1 month ago
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The North Central APC Forum, on Wednesday, suspended its agitation for the removal of Dr Abdullahi Ganduje as the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress.
In the past six months, Ganduje has survived a series of aborted moves and legal fireworks, especially from APC stakeholders from the North-Central agitating for the leadership seat to return to their zone following the exit of his predecessor, Senator Abdullahi Adamu.
Recall that suspected thugs had attacked and dispersed some demonstrators from the North-Central APC in front of the party four months ago.
The protesters had stormed the party secretariat, chanting solidarity songs and displaying banners that read ‘Return APC National Chairmanship to North-Central’ and ‘Dr Ganduje, kindly resign to face your prosecution in Kano.’
In the wake of the protest, a former APC chairmanship aspirant from the same region, Muhammad Etsu, and a member of the Presidential Campaign Council in the 2023 election, Saleh Zazzaga, also took up the challenge.
While Etsu filed a legal injunction to stop Ganduje from parading himself as national chairman, Zazzaga, also the Chairman of North-Central APC Forum, held several press conferences and protests to press home their demand.
However, in a statement on Wednesday issued in Abuja on their plan to put their agitation on hold, Zazzaga said they are not opposed to Ganduje as a person, saying all they have ever wanted was the rights, privileges, and democratic dividends of the region.
The APC forum chairman noted that the last few months had witnessed a long judicial battle they believed was going to be victorious, adding that unfortunately, the court decided the case against them.
He said, “Let it be on record that we do not have personal issues against the person of Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje; he is our national chairman. Our activism is based on our feelings that the national chairman should have been retained in the north-central zone after the exit of Senator Abdullahi Adamu.
“We have come to an agreement that the NEC has all the powers to make decisions for our party, including the zoning and elections into vacant positions of our party. We understand that it was NEC that elected Ganduje. More importantly, is the fact that another NEC is by the corner where further decisions will made to the advantage of the party as we prepare towards 2027 general elections.”
Zazzaga consequently announced that the North Central APC Forum has unanimously agreed to step down their agitation pending the decision of the NEC of the party.
“This is in line with our principle of fairness, equity and justice in order not to cause unnecessary disaffection among political leaders from the North Central zone and other leaders of our party.
“We also believe that, by standing down at this time, we shall give the North Central geo-political zone a fair hearing at the NEC where our political leaders will have free hands to negotiate with the centre some specific benefits which should be attracted to the zone,” he stated.
Reacting, Ganduje’s Senior Special Assistant on Public Enlightenment, Chief Oliver Okpala, described the move as a welcome development.
Okpala, who spoke with our correspondent in an exclusive interview on Wednesday, noted that even though the court has ruled that the North Central APC Forum is an illegal body, the party would welcome Zazzaga and his members if they are genuinely on the path of rectitude.
He said, “The North Central APC Forum is an illegal organisation that has nothing to do with the party. Besides, the court has earlier declared it as an illegal entity not known to law. Therefore, whether they withdraw their case or not, it is of no use or relevance to us.
“But if they are saying they have withdrawn from the agitation and now recognise Ganduje as the APC national chairman, that is a welcome development. It shows they now want to return to the path of political rectitude.
“All along, their actions running an illegal entity should be viewed as anti-party activities knowing that the APC is a party that respects the rule of law and discipline. You will recall that we advised them that the party has an internal mechanism of conflict resolution that they could have taken advantage of before bringing the case to court.”
