The composition of the panel for the screening of presidential aspirants on the platform of the All Progressives Congress(APC), may have pitched the national chairman of the party, Senator Abdullahi Adamu against members of the National Working Committee of the party.
A member of the National Working Committee who spoke with Tribune Online said they were taken by surprise by the inauguration of the seven-man panel led by the former National Chairman of the party, Chief Odigie Oyegun on Monday.
“There was supposed to be a meeting of the NWC on Monday. We got to the national secretariat only to be told that the national chairman, Abdullahi Adamu was at Transcorp Hilton Hotel to inaugurate the screening panel. We were not taken into confidence on the composition, date and venue.”
The national officer further revealed that the meeting that was aborted on Monday was rescheduled for Tuesday.
“He has cancelled the meeting again and he didn’t offer any reason other than to tell us that he has an urgent engagement.”
Two members of the NWC issued a joint statement on Tuesday accusing the APC national chairman of Constitutional breaches.
Salihu Lukman and Isaac Kekemeke, national chairmen, North West and South West, respectively maintained that in the last two months, Senator Adamu has usurped the authority of the National Working Committee.
In a statement entitled, “APC and the Need for Vigilance: Urgent Call for Intervention,” the duo alleged that the APC Chairman now consult external groups to take critical party decisions.
They vowed that “henceforth, any decision taken by the National Chairman or any other party functionary, which requires the approval of the NWC as enshrined in the APC constitution, will be considered as illegitimate and an infringement on the jurisdictional scope of the NWC unless otherwise confirmed as validly approved decisions of the NWC or any other legitimate organ of the party.”
The statement read in part:” We are compelled to make this statement following serial postponement of the scheduled National Working Committee (NWC) meetings, twice within 48 hours. We are convinced beyond doubt that this is a deliberate attempt to foist a fait accompli on the NWC on fundamental issues that affect our great party.
“Within just two months in the lifespan of the new leadership of our great party, APC, led by His Excellency, Sen. Abdullahi Adamu, the NWC, organ of the party vested with the power of managing the day-to-day affairs, including implementing decisions of the National Executive Committee (NEC), as provided in Article 13.4 of the APC Constitution, has been rendered redundant.
“The National Chairman takes decisions unilaterally. When it suits him, he invokes the name of our leader, President Muhammadu Buhari to blackmail NWC members into accepting his decisions. Every effort to get the Chairman to respect the authority of the NWC as elected by March 26, 2022, APC National Convention is proving very difficult, if not impossible. Note that NEC’s donation of its powers was to NWC and not to the National Chairman or any individual.
“We, therefore, have no option but to make this public appeal to all APC leaders to intervene please urgently call our National Chairman, His Excellency, Abdullahi Adamu to order, immediately.
“The National Chairman must be properly reminded to recognise that the business of managing the day-to-day affairs of the party is the responsibility of the NWC as provided in provisions of the APC Constitution. He is free to consult any party leader(s). Such consultations will not represent decisions of the NWC or any organ of the party unless and until it is adopted by a properly constituted meeting of the NWC or organ in question according to the letters and spirit of the APC constitution.
“As a party, we have suffered enough judicial embarrassments arising from clearly avoidable leadership breach of our party’s constitution and spelt out rules. As members of the NWC who have the mandate of our members, we hereby serve notice to His Excellency, Abdullahi Adamu, and through him to all APC leaders that henceforth, any decision taken by the National Chairman or any other party functionary, which requires the approval of the NWC as enshrined in the APC constitution, will be considered as illegitimate and an infringement on the jurisdictional scope of the NWC, unless otherwise confirmed as validly approved decisions of the NWC or any other legitimate organ of the party.
“No NWC member is elected at the March 26, 2022, National Convention to warm seats or offices in the National Secretariat. We, therefore, call on all our colleagues in the NWC to rise to these challenging situations by joining hands with us to save our great party and return it to its founding mission of moving Nigeria forward based on honest, fair, just and selfless commitment to party building. God bless our party.”
Source: Tribune
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