Opinion: 2023: Why APC must revisit, amend its constitution by Yusuf Adamu
The scenario that gave birth to the recent crises in the ruling All Progressive Congress, APC should not be cast with a wave of a hand at this time when the waves seemed to have calm down. There could be triggers that in the days ahead such event may rise again and therefore the need to revisit and amend the APC constitution by the new leadership of the party.
I am happy that our former Chairman, Adams Oshiomole and all the former party executives have withdrawn litigations and speak well of the party and leaders. This is a sign of good sportsmanship and shows that the party is on a good path to 2023 general elections.
In a place of corrections, issues of the past are sometimes brought to the fore in other to pick a lesson for the need of tomorrow. I have observed that, in the last five years of our party as the strong one, we have abandon the needful, which indeed was part of our crises as a party. This is the issues of holding regular meetings and sharing of information from the top to the bottom or avoid to take vital information from the bottom to the top.
Information management is very key in everyday life and especially in party affairs. The first mistake we made was to abrogate proprietorship leadership system in our party and that is now the brewing crises looking at comments coming from the southwest with the intervention of the President to hold strong our four walls from collapsing. This mistake should be the last and lessons for the new leadership to do the needful and not to allow an escalation along this wrong path.
Party meeting should be holding regularly and within the stipulated time and also not in a gangsteric style because everybody matters. We have seen the action of a ward Chairman against the National Chairman and the fruits it produces. This is very critical in a party with more than 20 million supporters. It is normal to agree and to disagree on issues and we should thank God that we have a listening President, who is quick to act on party matters. He is very quick and have saved the party from collapsing.
Agreement and disagreement is normal in a Democratic system because everyone has something to say and need someone to listen. There will be more of this as we move towards 2023. In APC like any other party, we have people of different background and ideas, as such, there must be a time for horse trading, maneuvering and scheming. But we have to do it in a good way. We thank our God that our party did not collapse.
The party now I believe is in the hands of people with higher level of integrity, experienced people to run the party for six months. Now, definitely a mechanism of check and balance has to be put in place. We should make sure that we do not trample on the opportunity God gave us to rule this great country, because the devastating effect will be greater in history judgements.
Although as a party we are dealing with oppositions that are not honest, let that not becloud our thinking that, we can play with God’s given opportunities. There are encroachment in our party to make sure the party did not stand, but did stand by the grace of God and this should make us to begin to look inward towards making sure that we do not give them room to put the last nail by their many attempts to brew new crises for the party.
My appeal is that, the new leadership of our party should use their experiences to ensure that the party is on a solid ground before talking about 2023. A mechanism for reconciliation has to be put in place and aggrieved persons must be reached out for immediately. The elections in Edo and Ondo is a litmus test for us. We do not have moral justification to loose these two elections. If we do, and I pray not – this is going to be bring a serious set back for us.
For me, I want a situation where the constitution of our party should be amended to spell clearly on issues of conflict from the wards to the National. We should take a study of the scenario that brought us to where we almost loose grip of the party. I want a situation whereby when there is a conflict in the ward, the ware Chairman has to form a committee to look into such conflict and write to the local government executives, who will look into the matter and also write to the state and the state writes to the National body before an execution order is given by the National body to suspend or expel an individual from the party.
We should make sure that wards have no jurisdiction to suspend or expel without following the due process and channels, otherwise the experience in the case of the former APC Chairman will be seen repeating like wild fire and that would not be a good thing for the image of the party.
I recalled when we were in the ANPP, whenever there is an issue of concern as this, the national executives will form a committee after its meeting, who would look into the matter and proffer solution without having to go to court. Sometimes the Board of Trustees are called upon to give fatherly advice or verdict on party internal issues.
Now, our party should make sure that a board of trustees is inaugurated and give them a role to play in party matters. These individual should be carefully selected and should be people with high level of integrity. We should have a situation whereby our internal conflict are managed and solved withing the ambit of the party constitution so as to reduce litigations.
* Yusuf Admau is a former Political Adviser to Ex- Borno Governor Kashim Shettima