National Congress: APC zones chairmanship to South-South

By Umar Muhammad Puma

Barely twenty four hours to its national convention, the National Convention and Planning Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has zoned the position of National Chairman, Deputy National Secretary and Deputy National Legal Adviser to the South-South.

At the end of its caucus meeting yesterday held in Abuja, the party agreed to zone its incoming National Executive Committee, with the position of Deputy National Chairman, National Financial Secretary and the National Legal Adviser going to the South West, while the position of National Organising Secretary, National Auditor, Deputy Finance Secretary and Deputy Women Leader were zoned to the South East.

Positions of the National Publicity Secretary, National Women Leader, Deputy Treasurer and Deputy Welfare Secretary were zoned to the North Central while the North East will take the position National Secretary, National Youth Leader and Deputy National Auditor.

North West is to produce Deputy National Chairman, Welfare Secretary, National Treasurer and Deputy National Organising secretary. Each of the six geo-political zones is expected to produce one Zonal National Vice Chairman, one Zonal Women Leader, one Zonal Youth Leader and one Ex-Officio.

The South-South candidates in the race for the position of the party’s National Chairman are Former Governor of Edo State, Chief Mr Odigie-Oyegun and Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chief Tom Ikimi, former Bayelsa state governor, Timipre Silva, among others.

The party’s decision, it was gathered, was a fall-out of the northern governors support for the emergence a South-South aspirant as the next National Chairman of the party in order to pave way for the emergence of a Northern Presidential candidate at the parties primaries.

The meeting has in attendance the former Head of State, General Muhammad Buhari, Sen.Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Interim National Chairman of the party, Chief Bisi Akande, Alhaji Kawu Baraje, Sen. Ali Modu Sherrif, former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, Aminu Bello Masari, Mallam Nasir EL-Rufai, Sen. Bukola Saraki, Sen.Danjuma Goje, Sen.Abdullahi Adamu.