APC convention: Lawan, Gbajabiamila others meet Buhari as NASS leadership back consensus

• Absence of father figure bane of opposition parties      

By Egena Sunday Ode 

Ahead of Saturday’s National convention of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the leadership of the National Assembly Thursday announced it had resolved to work towards the emergence of consensus candidates at the national convention.

President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, announced the decision of the National Assembly caucus of the party to newsmen after a meeting of the principal officers  with President Muhammedu Buhari at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa Abuja.

Recall that the governors elected on the platform of the ruling APC had, in an open declaration of support for the consensus arrangements, earlier on Wednesday said they would stand by any candidates endorsed by President Buhari to ensure a rancour free national convention, where party officials will be elected this weekend.

With the endorsement of the National Assembly caucus barely 25 hours after that of the 22 APC governors, the coast seems clear for affirmation option which has been the source of disagreement among party bigwigs.

Briefing newsmen after the meeting, the Senate President said the meeting of the principal officers of the Assembly which was at the instance of President Muhammadu Buhari in efforts to ensure a rancour free convention as well as remain focused in delivering development projects to the people.

He explained that the President emphasized the need for party members to be united ahead of the exercise, adding that it was a very important convention for the party. 

The Speaker of the Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, described the meeting as a productive one, saying the whole idea is to encourage all stakeholders to unite and have a peaceful and very successful convention.

Lawan said: “This is not what we’re used to in the legislature. But now that we are confronted with this question of what we discussed with Mr. President. Mr. President, our leader of the party, the All Progressives, Congress in the country, and beyond, invited the principal officers of the APC to hold today’s meeting with us.

 “Mr. President, emphasized the need for us, in the APC to be united, always act as a family, to ensure that we remain focused. We have the leadership of Nigeria today at the national level and of course, we have many states, about 22 states, under the leadership of the APC. We have 22 states and then control of the federal government that requires that APC as a political party remains very focus, energetic, and purposeful, as it has always been, and ensure that we maintain the trajectory  of development for our country. Because that is trust Nigerians gave  us in 2015 and renewed that, in 2019. 

“Mr. President also emphasized the need for us to ensure that we have a successful convention on the 26th of this month, March. This convention, by way of emphasis is a very important convention for us in the APC, and by the grace of God, through our processes and procedures, at different levels of the party, the convention would be a very successful one and very peaceful one. 

“We hope that would have achieved so much consensus in selecting and electing the officers for this party so that when we go into the convention, most of the officers would be for affirmation or confirmation.”

He added: “Finally, I want to say that this meeting with Mr. President has given us more energy. We believe that there is a father, at least in our party, there is a president who will ensure that once there disagreements he is able to call everybody to order and ensure that the family continues to remain united and that is what we have been able to achieve over the years.

“Well, I don’t want to be very partisan. But of course, when you have a father in the family and a mother, then you’re likely to have a stable family. And when you have only one or none in the family, you are not likely to be successful, the family is likely to be disunited, and that is what other political parties probably are facing. 

“And I want to add here, finally, to say that we are committed to ensuring that this political party does not only have a successful convention, but a very successful, peaceful and safe electioneering campaigns during 2022/2023 general campaigns  and the general elections, by the grace of God, we’ll see Nigerians voting once again, for APC, because we have so far done so much in the areas that matter for the people of this country. But that is not to say that we are not facing some challenges we are, but we are squaring up to ensure that we deal with those challenges.”

Gbajabiamila, on his part said: “This meeting was a productive one. As many of you are aware of the President in the last couple of days his been having meetings with stakeholders towards the convention that is coming up on Saturday. And the whole idea is to encourage all stakeholders to unite, have a common front, and have a peaceful rancour free and successful convention. That’s what that meeting  was about the long and short of it, and to make sure everybody’s on the same page, in terms of being united in terms of candidates. 

“And we all know that in conventions such as this, where you have almost 5000, delegates, and many more. You have to be well organized. You have to be freed up to be fair to everybody. And that’s what he charged obviously, like any leader would.

 “We have a couple more days, people are coming in from all the states of the Federation. Abuja is gonna be a agog with activities, with excitement, with electricity. And in all of that, pomp and pageantry, we must make sure that what we come out of on Sunday morning, so to speak, is a happy to united party. That’s what this meeting  was about. And we already, we are charge, we’re ready to go.”

Asked if the party  has arrived at consensus for the position of the chairman of APC and what would happen to those who had spent money to buy the forms, Lawan said they were not in the position to answer that.

He said: “Well, I think that question shouldn’t be put to us because we’re not the party. But because you asked and we are in your territory we’ll make some effort to say something to it. 

“The essence of this engagements is for the party to achieve consensus, and consensus is a process. It doesn’t just happen like that. So I believe that before we go into the convention square on Saturday, by the grace of God, we would have a lot of consensus reached and maybe the sort of document that we call or refer to as unity list, that is bringing all the agreed positions where consensus have been achieved in the various sections or geopolitical zones of the country. 

“Only yesterday (Wednesday) we had a meeting of the Northeast, and we have achieved consensus, and other zones are either about to conclude or will conclude before the end of tomorrow, Friday. But by Saturday, I think the answers will all be there for everybody to see.

“So on the issue of why allow other people to buy forms. I think democracy does not prevent anybody from buying forms, what democracy does is to provide opportunity for everyone having some guiding principles. If a position is zoned until a consensus is reached, everybody who thinks he or she has something to offer can go and buy the form and also throw his or her hat into the ring.”