign organization that worked assiduously for the emergence of President Muhammadu Buhari.
Kangaroo Congress
But, today congress of the party was conducted without my knowledge, I was not informed. The normal channel of communication to members of a party is through the structure of the party, whether the Congress is mid- term or adhoc, we are supposed to be informed. Instead, we suddenly read on social media platforms that a delegate Congress had taken place in Kogi and even in my own local government names that were submitted are not known to me. The party stakeholders who called me on phone said they were not aware and they were furious the way and manner the national body of the party handled the congress in Kogi state as it was an attempt to further tear the party apart.
I spoke with the national secretary of the party and rom our discussion; I think the national body of APC was totally wrong to have arranged the delegate Congress. I don’t really know what they stand to gain by their action. If you take a look at the genesis of APC in Kogi state, I carried a lot of burden before the party was accepted by the people of the state.
Late Prince Abubakar Audu
That time I did not see anybody especially those who are now claiming that they own the party in the state. It was only Late Prince Abubakar Audu who came out boldly to inspire the party and eventually became the flag bearer of the party, but I went round the 21 local government areas canvassing support and registration of membership.
I spent my resources and ensured that the party became the bride of the people, but today some people who came when the party has recorded success, now hijacked the party and want to push us out by all means.
So when I returned safely I quickly called for a meeting before some notable members of the party scatter, though several meetings were held while I was abroad especially in the eastern flank of the state. At the meeting which was held in my house the stakeholders presented three salient opinions.
Gov Bello and APC members
The first was that we should wait for the outcome of the reconciliation, may be the governor can change for better, but some members still believe that they cannot trust Governor Bello based on the way and manner he behaves to the genuine members of the party.
And the second opinion, they said we should embrace a new party and abandon APC for them just the way we did when PDP was misbehaving in the state. The third opinion was that since the last governorship election PDP and APC were neck to neck and the difference was not up to 5 percent, if we can take only 10 percent from what constitutes APC and join PDP we will have a smooth ride over APC during elections.
This is a fact because election is an issue of numerical strength and once an opposition party can capture 10 out of the 21 local government areas in the state, the party will certainly be at the top. Imagine, in my local government which is Mopa-Moro , the three people they brought as delegates, I don’t know them.
Where were those people when I deployed my resources , I sold my properties to nurture APC in the local government which became so strong that the party won all positions during the 2015 general elections in the state.
I really don’t know what is wrong with the leadership of the party in the state and at the national level. I have occupied this number one position before and I have worked closely with former governors and what is happening now looks strange to me. It is a fact that as a governor everybody cannot be your friends but that does not mean that the governor should start waging war against the owners of the party in the state.
Enemies Within
I expected him to use his position to make more friends than making enemies and those who are misleading him are not on ground politically in their various localities. In short, with the current crises in Kogi APC , the party’s future is very bleak and dicey, though I am not God, the party is heading toward total collapse if urgent steps are not taken by President Buhari who is today the national leader of the party.
It is a fact that the elders of the party whom the governor does not want to see are the people who have been playing politics in the last twenty years in the state and they enjoyed goodwill from the people they have helped in one way or the other. These are people that are connected to the opinion moulders and in my view, the governor in the last almost two years has not got things right.
You also travelled to Abuja shortly after the meeting of stakeholders in your house, was it on the reconciliation effort?
Truly, I travelled to Abuja, but not for reconciliation. I went to see Hon. Abiodun Faleke who is also a factor in Kogi politics. So when I heard that he called a meeting almost the same period with the one we held in Lokoja, I decided to meet him and his complaints were similar to mine. He also expressed worries over the behavior of the national body of the party.
It is annoying and painful to say that 95 percent of people in government of Kogi state today who were given jeeps and other expensive cars are the same people that fought us during the elections. It is erroneous for anybody either at the presidency or national secretariat of the party to have the believe that those of us complaining about the governor’s behaviour are just given him headache.
Bello acting like Nebuchadnezzar
The governor is acting like Nebuchadnezzar in the Bible who was brought by God but he went against the will of God and he got punished by God. It is a fact that we are heading to the River of Babylon and we will sing the real song because we are in captivity in Kogi state and no amount of struggles or talks that can make the governor see what we are trying to avoid in the interest of the party.
For four years I did not enter government house during Captain Idris Wada, I am not poor and I don’t beg for contract, but politics is all about recognition and interest even if I don’t get anything in return. I have to say categorically that I am not a push over in Kogi politics and Senator Dino Melaiye attested to that fact when he attended by mother’s burial sometimes ago in Mopa and I don’t give up when it comes to issue of politics.
What is the situation of APC both at the state and national levels?
Presently, there are eight APC states completely enmeshed in crises. Kano state that gave the party over two million votes during the presidential election is also in crises. Bauchi, Kaduna and Benue States are in serious crises while that of Kogi state is almost hopeless. It is high time the President took a look at the situation of the party. It is piteous that the national body of APC who supposed to intimate the President about the true picture of the crises in the party at state levels where even the people causing it lack sincerity.
I am appealing to Mr President to create time to look into the issue of APC because 2019 is around the corner. Since party members are complaining he should set aside time to look into their complaints.
What is the outcome of your complaint about marginalization ?
The national chairman of APC Chief Oyegun is my friend and cannot claim that he is not aware that I have been complaining of being marginalized as I have laid my complaint to him on several occasions. But my complaints ended there, because I don’t have link with the so- called cabals at the national level.
I am an advocate of peace and my complaints about marginalization was misunderstood by Governor Yahaya Bello. My candid complaint was in line with federal appointments which were made and Kogi western senatorial district was not carried along, but instead of the governor to call me so that I can tell him the details of my complaints, he mistook it as an attack on his government. If my complaints are not genuine why is it that two weeks after my complaint, the federal government hurriedly balanced the marginalization with four appointments. What I said was that since we have three senatorial districts whatever comes should be shared among the districts instead of neglecting one district.
There is agitation for restructuring of Nigeria, what is your view?
I have deliberately refused to comment on the issue, but one thing is key here and what I thought we should do at this point in time, is to ask ourselves the type of restructuring we need. I believe that the type of restructuring we need now is the rearrangement of our political structure in such a way that it will be manageable because the political burden on our economy is too high.
We have to also ask ourselves whether we need 109 senators and 360 members of House of Representatives sitting full time and at the same time having large numbers of aides gulping reasonable percent of our income which can be channeled to providing the needed infrastructure that are lacking across the country. Why can’t we formulate our own form of democracy that will take a bit of the presidential and a bit of parliamentary British form of democracy, where members of legislative arms will also hold ministerial position thereby reducing the cost of running government.
Return to Regions Desirable
The restructuring I am looking at, is the type that will end the agitation for state creation through the introduction of regional government by having six regions which of course, we have already defined by our action. Such as north east, north west, north central, south west, south south, and south east. This will enable the region to set up their security apparatus, but the regions will contribute to the central command and the local government authorities also will contribute to regional police force.
This system will be manageable and also very effective. We can also restructure some offices, for instance, the Office of the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice can be broken into two, let one be professional and the other administrative. This is my concept of restructuring.
