By Adetunji Ayobrown
Political analysts believed that the coming together of different interests and political groups in the formation of the ruling All Peoples Party (APC) as an opposition party back then was liking to a situation were wolfs and lambs were caged together, and you expect peace and tranquility….and if you ask me also anytime, every students of history will be factual of such outcome, the reverse will always be the case…simpli sita.
The recently concluded national convention of APC in Abuja where consensus were reach on ‘supposed be’ contending elective offices, while other 22 offices of party were elected, but, surprisingly, more than two-third of all members of the party are aggrieved in one way or the other.
Comical enough, numbers are funny when it comes to adults, no wonder a little prince said โmen and grownups don’t understand anything for themselves, and it is tiresome for children to be explaining to themโ.
I see this quote playing out in APC’s fractions, when some minority ruling party members stood firmed and argued vehemently that a two-third of any given numbers is and always be inconsequential or insignificant while dealing with a given figure.
It is rather a strange world, when the least of things is doing well and the most important things are hanging on. As seen, counting and still playing out; yet to reach 100% of a life cycle, many analyses came out all describing different levels of grievances that exist before, during and after the APC convention. Members are classified as follows; โdon’t have any issuesโ with any group or the party, they are the ‘any government in power’; they belongs to presidency in as much as ‘goodies’ and ‘gbaIadun’ as Fela Anikulapo puts it are coming from the seat of power. Many political jobbers’ falls into this category, names are many, but in other to avoid legal tussle lets cast our mind to few that we all can readily pin point.
ย Similarly, some members are just aggrieved, but not too seriously issues or just a ‘follow follow’ kind of dissatisfactions, and they can be easily persuaded even bought any day with money, in other words, sell their consciences to naira notes and can do much more worse if United States Dollars came first on the largesse menu. Some that belongs to this order are easily and readily indentified through their words, actions and their campaign of calumny; tempted to mention few names, but for some cogent reasons.
The last groups are the ‘very aggrieved’ members and groups whom are of the opinion that some serious national issues must be addressed in order to move both the party and the entire country forward.
In this category, some are for self aggrandisement, leaving out the main reason while a ruling must stand for, hunting down perceived enemies at any/all cost was their mission in the party. While some are for the betterment of Nigerian state, leaving down and out their self gains.
And with the recently concluded state congresses of APC across Nigeria where every other state congresses went ‘double’ (if you permit me) came to many not as a surprise… but, it is rather funny going by the expectations of good-minded Nigerians and friends of Nigeria alike.
The ruling party, APC, went to state congress to elect new leaders for the party in most if not all 36 states and Abuja, but, congress in most states which was marred by divisions and factions, however, shows that the party is unable to resolve its internal variations and differences as parallel congresses were held in many states… and like saying goes, when the centre refused to hold, the structure will definitely collapse.
While the parallel congresses done in states governed by the APC and those governed by opposition parties were not different, as the later too are feeling the unpleasant heat that is blowing calamity to the party. This is an indication of wide gulf or vacuum in the party’s structure and framework; the residue of the rift among top leaders of the party, including those holding sensitive elective and appointive positions in the federal government.
For many known and unknown reasons, agreements and dialogues are expected after all these, instead, the gulf of Guinea is not wide enough when compared with the type that exist in APC thereafter and all of these because of some peoples’ actions and inactions, no wonder they say, hell has no fury than a woman scorned.
In Kwara state for instance, it was glaring and very clear that the tussle for the soul of the party is between the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and the Minister of Information and culture, Lai Mohammed, but in an event twist, the national body under Adams Oshiomhole threw out all duly election offices on state and pitched tent with the Lai’s faction, a recognition perhaps had started a legal battle. The State Chairman of the party, Alhaji Ishola Balogun head to court challenging the (il)legality. After all this, yet, Oshiomhole and some are still ranting for the removal of Saraki as the senate president, a battle most senators see as a white elephant project.
Some even asked, when did Adams Oshiomhole become a senator or when has he become an elected member of the National Assembly without an election? Little wonder, they claimed not to have issues with the Speaker of the House of Reps, Yakubu Dogara, in that, they believed he will never decamp from the ruling party.
Whether it is the presidency’s cabals and unaccounted US Dollars notes that they refused pay into the Treasury Single Account (TSA) that is playing wild to tame, Nigerians and the international community want to know each member’s level of annoyance in other to categorise them on the ‘grievance table’. Analytically speaking, only time will tell and surely it will be not be hidden or come in secrecy but very glaring.
In this in symbiosis relation, Bob Marley song said ‘man to man is so unjust, children you don’t know who to trust, your best friend could be your worst enemy and ….’ as for the decampees likes of Benue and Sokoto state Governors, Sam Ortom and Aminu Tambuwal respectively, Speaker of House of Reps, Yakubu Dogara, Senate President, Bukola Saraki and even the yet to decide, I believe the prettier the girl, the messier the car, so says the rule of life, don’t blame the likes of Oshiomhole, Lai Mohammed and others if they choose and vested on themselves to be to be chair, spokesperson, minister and cronies of the ‘very very’ Aggrieved Peoples Congress…what else do you expect from a man who is the only being that knows he is alone. They all need to understand that sometimes they have to hold back to spare each other’s feelings and their own.
*Ayobrown, Senior System Analyst, National Pilotย ย Newspaper, writes viaย aayobrown@gmail.com
