By Taiwo Amodu
The year has been a mixed bag for the All Progressives Congress, (APC) but one of crisis for the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP). For APC that promised to turn around the fortunes of the average Nigerian electorate, it has been a tumultuous year on the economic front, as the people are agitated over dashed hopes and unfulfilled promises. The ruling party’s alibi has been the deleterious federal purse.
But despite its unenviable performance, the APC still recorded certain feats as it won Edo and Ondo states governorship elections respectively.
For the PDP which is now the main opposition party, it has been a year of tribulation, as it has been trapped in self-inflicted leadership tussle. Daily Sun chronicles events of 2016 on the political terrain and the personalities that shaped it.
PDP leadership tussle
The prelude to the PDP intractable leadership tussle was its national convention held on May 21, 2016 in Port Harcourt, Rivers state capital, to elect its national officers. It turned out an anti-climax, as the highest organ of the party dissolved the national working committee led by former Borno State governor, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, (earlier anointed by the governors for the exalted office) and put in place a caretaker committee, under the leadership of former Kaduna state governor, Senator Ahmed Makarfi.
A new convention fixed for August was however aborted by security agents who barricaded the Sharks Stadium, Port Harcourt, venue of the convention. The police claimed they were enforcing judgment of Justice Obong Abang of the federal High Court, Abuja which stopped the Ahmed Makarfi-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) from going ahead with its plan to conduct the national convention of the party.
Justice Abang, who issued the order, said that he did so in the interest of justice for both parties in a suit pending before him.
Abang also said that the order was issued to curb the excesses of some parties in the matter and to serve as a disciplinary measure against those treating the court with levity. However, before Justice Abang’s ruling few days to the aborted convention, Justice Ibrahim Watila of the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt had ruled that the PDP convention was in line with the July 4 judgment of the court which validated the May 21, 2016 national convention of the party.
Justice Watila also ordered INEC to monitor the convention. He also ordered the Inspector General of Police, the Director General of the DSS, the Rivers State Commissioner of Police and the Rivers State Director of the DSS to provide security at the convention. Despite admonition for political solution, both factions continue to accord recognition to themselves while the party’s national secretariat remained under lock and key.
Up and down for APC
For the APC, it has been a year of electoral success, in spite of internal dissension within its ranks. Despite the challenges the party also has had to contend with, it can now boast of two oil producing states in its fold. While it retained its firm grip on Edo, it also made a foray into Ondo State, last November.
It is interesting to note that before its feats in Edo and Ondo, the Supreme Court had also reaffirmed the victory of its candidate in the Kogi State governorship election held last year.
On September 20, the apex court in the country, upheld the election of the APC governor elect in Kogi State, Yahaya Bello. The death of the APC candidate, Audu Abubakar, in the election before his confirmation by INEC had led to litigations, as his running mate, James Faleke had insisted on his declaration. Faleke frowned on the pronouncement of INEC which declared the election inconclusive and demanded for his declaration as winner, after the demise of his principal. Faleke noted that Bello participated and came second in the APC primary but never participated in the main election.
But the seven-man panel of the apex court in a unanimous judgment delivered by Justice Sylvester Ngwuta, upheld the judgment of the appeal court which had earlier dismissed the appeals filed by James
Faleke and others.
In Edo State, its candidate in the governorship election held last September, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, was declared winner of the poll by the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC).
He defeated his main rival and candidate of the PDP, Osagie Ize-Iyamu, with 66,310 more votes. Obaseki polled 319,483 votes as against Ize-Iyamu’s 253, 173 votes.
INEC’s Returning Officer, Prof. Kayode Soremekun, who declared Obaseki winner, said he had met all conditions required to be returned as governor-elect for the state.
Two months after, its candidate, Rotimi Akeredolu, (SAN) won the Ondo state governorship election. In the final results announced by the INEC’s Returning Officer, Professor Abdul -Ganiyu Ambali, in the November 26 election, the APC candidate polled 244, 842 to defeat the PDP candidate, Eyitayo Jegede, who scored 150,380 while the Alliance for Democracy, (AD) candidate, Olusola Oke came a distant third with 126, 889.
According to the final results, the APC candidate won in 14 local councils of Odigbo, Akoko North-east, Ifedore, Irele, Ose, Akure North, Akoko south, South-West and North West local governments .
Others were Owo, Idanre, Odigbo, Akure South and Ese-Odo local councils. The PDP candidate, Eyitayo Jegede, won in two local councils: Ondo-east and West local. The AD candidate, Olusola Oke equally won in two local councils of Ilaje and Okitipupa in his Ondo South senatorial district.
But before the election, the national chairman of the party, Odigie Oyegun and a national leader, Bola Ahmed Tinubu were engaged in verbal tirades. The latter had accused the former of shoddy handling of petition, arising from the controversial primary of the party won by the anointed candidate of the Presidency and governor-elect, Rotimi
Akeredolu.
Tinubu in a scathing statement entitled, “Oyegun’s Ondo fraud: The violation of democracy in the APC,” demanded for Oyegun’s resignation.
The former Lagos State governor said the APC’s democratic credentials had been dealt a big blow by Odigie-Oyegun’s conduct, especially with his handling of the outcome of the Ondo State governorship primary poll. He said the APC was a party borne out of the quest for democratic good governance, arguing that the ideology was currently under a critical threat ‘’by those who managed to be in the party but were never part of it.’’
But on October 8, few days after his meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, the APC National Chairman released a full response to the allegations leveled against him by Tinubu, over the outcome of the Ondo State governorship primary election.
Oyegun, in a rejoinder he personally signed titled ‘The Facts – 2016 Ondo State APC Governorship Election Primaries’, described the content of the widely publicized statement by the media office of Tinubu as “reckless and baseless.”
Reacting to Tinubu’s statement, Oyegun said he was angered by the false accusation of corruption, rigging the outcome of the primary and overruling the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) “vote” on the
Election Appeal Committee Report.
He noted that: “This reckless and baseless corruption allegation leveled against me is unfortunate and an insult to my person and my hard-earned reputation which I have strongly maintained. Nobody has the kind of money that can buy my conscience or make me do injury to an innocent man.
“In all the primaries conducted under my watch as National Chairman, I have strived to ensure a free, fair, transparent and credible process. The 2016 Ondo State APC Governorship Primary Election was not an exception. There must be internal democracy in the Party and our constitution must be respected by all.”
Aishat Buhari fumes
When criticisms come from unexpected quarters, they make news. While the Presidency continues to dismiss those squealing against its lack lustre performance as ‘wailing wailers,’ the First Lady, Aishat Buhari’s interview with BBC Hausa service, last October, reinforced the discontent and disconnect between Nigerians and the government . In the interview, she expressed indignation over the domineering influence of certain individuals whom she alleged had hijacked her husband’s administration.
She said: ‘’The hardship that people are going through now was anticipated, knowing what we inherited. It is not going to be a smooth journey; but I think so far so good. The only thing that almost everybody is not happy with, including myself, is on those that really suffered for this journey and now people who do not even have registration cards are guiding us, which is so unfair and unfortunate for the journey that we started more than 13 years ago.
‘’People who do not have voters card are those who are given appointments and enjoying the government.”
She also cautioned that she might not partake in the movement for a fresh mandate for her husband in 2019.
‘’… As a person, I have my right to say how I feel about something. If it continues like this, me, I am not going to be part of any movement again, because I need to work with the people that we started the journey with collectively so that we can achieve what we want to achieve, so that he would leave a legacy.’’
Kalu joins APC
Former Abia State governor, Orji Uzor Kalu on November 16, dumped the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), a party he founded for the ruling APC. The former governor who was well received at the party national secretariat by its national chairman, Odigie Oyegun and other members of his national working committee, premised his defection on the need to disabuse minds of Nigerians, particularly those from the South East that the APC was an ethnic or religious contraption.
He said: ‘’If they see us in this place, they will know that APC is not an ethnic or religious party … It is something that we need to be explaining to the Catholic bishops, Anglican bishops, the Pentecostal churches and the rest of them.”
He further disclosed that his movement had swelled the ranks of the party supporters in Abia State. ‘’ Between Sunday when I registered at Igbere and now, there are 4,000 new members already registered with the APC in Abia without making it open. There are two members of the House of Representatives who are there right now that are joining the APC.
‘’Our upright war is that the South-East will be delivered to APC. The most potent thing is the ability to consult, discuss and move forward. Nobody is an embodiment of knowledge.’’