The recently concluded National Convention of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has further raised concerns about the position of the factional members of the party in the state and whether the outcome of the exercise has not compounded the quest for acceptability. HEAD POLITICS, MUMINI ABDULKAREEM writes on the issue.
The national convention of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) held penultimate Saturday at the Eagle Square in Abuja has come and gone quite alright, but left behind a degree of uncertainty and probably confusion for the faction of the party back home in the state.
Going by the reports that had dominated the media space about the alleged recognition and engagement of some factional members of the party by the national leadership for the exercise, eyebrows were raised back in the state about the development. There were concerns about how the national leadership of the party was planning to handle the Kwara situation especially after it had rejected out-rightly the previous congresses held by the faction which heralded the national convention.
Prior that exercise which was the first national convention since the party historically emerged the ruling party saddled with the running of affairs of the country, the affected factional members had reportedly hypothesised with a number of options.
One of such options in the quest to control the APC machinery by some members of the faction in the state occupying very high offices, it was learnt, was to domesticate their “strength and influence” in the corridors of President Muhammadu Buhari and the presidency to begin to “run things” in the local chapter of the party in the state. However, there were challenges confronting this mission.
For one of such factional members and the Minister for Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the issue was reportedly a bit conflicted. As a prominent member of the party, it would amount to committing a political hara-kiri to be seen hobnobbing with members of the opposition, a party many of the factional members were reportedly eyeing then. The view that later appeared more acceptable and fitting was for all the affected individuals to collectively join forces, no matter how weak they were individually, under the APC broom to fight their common enemy (Bukola Saraki) within.
According to some political analysts, as the face of the administration in his capacity as the mouthpiece of the government, Lai Muhammed who has long tried but failed to hypnotise the people with the “federal might” narrative increasingly saw the reality of hanging on such folly against a very formidable opponents like the Senate President especially with the woeful defeat he suffered at the state congresses. Even his invitation or perhaps importation of Governor of Kaduna state, Mallam Nasir ei-Rufai to this year’s Annual Ramadan Lecture series was interpreted in the political circles as a misplaced invitation and. exhibition of political bankruptcy of the minister considering the disposition of the locals here towards the Kaduna Governor and his lack of influence among the people. But the period aptly coincided with the time of the arrival of the “latter day saints” among members of the faction many of whom were serving various forms of suspension by the party.
A source from their camp, told this medium that the final outcome of the National Convention was an anti-climax of sort to most members of the faction in the state. Populated by politicians of relative influence back home with some “political money bags” like Hon Moshood Mustapha with the minister allegedly providing the support from the presidency, members of the faction had hoped to get a better deal from the party’s apparatus at the top. Two hypotheses were reportedly waiting to be tested based on the worst and best case scenarios.
Although Moshood Mustapha and other aggrieved former Sarakites like Cook Olododo among others had reportedly romanticised the probability of exploring the PDP option in the state, that idea was later shelved to accommodate a much more realistic alternative of a collaborative effort with the minister. Subsequently, it was gathered that the “siddon look” approach was adopted and they were “anxiously” waiting for the speculated exit of the Senate President from the APC for them to be handed the structure of the party in the state to actualise their 2019 gubernatorial ambition.
To buttress this point, despite all the reports and “evidences” of meetings between some members of the factional group and some opposition elements, there were strong denials of such a plan to leave the APC. First, it was the media aide of Moshood Mustapha, AbdulAzeez Kayode, while reacting to the crisis that engulfed the party in Alanamu which led to the suspension of his boss, that his principal is still very much in the ruling party.
“His pedigree is well known in Kwara political arena and he is not someone who will descend so low to spark up crisis in a party he has supported up till this point. Aside from being the Coordinator of the Kwara state chapter of the Buhari/Osinbajo campaign Organisation in 2015, Mustapha is also a former member of the National Assembly. Therefore, linking him with APC crisis in Alanamu (or anywhere else) is an insult on his personality…”, Kayode submitted.
In the same vein while reacting to the Saraki Vs IGP saga, MM in a statement he personally signed acknowledged that both him and Saraki and by extension other members of the main APC are both presently on different political wavelength, he still the Senate President in high regard.
“Since the news of my gubernatorial ambition filtered into public domain, I have been a victim of series of personality attacks but I remain undeterred because I know its normal, especially, for someone vying for the position of the number one citizen of Kwara state…My gubernatorial ambition is geared towards delivering the dividends of democracy to Kwarans and I want to focus on that goal without all these unnecessary distractions”, he noted.
However, he is yet to make any official position about the next move whether he will seek for the office as a member of the APC or explore other options.
For other members of the faction like Hon Saheed Popoola and the chairman, Hon Bashir Bolarinwa (BOB), it is still too early to make a decision. While Popoola was recently tackled over the issue by the House Leader and a fellow kinsman, Hon Hassan Oyeleke during plenary, they were directed by the Speaker, Dr Ali Ahmad to thrash out the issue back home in their constituency. And while responding to Pilot Politics enquiry on what next for him if the party failed to recognise his faction (at any point in time in the cause of the struggle), Bolarinwa said “We will cross that bridge when we get there”. Still, it remains unclear on the next line of action as they have continued to maintain sealed lips over the matter amidst wide speculation that they are still waiting for the Senate President to officially pull out of the party.
But how is the recognised chapter of the APC in the state taking the whole issue especially after the disgraceful development of the factional members at the last national convention?
For the chairman of the party, Hon Ishola Balogun-Fulani, the aftermath of the party’s national convention can be summarised in two aspects. Firstly, that it confirms the affirmation and recognition of the leadership of Saraki by the national executive while also waving the olive branch for the factional members of the party to embrace.
“The convention was a very successful one especially with the emergence of one of our own, Bolaji Abdullahi as the national publicity secretary of the party. Everything went well. It was a clear recognition of our leadership elected during the last congress in the state and the affirmation of our leader and Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki as the authentic leader of the party in the state and a national leader of the APC.
“For the factional members, they were not recognised contrary to what they made us to believe back in the state and their claims that they have been appointed into committee were punctured. They were nowhere near the convention list. Apart from our leadership, any other person laying claim to the APC in the state is an onlooker.
“But they are still members of the APC and I advised them to shelve the factional idea but recognised the present leadership in the state led by the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki”, he added.
Will the affected members in the state heed the advice of the party chairman which further corroborated the position of President Buhari that the party will emerge stronger despite crisis after the national convention adding that “the unresolved cases is the price we have to pay for success”.
In the words of the President, “May I, therefore, appeal to all to put our great party ahead of personal considerations and to accept the outcome of the exercise in good faith. You are all important to our party’s progress and all must come together to ensure success in the forthcoming polls so as to enable us to continue the good work we have been doing for our fellow Nigerians”. It however remains to be seen whether the factional members in the state are ready to consider the appeals before them by President Buhari and the party chairman or jettison it both with its pros and cons.
