Peoples Gazette: President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the indefinite postponement of APC National Convention earlier scheduled to hold on Saturday, February 26.
The postponement comes against the push by the camp of a leading presidential aspirant Bola Tinubu to have national party positions fixed ahead of the 2023 presidential elections.
Mai Mala Buni-led Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) conveyed the postponement in a letter addressed to the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC), dated February 21 and seen by The Gazette.
In a letter to INEC on Monday, APC scheduled its zonal congresses for March 26 while no date was fixed for the much anticipated national convention.
The letter co-signed by National Secretary, Sen. John James Akpanudoedehe reads “This notice supersedes our earlier notice for National Convention referenced APC/NHDQ/INEC/019/22/14 this is predicated on the evaluation of our party constitution.”
“In furtherance to the Article 85 of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) and compliance with section 12.6 of our party constitution, we hereby write to notify the commission that our great party the All Progressives Congress (APC) has scheduled to hold its zonal Congresses is on Saturday 26th March 2022.”
“Kindly arrange for your officials to monitor the exercise accordingly.”
The Tinubu camp, Peoples Gazette learnt, have the numbers to swing party structure in their favour if national convention holds as earlier planned. The Buhari camp, however, find the situation discomforting and are hell bent on frustrating the emergence Tinubu men.
The delay in holding APC national convention is seen as a ploy to buy more time for the ruling cabal to weaken Mr Tinubu’s rising momentum and hold on to the APC structure until the set time to pick a presidential candidate for the party.
The Buni-led CECPC has delayed postponed the national convention no fewer than three times in the past fuelling accusations that it does so to perpetuate itself in power against the wish of majority of party faithful.
The Gazette on Saturday published a report detailing how Mr Buhari was yet to append his assent on the electoral bill despite having it reworked by the National Assembly to accommodate his demands.
Meanwhile, INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu had said the commission could not release a timetable for the 2023 polls until the amended electoral bill was signed into law.
The delayed electoral bill and postponed APC National Convention are giving credence to hearsays that the North is not willing to relinquish power to the south come 2023 when the general elections are scheduled to take place.
