Buhari, APC govs meet, disagree on tenure elongation

President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, had a closed-door meeting with governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The meeting which started at 2:15 pm ended at 3:30pm, couldn’t resolve the contentious tenure elongation for members of the party’s National Working Committee and the state executive committees.
Prior to this time, the governors briefl y met before the president’s arrival.
The governors declined comments when confronted by journalists on the meeting’s outcome.
Sources at the meeting hinted our reporter on how the meeting went, and ending finally in a stalemate.
The meeting had Plateau state Governor, Simon Lalong and his Kebbi counterpart, Atiku Bagudu saying the Christian and Muslim prayers respectively.
The contentious tenure elongation which appeared resolved at the last National Executive Committee meeting, prominently featured with the governors sharply divided on the matter.
Similarly, the meeting also discussed the possibility of bringing on board former Edo state governor, Adams Oshimhole as party chair in caretaker capacity.
While majority of the governors were said to have queued behind Oyegun, the minority strongly kicked against keeping him beyond his tenure, thus sparking a shouting match among the state chief executives.
When reporters sought the comments of some of the governors, including Rochas Okorocha of Imo, Lalong as well as Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna state on the outcome, they all kept sealed lips.
Following the controversy that greeted the discourse, sources further revealed, President Buhari had to excuse himself from the meeting, leaving the governors to decide on the next reconvening date for another meeting.
Again, the choice of date became another round of controversy.
While Governor of Zamfara state and Chairman, Governors Forum, Abdulazeez Yari, suggested April 9 and April 10, El-Rufai reportedly countered.
At this point, there was seeming rowdiness with each governor refusing to shift ground, following which the meeting dispersed without any resolution.
With this obvious disagreement, the governors put up stern faces, and refused to entertain any question from curious journalists waiting to be briefed on the outcome of the meeting.
In fact, one of them in a feat of anger was overheard telling his other colleagues that “some people, who think they are tall, think they can control us, it will not work.
” The President had at the APC National Executive Committee meeting Tuesday last week, said tenure elongation for the party leaders was illegal and unconstitutional.
His decision was lauded by some party chieftains, including the APC national leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu who said, the president’s singular action had saved the party from collapse.
Oyegun inaugurates committee Meanwhile, the APC has inaugurated a 10-member technical committee led by the Plateau state governor to look into the legal implications of the tenure elongation palaver.
The committee is also expected to look into President Buhari’s position on the contentious issue.
The members are Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, Governors Ajimobi, El-Rufai , Senator Ben Uwajomogu, Rep Kabiru Ajana, Mr. Elisha Kurah (SAN), Mr. C. J. N Dakas (SAN) and the National Legal Adviser of the party, Muiz Banire (SAN), who is also the committee secretary.
Inaugurating the committee at the party’s secretariat yesterday in Abuja, Chief Odigie-Oyegun, said some of the issues that had been remitted to the committee for resolution “are strongly legal” with a strong impact on the party’s fortune.
“Therefore, your job is to bring these two together and advise us on the way we can implement our activities in the next few weeks and months in a way that is politically advantageous to our party, the APC, and at the same time, face due difference to the niceties of the law.
“We must observe the law and at the same time emphasise that we try to do things that will be advantageous to the party.
We will furnish you with all the documents like the resolutions of NEC, the party’s constitution and the Nigeria constitution to help you do a good job.
“You are also at liberty to request for additional material like the statement of Mr.
President during last NEC meeting and every other things to guide you in achieving the task you are about to undertake.
I am praying, hoping that this is the kind of thing you can accomplish in about three to four days.
“Getting answers from you is crucially-time sensitive, and depending on which way you advise, we may have to put in motion very serious activities in the party, virtually within a week of getting the report and taking decisions.
I thank you for accepting this onerous assignment and wish you the very best of luck.
” Fielding questions from newsmen, Governor Lalong who chairs the committee, faulted the notion that the talks centered on Tinubu, who is opposed to tenure elongation .
“The discussion there was not anything against Tinubu.
Tinubu’s name was not mentioned in that discussion.
“The discussion was a NEC decision on the way forward on the position of the President who is also a member of the NEC and that was subjected to discussion.
So, the issue of whether it is satisfying somebody is not there.
Our decision is not going to be final.
We will only advise the NEC on the issue,” he said.
In his remarks, Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo state said the controversy was needless since the NEC did not extend the tenure of the Oyegun-led NWC and pparty officials across the country.