APC shifts convention for third time, fixes March 26 as new date

 

The All Progressives Congress has for the third time, postponed its national convention which was initially slated for February 26, 2022. Rather, the APC now says it will hold its convention on March 26.

The APC Caretaker Committee, which was inaugurated in June 2020 was saddled with the responsibility of organising a national convention by December 2020. However, the committee led by Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State continued to seek extensions from the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.).

The committee had written a letter to the Independent National Electoral Commission on July 11, 2021, informing the commission of its intention to hold its convention that same month but soon shifted the date again.

The Buni committee again sought to hold the convention in December but then postponed it to February 26, 2022 and informed INEC of its planned convention. On Monday, however, the party announced that it will now hold its convention on March 26, 2022.

Earlier on Monday, the APC wrote a letter to INEC informing the commission of its intention to conduct its zonal congress on March 26, 2022. The APC further informed the commission that this fresh letter would supersede its earlier communication to INEC wherein it informed the commission that its national convention would hold on February 26.

In the letter signed by the Chairman, APC Caretaker Committee, Mai Mala Buni; and the Secretary, John Akpanudoedehe, the party informed the commission that this new congress will supersede the earlier letter.

In the letter dated February 21, 2022 marked APC/NHDQ/INEC/019/22/21, the party said it had to hold a zonal congress first in compliance with its constitution.

The letter titled, ‘Notice for the Conduct of Zonal Congress’ read in part, “This notice supersedes our earlier notice for a national convention referenced APC/NHDQ/INEC/019/22/14. This is predicated on the evaluation of our party constitution.”

On Monday evening, however, Akpanudoedehe, after emerging from a private meeting with party leaders, told journalists that the zonal congresses will now hold on March 12 followed by the zonal congresses appeal on March 14.

He said zonal committees would be announced on February 24, while a meeting of zonal stakeholders will hold on February 26.

Sales of forms for zonal offices would run from Monday, February 28 to Thursday, March 3.

Zonal applicants will be screened on March 5, 2022; screening appeal holds the next day, while the adoption of the screening report will be on March 8.

On the prices of nomination forms, the APC pegged the price of the zonal chairmanship form at N5m. Aspirants vying for the offices of zonal secretary, zonal legal adviser, zonal organizing secretary, zonal publicity secretary and zonal youth leader will pay N500, 000; while aspirants to the offices of zonal women leader and persons with disabilities would pay N250,000 to obtain forms.

For the national convention, Akpanudoedehe said activities for the event would commence on March 24 while the convention proper would hold on March 26.

According to him, “After deliberation and agreement with the CECPC, we have agreed and approved that the activities of the national convention will commence from March 24 and terminate on March 26.

“The convention activities commence on February 24, and it will terminate at Eagles Square on March 26. In between the convention, we have agreed to have zonal congresses.”

According to the new timetable, the Publication of National Convention Sub-Committees now holds on February 28, 2022. The sale of forms would run from Wednesday, March 9, to Friday, March 11.

Applicants will be screened from March 15 – 17, while screening appeals will be held on March 19, 2022.

March 21 has been slated for the adoption of the appeal report as the accreditation of participants to the Convention holds from March 24 – 25.

The convention, which is now scheduled for Saturday, March 26, 2022, will be followed by a convention appeal three days later on March 29.

The appeal report will be adopted on March 30, after which new party leaders will be inaugurated the next day.

In an interview with a chairmanship aspirant, Sunday Moniedafe, said he was disappointed with the APC and wondered why the party had failed to get its act right.

Moniedafe stated, “I don’t know what is wrong with the party. But as a party man, I want to assume that they consulted properly.”

However, a member of the APC, Ayo Oyalowo, who is the Co-Convener, Concerned Stakeholders, said on Channels Television that the fresh postponement was a plot by Buni and his committee to perpetrate themselves in power.

Oyalowo stated that the new date that had been picked by the party could also be postponed again.

He called on the President to dissolve the Buni committee, insisting that it had failed to deliver on its core mandate which was to organise a convention in December 2020.

Oyalowo also rubbished the argument that the caretaker committee deserved commendation for attracting three governors to defect to the APC from the Peoples Democratic Party. According to him, the crisis in the party had worsened since the ouster of the Adams Oshiomhole-led National Working Committee.

He added, “There was no crisis in the party except in Edo State when Oshiomhole was there. But now we have factions in almost all of the states. Their job (caretaker committee) was to hold the national convention for the party.

“Instead of doing that, they deliberately created a problem in the party. They started this by the membership registration which was needless. They are 2023 entrepreneurs. These guys are lying to us. Many of them want to be vice president.

“They should be removed. Buni especially, he has been playing on our intelligence. I want to tell you that he would again come up with stories why the convention would not hold on March 26 because I don’t see it holding.”