The declaration by Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State that the All Progressives Congress (APC) governors have resolved their differences ahead of the March 26 national convention of the party, is paradoxical.
Sule had claimed that the leadership of the party, under Gov. Mai Mala Buni, was making every effort to take every member along. For emphasis, he said, “I believe it is the only path for a successful convention and victory at elections. We believe in unity in diversity, and this is the mantra of our convention.”
That, ordinarily, should be assuring. The convention of a ruling party is usually a celebration of successes and reflection on the challenges ahead. It is usually a forum to elect candidates for the leadership of the party. In real terms, the national convention is the supreme organ of the party. It is indeed a big deal.
Growing up, it was fun watching the national conventions of the leading political parties of the Second Republic. For whatever anyone might say on the arrogance of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), its national convention was usually fun to behold. The more soberly Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) and Nigerian Peoples Party (NPP) also had much to showcase in their conventions. Aside from the festive sides of the gatherings, there were moments of stock-taking in which the political parties gave serious thought to the future of their organisations. It was on such occasions that the manifestoes of the parties were reviewed.
But that of the APC and indeed any of the rallies that today pass for political parties in the country are literally a farce, a mere assembly for incubation and hatchery of chicanery. For sure, political parties, even in advanced democracies, are avenues for intrigues. The difference, however, is that, while, elsewhere, the maneuvers are done with considerations for national interest, here, they are merely for crude acquisition of power, not for service but for furthering personal and group agenda.
That is why it is not often difficult to know in advance who picks what, weeks or months before the national convention of Nigeria’s political parties.
For instance, less than three weeks to the June 23, 2018, national convention of the APC, the outcome was already known. But the question the handlers of the party did not bother to ask was the fate of the party after the skewed exercise. It was a matter of grabbing power first.
In an outing that was characterised by undisguised coercion, the national chairman, John Odigie-Oyegun, was forced to withdraw from going for re-election, to clear the coast for Adams Oshiomhole, who just exited as Edo State governor. Oshiomhole was flaunted as President Muhammadu Buhari’s favourite for the position.
Oyegun, who pulled out of the race on Friday, June 1, said he was doing so in the interest of the party. He stressed that, though he would have loved taking another shot at the office, he was opting out so as not to be part of the problems confronting the party.
“I do not intend to be part of the problem for APC to solve. It is for this reason that I hereby declare that I will not be seeking re-election as the national chairman,” Oyegun remarked.
Oshiomhole and his backers had their way. Four years later, APC is yet to get over the trouble that Oyegun had envisaged.
If anything, rather, the party has sunk deeper in leadership crisis, giving it the image of an organisation at war with itself. As in 2018, Buhari has also been mentioned in the present confusion in the party. At some point, he was mentioned by Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai as the brain behind the insurrection by Governor Sani Bello against Buni as caretaker chairman of the party. In another breath, the President had made up with Buni, sealing the romance with a picture pose in faraway London.
The entire thing looks cosmetic. But one thing is certain: despite the efforts and propaganda to cover the cracks in the APC, the party is in huge stress. We should not ordinarily be bothered by the shenanigans in the party. Not all of us are politicians, not all of us belong to the party, after all. But no matter how we may try to remain unconcerned with the developments in the APC, we are all victims to its lack of vision and focus.
Being the party in power and in control of the resources of state, it has the number and noise. But that is where it all ends.
In her analysis that “the only thing worse than being blind is having sight without vision,” Helen Adams Keller, American author, disability rights advocate, political activist and lecturer, captured the APC brilliantly.
For seven years that the APC has been in power at the national level, there has not been much to cheer on advancing the frontiers of democracy. The basic principles of rule of law and sanctity of elections are not being observed. There is no guarantee of life and property, given the rising tide of insecurity in all parts of the country. The crisis in the energy sector is taking frightening dimensions every day. The economy is in a shambles, with production literally hitting ground zero. If you take a look at the neighbourhood on a normal day, what you encounter are frustrated and disillusioned faces with no particular hope on where the next meal would come from. The country is really in bad shape.
For a ruling party, these are issues that should prick the conscience of its leaders. By now, Nigerians should know what those aspiring to take leadership positions in the party can offer. The encounter should have been a mini national election of sort.
In a democratic setting that is worth its name, the APC national convention has a lot in defining the tempo and character of the affairs of the party in the years ahead. Those elected at the forum are the real leaders of the party, not the President, as it is wrongly taken now.
In the NPN days, Adisa Akinloye, the national chairman, was the unmistakable leader of the party, not President Shehu Shagari. Obafemi Awolowo was the spiritual and political leader of the UPN. Adeniran Ogunsanya was in charge in NPP, not Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, the presidential candidate. These were men who knew the weight of their offices, apparently because of how they emerged. Unfortunately, this is not what to expect from the APC.