The emergence of Senator Bukola Saraki and
Yakubu Dogara as Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives
respectively has, undoubtedly, altered political calculations within the All
Progressives Congress.
Although
the duo are members of the APC, their party showed preference for Senator Ahmed
Lawan and Femi Gbajabiamila – for the two top positions in the National
Assembly.
To
demonstrate its seriousness, the party held mock elections on Saturday after
which it announced Lawan and Gbajabiamila, as its sole candidates for the polls
that took place in the National Assembly on Tuesday.
Saraki,
Dogara and their supporters not only boycotted the shadow elections, they vowed
to defy the party by mounting a challenge against the preferred candidates.
No
doubt, the decision of the two to defy the party underscored a deep rift among
the leading figures within the ruling party.
This
was perhaps aptly shown by the reactions of party leaders after the emergence
of the new leaders.
Members
of the party’s National Working Committee held an emergency meeting after which
they issued a statement rejecting Saraki and Dogara as the leaders of the
National Assembly.
The
party threatened sanctions against all its members involved in the process which
produced the two in defiance of its directives.
Specifically,
the party, in the statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji
Lai Mohammed, said, “The APC leadership is meeting in a bid to re-establish
discipline in the party and to mete out the necessary sanctions to all those
involved in what is nothing but a monumental act of indiscipline and betrayal
aimed at subjecting the party to ridicule and create obstacles for the new
administration.”
A
few minutes after the APC statement, President Muhammadu Buhari and a former
Vice-President, Atiku Abubakar, issued separate statements commending the
elections.
Buhari,
in a statement signed by his Special Adviser (Media and Publicity), Femi
Adesina, restated his earlier stance that he did not have any preferred
candidates for the Senate and the House of Representatives leadership positions
and that he was willing to work with whoever the lawmakers elected.
Atiku
on his part congratulated the newly elected leaders. He said in a statement by
his Media Office that, “Irrespective of the political mix through which the
presiding officers emerged, the 8th National Assembly should never lose focus
of its role as a partner in progress with other arms of government especially
the executive arm.”
With
conflicting signals coming from leading figures of the party, there is little
doubt that the APC will be faced with some, if not most of the problems, which
marked the latter days of the former ruling Peoples Democratic Party.
The
party leadership is faced with the grim reality of trying to “enforce
discipline” within its fold. This, in itself, is potentially a volatile road to
travel if not properly handled.
The
Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Alhaji Abdullahi Jalo,
expressed delight about the turn of events in the National Assembly.
According
to him, the seed sown by the APC in the House of Representatives in 2011, with
the election of Aminu Tambuwal as Speaker, against the wishes of the PDP has
grown into a very big tree, the fruit of which the APC is now generously
reaping from.
He
however said, “The reality today is that we all need each other to move
forward. The new Senate President will benefit from the experience of
Ekweremadu who has been the DSP for eight years and vice versa. I believe
Nigeria and Nigerians will be the better for it.”
How
the APC resolves this and other challenges which they will definitely be
confronted with in the coming days, weeks, and months, will define the party’s
character and future.
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