The struggle for the future of the All Progressives Congress, APC was yesterday turning into a tussle between the party’s governors and established political figures around President Muhammadu Buhari.
The Progressive Governors Forum, PGF comprising governors in the party at the end of a night meeting in Abuja on Thursday, resolved to among others, assert their supremacy in the party with a clear determination to ensure that the circle of presidential aides and ministers famed as the Aso Rock Cabal do not hijack the party and foist a transition agenda on them unbeknownst to the president.
The resolve of the governors, sources disclosed yesterday, followed the president’s decision to recall Governor Mala Buni as chairman of the Caretaker Extraordinary and Convention Planning Committee, CECPC of the party despite their joint resolution with the president to ease him out.
The governors it was learnt believe that the Cabal around the president influenced the decision for the sake of pushing through their succession agenda which was yesterday said to be hovering between one head of government institution, President Goodluck Jonathan and some still shadowy political forces around the president.
The governors it was gathered, were at the weekend further energized by the decision of the Federal High Court sitting in Umuahia, Abia State which asked the Attorney General of the Federation, AGF, Abubakar Malami SAN to delete Section 84 (12) from the Electoral Act.
That provision which excludes political appointees at all levels from participating in an election, Saturday Vanguard reliably, gathered came from a convergence of interests between senators and governors.
“It is to the interest of the governors and the senators that the section will cripple the plans of those around the president in foisting their agenda,” an informed source privy to the decision of the governors disclosed yesterday.
The governors it was further gathered, after forging unity between the group of 19 governors and the so-named Yahoo-Yahoo governors (governors behind Buni) on Wednesday further took a decision to project their common political interest given what they claimed was the manipulation being done by some people in the famed Aso Rock Cabal.
“Governors took a decision and clear instructions were given but some people with access to the president went and changed it,” the source breathed out yesterday.
While agreeing that the Aso Rock Cabal took advantage of the communication from the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, the governors were said to have pledged to frontally confront the Aso Rock Cabal.
“You cannot do away with the governors. Even under Obasanjo who was said to have been imperious he still reached out to the governors to carry out his political agenda,” the source said in laying out the determination of the governors to forge a common agenda.
In that direction, the governors it was gathered, had commenced a re-negotiation on the issue of the national chairman which had earlier been resolved in favour of Senator Abdullahi Adamu.
“I can confidently tell you that a negotiation of that issue is ongoing and no one can say that the position a week ago is still tenable,” the source revealed.
Saturday Vanguard reports that President Buhari had prior to his trip to Kenya reportedly given an instruction to the governors to deliver Adamu as the next national chairman.
“That time nobody questioned him as he said that that was his position, but with the Buni issue and other developments we can see that some people are manipulating from behind and the governors cannot leave their fortunes in their hands.”
However, Saturday Vanguard gathered that the attention was not only on the position of national chairman as the governors were engaging in a total negotiation of all positions in the National Executive Committee of the party.
The efforts of the governors nonetheless, the Aso Rock Cabal is believed to have made a definitive statement with the judicial decision in Abia nullifying Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act.
Saturday Vanguard reports that the provision allows those speculated to have political aspirations within the president’s camp to sustain their relevance and access into Aso Rock while sustaining their political bids.
Among those in the executive arm being listed as directly impacted with the provision are Haidi Sirika, aviation; Malami, justice; Rt. Hon. Chibiuke Amaechi, transportation; among others yet to show their hands.
(Vanguard)
