Buni: Still Walking the Tight Rope

Since the pronouncement by the Supreme Court in the Ondo Governorship election, which affirmed the victory of Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, but questioned the legality of the caretaker committee led by the Governor of Yobe State, Mai Mala Buni, the All Progressives Congress has been thrown into multiple chaos, recently compounded by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, seeking his ouster from office. Adedayo Akinwale writes

The coming of the National Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) led by the Governor of Yobe State, Mai Mala Buni was a child of necessity; to save the ruling party from the protracted leadership crisis that characterised the Adams Oshiomhole-led National Working Committee (NWC), which shook the party to its very foundation.

The Caretaker Committee was inaugurated on June 25, 2020 to run the affairs of the party after the sack of the Oshiomhole-led NWC. It was given a six months mandate to reconcile aggrieved members, hold congresses and a national convention. However, its tenure has been elongated for the third time when it failed to achieve two out of the three assignments.

Buhari’s Unconstitutional Elongation of Caretaker Committee’s Tenure

Trouble started when President Muhammadu Buhari in clear contravention of the constitution of the party approved the extension of the tenure of the party single-handedly without consultation with the National Executive Council (NEC).

In spite of the brazen act of illegality and the unconstitutional approval of the tenure elongation of the committee, chieftains of the party who were not in agreement with the decision of the President could not muster the courage to challenge his decision, rather most of them grumbled and moved on.

However, a group, Concerned All Progressives Congress (APC) Stakeholders, dared the President when it said he lacked the power under the constitution of the party to grant tenure extension to the committee. Through its Spokesperson, Abdullahi Dauda, the group disagreed with the tenure elongation to the Buni Committee, saying APC as a political party is governed by the constitution and could not be run as a one-man show.

It also insisted that the constitution of the party does not give Mr. President the right to elongate the life of the CECPC and wondered how the President who prides himself as a principled man, with a load for respect for law and order would violate the constitution the party’s constitution without blinking his eyes.

However, the group’s protest against Buhari’s unilateral decision did count for much as the Caretaker committee continued to pilot the affairs of the party unhindered.

APC State Chapters’ Crisis

Through the membership drive of the caretaker committee of the party, the APC has witnessed an influx of members into its fold. An unverified claim puts its registered members at 40 million. This includes serving and former governors, serving and former federal and state lawmakers who entered its fold.

Moreso, the membership drive has succeeded in depleting the ranks of the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). On the other hand, it has also helped in no small measure in creating crises in various state chapters of the party.

Zamfara

In Zamfara State, the recent defection of the state Governor, Bello Matawalle from the PDP to the APC has sparked off a new leadership crisis in the state. Two chieftains of the party in the state, Senator Kabiru Marafa and former Governor Abdul-Aziz Yari have opposed the directive by the caretaker committee that the governor has automatically become the leader of APC in the state.

Marafa noted that the declaration of Matawalle as the leader of the party in the state was tantamount to deception, insisting that they would not accept it, while Yari insisted that the committee lacks the power to declare the Governor as the leader of the party in the state.

It should? however, be noted that the decision of the caretaker committee was in line with the party’s constitution which recognises the President as the national leader of the party and the governors as the leaders in their respective states.

Kwara

The battle for the control of the soul of the party between the State Governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq on one hand and the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has ensured that a no-peace situation in Kwara APC. While the leadership of the party at the national level recognises Alhaji Abdulahi Samari, who is in the same faction with the State Governor, as party Chairman, Mohammed’s faction insist on Hon. Bashir Bolarinwa as Kwara state APC Chairman.

The Information Minister’s faction has opened a new secretariat at No 26, Reservation Road, GRA, Ilorin recently, but the national leadership of the party wasted no time in depleting the Minister’s camp by suspending 11 of his loyalists for that brazen act. This was a clear message to the Minister.

A highly placed member of the caretaker committee said since governors are the financial backbone of the party and as such the party would never sacrifice a governor for any member.

Last Wednesday, hundreds of members of the APC believed to be loyal to Mohammed formally joined the Young Progressives Party (YPP). They said their decision was prompted by the lack of a level playing field and fair treatment from the state chapter of the APC.

The group, which calls itself the Third Force, vowed to wrestle power from the APC come 2023. The Third Force is largely populated by major leaders of ‘O To Ge’ movement, who have formally joined the YPP. The state cooordinator of the group, Alhaji Abdulfatah AbdulRahman, who spoke with journalists in Ilorin on the defection said their former party has excluded a majority of them from exercising their legitimate right during the membership/ revalidation exercise.

Imo

In Imo, the State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma is fighting tooth and nail to gain control of the party. This has led to a cold war between him and his predecessor, Sen. Rochas Okorocha and other political gladiators in the state including Sen. Ifeanyi Ararume.

Anambra

In Anambra, the recently conducted governorship primary has also thrown the party into chaos. Most of the aggrieved aspirants including the Director General of Nigerian Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), Chief George Moghalu have headed to court to challenge the outcome of the primary, which they all insist did not hold.

Ekiti

The crisis in Ekiti chapter of the APC started in 2018 after the governorship election. Attempts to settle the rift have not been successful. Thus unity among members of the party has been elusive. The rumoured presidential ambition of Governor Kayode Fayemi, who from all indications is determined to slug it out with his former boss and the national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu has further compounded the crisis.

There are two factions of the party in the state. There is Fayemi’s faction and the Ekiti APC Stakeholders’ Forum led by Senator Babafemi Ojudu, Senator Adedayo Adeyeye, Senator Anthony Adeniyi, Hon. Bimbo Daramola and Adewale Omirin, among others. This faction is loyal to Tinubu. Besides, Tinubu is also plotting to ensure that Adeyeye becomes the next governor of the state, while Fayemi is planning to stamp his authority too by ensuring that a loyalist of his takes over from him.

Ogun

Governor Dapo Abiodun and his predecessor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun are slugging it out for the control of the party. The rivalry between them has created a division within the party. Since he took over two years ago, Abiodun has tried to consolidate his hold on power by seeking the support of two former governors, Chief Olusegun Osoba and Otuba Gbenga Daniel. On the other hand, Amosun, who currently represents Ogun Central in the Senate leveraged on his cordial relationship with President Muhammadu Buhari to corner all federal appointments to the state for his cronies in order to remain relevant in Ogun politics.

Nevertheless, Abiodun is believed to be consolidating his hold on power and strategising for his second term.

Osun

There is no love lost between Governor Gboyega Oyetola and his predecessor and Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola. Argbesola’s desperate attempt to maintain his grip on the party structure is already creating tension and crisis between the loyalists of the governor and that of the Minister.

But the recently conducted ward congresses in the state has sent a signal to Aregbesola that the Governor is not a political novice as he ensured his loyalists won all the positions at that level.

Lagos

Surprisingly, Tinubu is not finding it funny in his home state either, as the crisis ravaging the state chapters of the ruling APC is also affecting Lagos. The 2018 controversial congresses conducted under the supervision of the NWC-led by Oshiomhole is still haunting Lagos APC two years after.

That 2018 congresses resulted in a split of the party to two factions, with Fouad Oki emerging as factional chairman in a parallel congress.

Oki had challenged the legality of the Chief Tunde Balogun-led executive on grounds that the congress that produced him was conducted contrary to the provisions of the 1999 constitution and the directives of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Akwa Ibom

Many leaders and members of the APC in Akwa Ibom State are still pained by the way the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio bulldozed his way to the top. Pushing everybody that he met in the party like Senator Akpan Udoedeghe, Senator Ita Enang, Mr. Nsima Ekere and Mr. Umana Okon Umana aside, Akpabio got the state’s ministerial slot and nominated someone for an ambassadorial position. Thus, when Udoedeghe who is a loyalist of Tinubu emerged as National Secretary of the CECPC, the power of terror and impunity in the Akwa Ibom chapter of the APC became balanced. During the recent ward congresses, the Akpabio faction was outsmarted, as Udoedeghe and his men were accused of shutting out others from the exercise. Akpabio has countered by establishing a grassroots movement in all the wards.

Rivers

The sharp division between factions of the party championed by Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi and Senator Magnus Abe was highlighted, again, during the recent ward congresses. While the Amaechi faction appears to have an upper hand, Abe has threatened to repeat the spoiler role he played in the last general election which dragged the Rivers State chapter of the APC through a long and exhausting court process that resulted in APC being shut out of participation in the election.

It is obvious that the APC does not speak with one voice in many states. Various state chapters of the party are riddled with one crisis or the other. In all cases, attempts to reconcile the warring factions have not been successful, calling to question the applause for and continued existence of the CECPC, as reconciliation was one of its critical assignments.

Supreme Court Bombshell on Ondo Governorship Election

The messy situation in the APC has further been compounded by the recent Supreme Court judgement on the Ondo State governorship election. The APC would have lost the state to the held PDP, but for the contrived technicality that the opposition party’s governorship candidate, Mr. Eyitayo Jegede’s (SAN) action was impaired because he failed to join Buni in the suit. The Apex Court came up with a split decision; having four justices against three of their Lordships led by Justice Mary Odili, who read a minority judgment.

Reactions and Counter Reactions to the Judgement

The Minister of State, Labour and Employment, Chief Festus Keyamo (SAN) believes that the Supreme Court judgement on the Ondo governorship election has weaponised all those that would be aggrieved by the APC congresses to proceed to court to challenge the competence of the Buni-led committee to organise the congresses and national convention. He warned that the judiciary will subsequently destroy the entire structure of the party from bottom to top.

Similarly, two presidential aides, Sen. Babafemi Ojudu and Sen. Ita Enang said a cursory reading of the minority judgment appears to have swept the carpet of legality off the feet of the caretaker committee rendering it illegal, null, void and of no legal capacity to undertake any action on behalf of and in the name of the party.

However, critics of Keyamo, Ojudu and Enang have hinted that their position may have been inspired by selfish motives because they could not get a good grip of the party structure at the just concluded ward congresses. Therefore, their insistence on cancellation of the congresses is supposed to give them a breather to reorganise for another attempt to re-strategise and make their political base unassailable. This is, however, not to jettison the fact in their submission that the Supreme Court judgement may have put the spanner in APC’s works.

But, a member of the legal team of APC, Chief Niyi Akintola has said that the position of Buni as the chairman was not injurious to the party congress and the forthcoming Anambra governorship election.
He said a minority judgment remains what it is, because It has no efficacy and value. He emphasised that the only value a minority judgment has is for academic purposes and research because it cannot be cited as an authority. To him, the country’s law and jurisprudence does not allow for any efficacy to be attributed to minority judgment.

Despite the assurances given by the legal luminary, there have been strong and unrelenting calls for Buni’s resignation by some party members.

APC Ward Congresses a Nullity- Ogala

Against this background , the former National Legal Adviser of the APC, Mr. Babatunde Ogala (SAN), has also opined that the party’s congresses remains a nullity in the eyes of the law and should be cancelled forthwith.

Ogala, who is Tinubu’s loyalist, therefore recommended the reinstatement of the dissolved NWC without the former Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, because his suspension followed due process.

He said the apex Court has not left anyone in doubt except those who choose to ignore them. He said the untenable position of Buni as de facto APC National Chairman is the smallest of APC’s problems. He noted that the bigger issue is the fact that the entire Caretaker Committee structure is unconstitutional as it runs counter to the spirit of Section 223 of the 1999 Constitution, which mandates political parties to have only democratically elected leadership.

APC Governors Stand

Governors elected on the platform of the APC have also weighed in on the Supreme Court judgement, insisting that the Apex court validated the Caretaker Committee of the party. The Chairman of Progressive Governors Forum (PGF), Atiku Bagudu, said prior to the release of the written judgement delivered by the Supreme Court, a lot of analysis and interpretations have been made, with some clearly taking a mischievous position.

The APC Governors are persuaded that with the clarification provided by the Supreme court in its written judgement, every decision and action taken by the Buni committee remains legal and binding since the court has affirmed its legality. This possibility goes with the thinking that the recently conducted ward congresses of the party were in order.

In another communique signed by the Chairman of the Forum and the Governor of Kebbi state, Atiku Bagudu, following the Forum’s meeting last Sunday in Abuja, reaffirmed its support for the Caretaker Committee of the party to proceed to conduct local government, state congresses and national convention, in line with the mandate of the National Executive Committee (NEC).

The Forum said it further reviewed progress being made by the APC Caretaker and Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee in its effort to rebuild structures of the party at all levels and commended members of the Caretaker Committee led by the Governor of Yobe State, Mai Mala Buni for the successful conduct of the ward congresses across the country.

APC Stakeholders Disagree

Meanwhile, a group, Concerned All APC Stakeholders, has alleged that the Caretaker Committee and some second term governors are bent on making sure the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) returns to power in 2023.

Its Spokesperson, Mr. Abdulahi Dauda, stated that the caretaker committee remains illegal and unknown to the party’s constitution, going by the apex court pronouncement.

He said, “For the love of our great party, we asked that the leaders of our party and those who genuinely love our party to rise up now and stop Buni and his second term governors that have spent eight years and have nothing to lose if the courts make a pronouncement that hands over victory to PDP in 2023.”

APC Deploys Police to Party Secretariat

Citing insecurity, the ruling party last Monday deployed a team of policemen to the national headquarters of the party, apparently, to prevent certain persons from protesting against the Buni-led committee.

The National Secretary of the Caretaker Committee of the party, Sen. John Akpanudoedehe explained that deployment of police to the national headquarters of the party was to strengthen the leadership of Governor of Mai Mala Buni and to fortify security at the secretariat.

He said: “The police is here to strengthen the leadership of Governor Buni, the caretaker chairman of the APC. What do I mean by that? Whenever you read about a security situation, whenever we are privy to a security report, it is incumbent on our part to strengthen the secretariat so that we can protect the lives and property of APC members.

“APC cannot be embarrassed because this is a national government, therefore we take measures to forestall any happenings. We cannot under-estimate a security report, we cannot play down on it. We have a security report, we can’t take laws into our hands, you can’t expect us to call thugs to defend the national secretariat. The right thing to do is to inform the police and the SSS so that they may know that such a thing has happened.”

Buni breaks silence

For the first time, Buni broke his silence last Wednesday when he described comments by some members of the party on the apex court judgement as self-serving and malicious.

Buni who was represented by Akpanudoedehe at the inauguration of Appeal Committees on the recently-conducted ward congresses was of the opinion that the comments from some persons who should have known better were just to play on the gullibility of the public.

According to him, “In the past few days, the media space has been filled with commentaries on the Supreme Court judgment in Jegede v. Akeredolu, with persons who should know better, coming out with very malicious and self-serving opinions, just to play on the gullibility of the public, while forgetting that our party is made up of very intelligent, sound and intellectually proficient persons who have seen beneath their grandstanding. The majority judgment of the Supreme Court has strengthened the position of the CECPC and our Chairman. The minority judgment serves only for academic purposes, nothing more.”

With the recent pronouncement of the court which questions the legality of the Buni Committee, it has given opportunity for the other blocs that have been shut out of the party to fight back. That is why most of those calling on Buni to resign are either from the ACN block or those that are having running battles with governors in their various states.

The APC came into being following the merger of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), a faction of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), the Congress of Progressives Change (CPC), the new Peoples Democratic Party and the All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP).

The ruling APC has different power blocs. The governors’ bloc, the CPC bloc led by President Muhammadu Buhari, the ACN block led by Tinubu, the new PDP bloc led by the Minister of Transport, Hon. Rotimi Amaechi, the ANPP bloc led by Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation, Chief Ogbonnaya Onu and the APGA bloc led by Senator Rochas Okorocha.

After the party won the 2015 presidential election, the ACN bloc was in control of the party, while the CPC bloc was in control of the government, and the new PDP and APGA were accommodated too.

After the 2019 elections, the political arrangements changed following the sack of the Oshiomhole-led NEC. Since the coming of the Buni committee, the governors’ and the CPC blocs have been in firm control of the party, while the other power blocs have been frozen out.

While the reactions and counter-reactions from the Supreme Court judgment on the Ondo State governorship election may be viewed as the bid to position certain tendencies within the APC ahead of the 2023 national elections, the ACN bloc, however, is battling to return to better reckoning in the affairs of the APC.

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The former National Legal Adviser of the APC, Mr. Babatunde Ogala (SAN), has also opined that the party’s congresses remains a nullity in the eyes of the law and should be cancelled forthwith. Ogala, who is Tinubu’s loyalist, therefore recommended the reinstatement of the dissolved NWC without the former Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, because his suspension followed due process