By Ikechukwu Okaforadi
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has created Digital Transformation Committee, saying that President Muhammadu Buhari believes that technological transformation of the party will add value to the overall objective of forming the party, which it said is to win elections.
Chairman of the Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC), Mai Mala Buni, disclosed this while inaugurating the APC Digital Transformation Committee at the party headquarters in Abuja.
Governor Buni, who was represented at the event by the Secretary of the CECPC, John James Akpanudoedehe, said President Buhari is also desirous of seeing the party energized from bottom to top through more inclusive participation of the masses.
Buni, who is also the Governor of Yobe, said “The desire of the Leader of our Party-President Muhammadu Buhari is to see that this Party be energized from bottom-up through more inclusive participation of the masses.
Mr. President is convinced that leveraging technology to transform our organization will add value to the overall objective of the formation of this Party, which is to win elections.”
He said the world has since become a global village and ways have evolved whereby tasks are simplified and made more efficient, be it in private or public concerns.
“Our Party, overtime and particularly under the watch of H.E MAI MALA BUNI has demonstrated its commitment, tendency and capacity to finetune its activities and improve the ways and means of engaging the true owners of the party-which are the masses.
“It is also our conviction that the introduction and improvement of digital intermediaries (e.g Software applications, websites, social network services) into the structure of our Party, to facilitate internal communication, engage in Political decision-making, organize political action, will transform the overall experience of participation for our party members.
“The Composition of the Committee should leave no one in doubt that our party is set for serious digitization and digital transformation of its operations.
The Chairman of this Committee has vast experience in IT operations both within and outside Nigeria”, Buni said.
He said very soon, the party will be having a paperless organization, because all the party’s documents, party registers, permanent membership cards, etc are some of the areas the committee will work on, as the terms of reference is well spelt out in the letters of appointment of the Committee.
In his remarks, the chairman of the APC Digital Transformation Committee, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, said the task before the committee is unprecedented, as things are changing dramatically, hence the only way they can survive and thrive today is through technology.
He said “Things are changing and digital technology is becoming a source of inspiration for us to do what we do better. We can use technology to enhance our processes, services and also to deliver our traditional services more efficiently and transparently. Likewise, we can use technology to bring new things to our party. We can use technology to easily reach young people who are digitally native.
“We can use technology to improve our voter’s membership registration processes. And we can use it to reach out to young people. So, this is a great task. We want to assure the national chairman and the secretary that we will do all that is possible to make sure we transform our party to become a digitally native party.
Meanwhile, the APC Digital Transformation Committee include: Amb. Oji Ngofa, who will serve as Secretary, Barr. Zainab Marwa (Member), Charles Nkata (Member), Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim (Member), Owolabi Olusegun Awosan l (Member), Nasiru Danu (Member), Princess Nse Ekpo (Member) and Osayi Ejiga (Member).
The committee is mandated to craft and implement a digital transformation strategy for the party, and its terms of reference include: digitize the party membership record, recommend how to use digital technology to enhance and make the party activities more efficient and effective, among others.
