Yari, at Media Summit, Tells True Story of How APC Was Formed

 AbdulAziz-Yari 

 AbdulAziz-Yari 

*Chairmanship aspirants meet in Abuja, unveil agenda
*Akpanudoedehe: Nigerians too intelligent to replace us with PDP

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

In a manner it has never been told before and contrary to the familiar story in the public space, about those who initiated the APC merger, a former governor of Zamfara State, Abdul-Aziz Yari, yesterday, regaled his audience at a media summit in Abuja, with what he tagged the true story of how the All Progressives Congress (APC) was formed.

Yari spoke at the APC Press Corps’ Second Annual Summit with the theme: “APC, Beyond 2023, The Task Ahead”, an event used as an avenue for all the chairmanship aspirants of the APC to unveil their plans and programmes as well as ponder the future of the party.

Also, the National Secretary of the Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) of the party, Senator John Akpanudoedehe, yesterday, at a different gathering, said despite their shortcomings as a party, Nigerians were too intelligent to replace the APC with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2023.

Speaking at the summit, Yari, who said the theme of the event was at the heart of any APC member, especially, those that initiated the merger of the party in 2013.

“I’m one of the co-founders of this great party and my colleague, Al-Makura and he mentioned one other, who is not here (Kayode Fayemi). I can tell the gathering that three of us started this progressive.

“A little history about it is that at any point in time we went for a meeting in Amaechi’s House (former Rivers State governor), after the meeting of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, they will say PDP governors wait, the president wants to see all of you and we were being a kind of intimidated with what PDP was doing.

“So, we too said we’re going to do something and Al-Makura was part of the initiative, Fayemi as well as the immediate past Chairman, that’s Adams Oshiomhole. We arranged that after a meeting, we should also announced that we have opposition governors’ meeting in Fashola’s House. That’s how the APC, I can tell you, came to birth.”

THISDAY checks, also pulled up a statement issued by the governors on February 5, 2013, at the Lagos House, tagged: “We Endorse a Merger to Rescue Nigeria”.

“We, the Governors of Borno, Ekiti, Imo, Lagos, Nasarawa, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Yobe and Zamfara, rose from a meeting at Lagos House, Marina today, Tuesday, February 5th, 2013. Having reviewed the situation in our country, we resolved that to rescue Nigeria is a task that must be done.

“As progressive and patriotic leaders of our people across party, religious and geo political zones, we are extremely concerned about the state of the nation and we put our heads together in the interest of our people to deliberate on what can be done to rescue our country.

“As governors, we fully endorse the merger initiatives already commenced by our various political parties and we will put our full weight behind these efforts. Nigeria is greater than all of us and we have a duty to make it work for our people and the future of our children yet unborn,” the statement stated.

Yari, however, added that governors would continue to dominate the affairs of the party, because they were the Alpha and Omega and financiers of the party.

According to him, “The issue of domination, of course, governors must dominate the party. Why? Because they’re the Alpha and the Omega and they are the financers but we have to change the narrative.
“If we change the narrative and with members of the party, at least, certain direction on the issue of critical importance, then that narration can be changed.”

Yari also stressed the need to reconcile all aggrieved members of the party, saying the cases of internal crisis must be resolved before going to the ballot box.

Aside Yari, other aspirants, who made it to the event included a former governor of Nasarawa, Senator Tanko Almakura, Senator Mohammed Musa, former Governor of Borno State, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, who was represented by Mr. Cairo Ojougboh; former Governor of Bauchi State, Isa Yuguda; Malam Mustapha Saliu, Mr. Sunny Monidafe, Mohammed Etsu and Senator George Akume, who was also represented by a former Minister of State for Niger Delta, Sam Odeh.

Speaking, Al-Makura said the ruling party was in a transition period and there was a need for thinking the APC beyond 2023.

He, however, expressed worry that President Muhammadu Buhari, whom he described as the unifiier of the party, has held the party together in the past six and a half years, but would be on his way out.
Al-Makura said: “Are we prepared to carry the mantle and at least, try to do what he has been doing? That is the question. So, I can sum it up that what needs to be done is sustaining the gains and securing the future.

“I am here as one of the aspirants. It may interest you to know what is my motivation? What is my motive? What is my objective of wanting to be the national chairman of this great party? It is not about myself. It is not about the ego or what goes with that.

“It is about sustaining the gains as one that was opportune by providence to be part of those that participated in the merger exercise. It will be a total disservice to the party, if I sit back at this very critical period, not to partake in ensuring value addition to the party. That is my objective. That is my reason for wanting to contest for the office of chairman.”

Al-Makura said the best way to reposition the ruling party and prepare for a post-Buhari era is by electing him as the next Chairman of the party.

“The challenge is the sacrifices people have been able to make over this period of time. I think there couldn’t be a better way to get this party properly positioned more than someone that has been with the party right from the beginning and has gone across the board to know what needs to be done and what not.
“By the special grace of God, if I become the National Chairman, I would ensure justice. I wish to ensure fairness and I will ensure a level playing field for everybody and ensure also internal party democracy and reward system,” he promised.

Senator representing Niger East, Musa, lamented that all political structures in the country have been reduced to only platforms, where leaders usually use to attain leadership, stressing that the trajectory was not good for the country, because it has not given the populace what is desired.

Musa said there was a need to make APC an institution, whereby it would be governed by the book and leaders, as well as ensuring members abide by the constitution of the party.

“I want to bring technology to the running of the administration of APC. The internal structure needs to be re-engineered. We need to re-engineer APC. We need a leadership that is participatory. We need a leadership that is pace setting, we need people with ideas to come in.

“When I said I would be adaptive to participatory and affirmative work style, that will usher visionary and perfect leadership of this party, what I mean by that is, APC must be an institution, which is the only antidote to the reckless disabuse of office and ethics, which brings about disharmony and wrangling.

“We must bring reform and that form of reform we are going to bring is true reconciliation, true reorganisation and the redirection of our manifesto. We must build a manifesto that will go in line. We must domesticate our policies. Democracy is borrowed, but we must also use this democracy as a platform to domesticate what we have that will usher in good economy for us, usher in a generation that is thinking ahead.”

Akume, in his submission, said the theme of the summit couldn’t have been better, adding that the reason was that the party should be thinking about its future beyond 2023.
He said while it was his desire to be elected as the chairman of APC, he was not desperate and ready to work with whoever emerges.

Akume, however, said the national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Iyorchia Ayu, has no capacity to deliver his polling unit during election, adding that Ayu was suffering ‘delusion grandeur’ for him to have asked APC to prepare its handover notes in 2023.

Monidafe, on his part, said he would generate N4.2 billion monthly and ensure that the party could easily function without money bags.

He said: “Word going round says that we have about 42 million members in the APC. If we can convince them to pay N100 per month, we will raise N4.2 billion. Multiply that by 12 months, you will get N50.4 billion.

“The governors will then use the money allocated to them monthly and generated to provide services for their citizens. I am a youth pastor, but two of my brothers are Muslims.

“Under my watch, we will hold annual party conferences, at both national and state levels. We will push for the party to screen candidates for ministerial and commissionership positions.”

Monidafe, however, assured the people that if elected chairman, he would appoint and immediately swear in members of the caucus, elders forum, at both national and state levels.

Meanwhile, Akpanudoedehe, who spoke in Abuja, when APC state chairmen passed a vote of confidence on the caretaker committee, had reacted to the ‘sack’ of the Mai Mala Buni committee by APC youth led by Mustapha Audu.

While commending the state chairmen for standing up against any youthful exuberance, Akpanudoedehe said the “Nigerian youths are very brilliant, resourceful people. We want to thank you for standing in the gap, when there were issues in your party.

“We had said to ourselves that we were not going to respond, because it is not an issue. But we must be very careful not to arm PDP with the bullets against our party. I learnt that the new PDP chairman made a prophecy that we will scatter before April.”

The secretary, however, wasted no time in going scriptural to counter the declaration by the the PDP national chairman, who said the APC would cease to exist in 2023.

“I replied by saying that the Bible says take counsel together, it shall come to nothing. Speak the word, it will not stand, rather, we will be stronger and stronger.

“Let me send a message to PDP, if we are talking about replacing APC, it can never be you because Nigerians are too intelligent. Nigerians will still choose APC. Talk is cheap, even when you sponsor crises throughout Nigeria, we won all our By-elections.

“We inherited insurgency and we have dealt with it. As we speak, not one inch of Nigeria’s territory is being taken over by any group. That is why they have turned themselves to criminals. When PDP was in government, they took over everywhere but today, it is different.

“Maybe because the President is not the talking type. I am challenging anyone to show me any social intervention programme better than this government. People are collecting alerts for COVID-19 palliative. Youths, women, civil servants are collecting it.

“We have a minister, who served under that government and the minister bought a bressiere worth 1 million. We cannot replace APC with a bressiere government. We just got another information that another account has been discovered,” he said.

Earlier, speaking on behalf of the state chairmen, Delta State APC Chairman, Prophet Jones Erue, said APC was greater than any individual and therefore its existence was paramount to the members.
According to him, “We are not going to mortgage it for any reason. We are not going to destroy our APC for any reason. Therefore, we, state chairmen resolve and we stand resolved that we stand with the leadership of our great party under the leadership of his Excellency, Mai Mala Buni.”

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