Assistant Editor (North), CHUKS EHIRIM, writes on brainstorming sessions by the APC leadership, ahead of the May 29 hand-over date.
The leadership of of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is not leaving any stone unturned as the party braces up to assume its status as the ruling party in the country. It was against this backdrop that chieftains of the party, last week, brainstormed on strategies to go about the emerging task.
While governors of the party held a two-day valedictory session which comprised a dinner the first day (Tuesday, May 19, 2015), there was retreat for both those who retained their offices after the April 11 governorship election and their counterparts who are coming in for the first time.
The dinner, which took place in Abuja, brought together some of the governors-elect and many of the old governors. It also appeared as a valedictory party for four of their colleagues (Rabiu Kwankwaso, Aliyu Wamakko, Babatunde Fashola and Chibuike Amaechi) who would vacate offices in their various states on Friday.
At the dinner party, three of the party’s chieftains (National Chairman, John Odigie-Oyegun; former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar; and Ogbonnaya Onu) delivered thought-provoking talks to the governors.
Atiku warned the APC governors to guard against the mistakes of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), that saw the party suffer humiliating defeat in the last general elections. He lauded them for putting in place in their respective states, progressive and people-oriented programmes that stand the APC as a party of the people.
“I’m extremely pleased to congratulate my friends, Rotimi Ameachi, Babatunde Fashola, Rabiu Kwankwaso and Aliyu Wamakko, for successfully completing their tenure as governors of Rivers, Lagos, Kano and Sokoto states respectively. Governor Fashola and his predecessor, Bola Tinubu, helped to legitimise the progressives governors in the South West and by extension Nigeria in the period since we returned to civil rule in 1999. Nobody would again wonder what an APC government could do in office.
“In the South South, Governors Amaechi and later Adams Oshiomhole showed what an APC government will look like. So also is the sitting governor in the South East in the person of the Chairman, Progressives Governors Forum (PGF), Rochas Okorocha of Imo State.
“Up North, Governors Kwankwaso and Wamakko have been shining examples of what progressives governors could do, as well as what Ameachi did there (in Rivers) on the platform of PDP before the environment in that party (PDP) made it difficult for them to continue to bring positive change to their people and Nigeria. Their respective stands on national issues also made them so popular in their states and across the country. They are the reason the people of their states love them and why Nigerians in general love them. They are the reason the exit of other governors from the PDP was made possible, and this contributed significantly in our victory and the defeat of the PDP.
“They were with their people and their people were with them. When the chips were down, these brave governors took the difficult part, other than the easy way out. That is why we celebrate them,” Atiku said.
The former vice president advised the incoming governors to emulate those good works of their predecessors which made them popular among their people.
“I enjoin all our incoming governors to be governors of example. If they do so, Nigeria will be changed for good. We must be humble in all our dealings with Nigerians, not like PDP. We must have candour, lead them by example and plea for their patience when necessary. If we are transparent and honest with them, they will give us their support,” he added.
Onu also poured encomia on the APC governors, stating that they had done their party proud.
“I salute the Progressives Governors Forum for organising such an event. We salute you. The Progressives Governors Forum has done so much for the party. When this party was formed, nobody gave it the chance that it will be registered. It is the governors who worked with other leaders to make sure that the party was registered,” Onu said.
He added that after the struggle, APC governors, under the aegis of PGF, worked tirelessly to ensure that it recorded victory on March 28 and April 11. The feat, he recalled, was unprecedented, given that APC was yet to be two years, adding that its formation marked the first successful merger of major political parties not only in Nigeria but in Africa. “Today, the All Progressives Congress has produced a president-elect, who, by the grace of God, in the next few days, will be the president of Nigeria. This is the first time in the history of our country that an incumbent president was defeated by the candidate of the opposition political party. APC has made history. APC is the vehicle that Nigeria will use to attain greatness. Today, as a political party, Nigerians expect a lot from us. But as I look around and see our governors, our governors-elect, our senators, our senators-elect, members of the House of Representatives, I am so confident that APC will exceed the expectations of Nigerians.”
He stressed the need to improve and make adequate changes in the way the party is run, arguing that the responsibilities of an opposition political party are different from that of a ruling party. Onu also urged APC members to learn from the lessons provided by the PDP. “We have to study the PDP and make sure that the mistakes made by the PDP will not be repeated by the APC,” he said.
The following day (Wednesday, May 20), the governors had what they tagged pre-inauguration retreat of the PGF at the Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, an event that again brought together most of the governors and governors-elect. It was actually a brainstorming session put together to look for the way forward as May 29 hand-over date approaches.
At the end of it, the governors came out with a communique which spelt out what may likely be the party’s policy direction in the next four years.
The retreat brought together resource persons in the areas of security, economics, governance, infrastructure, human and capital development.
According to the communique, the time to act and change Nigeria is now, and all those who hold leadership positions in the party are ready to instigate the right followership that will produce results, adding that the Nigerian economy needs to be diversified, especially towards agriculture.
It remarked that the country cannot decide to entirely ban importation of foreign products, but look for ways to create a competitive market with those products that are being imported.
The document further stated that all APC governors will embark on a peer review mechanism to facilitate and replicate positive governance strategies and policies in all progressive states.
From the day of inauguration, the retreat agreed, the activities of the progressives will determine the stature of the party for the future; hence the need for all to begin works that will speak rather than a replication of promises.
A source at the meeting told TheNiche that all the governors had agreed to run a uniform programme in all their states. In other words, the party’s manifesto and programmes will be replicated in all the states controlled by the APC, including, of course, at the federal level, as a way of showing uniformity.
As the governors’ retreat was going on, another major event was taking place at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel. It was a policy dialogue on the implementation of the agenda for change, organised by the policy, research and strategy directorate of the APC.
At that event, President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari, got tips from former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, on how to administer the country properly and retain the high tempo of popularity which earned him and his party a landslide victory at the polls. Blair was represented by a former British Member of Parliament, Lord Peter Benjamin Mendelson, his former Secretary of State and Minister.
Blair, who has taken more than a passing interest in Nigeria of late, identified scams around the oil sector and institution of monopoly as dtrain pipes, describing oil subsidy removal and barring the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) from opening multiple bank accounts as major catalyst for kick-starting his agenda for change in the country.
The former British PM reminded Buhari and the Vice President-elect, Yemi Osinbajo, of expectations from Nigerians as well as that of the international community on them, stressing that though taking some tough decisions would be painful, it was better taken at the onset of the administration than towards the end if desired results would be attained.
Blair said: “People are really expectant on what is about to happen in Nigeria. There are challenges of insecurity, unemployment and lifting of the economy, which the in-coming government must overcome. But excuses should not be that people who would serve in government are new, but they need to be true to their word, mandate and govern as they labour.”
Citing their experiences in Britain, he told Buhari that his administration kept exactly to its word in its mandate which made it to succeed.
“For Buhari to deliver change in an inspiring way, you cannot do everything at once but to take up issues in a prioritised process through the the science of diligent application and yet maintaining balance in time of crises which is inevitable. The processes are not straightforward. Learn how to transit from opposition, delivering results as CEO,” he stressed.
He urged the APC chieftains to learn to transform their party to one that is no longer in opposition, but one that would now persuade the electorate and the government on the deliverables, so they can keep following the party, otherwise people’s faith on the party will fade.
“The best way to get around it is to focus on the deliverable, focusing on it and getting the people to deliver the deliverables, taking the issues one point at a time, until you get several turned around,” he said.
He identified the corruption in the oil industry, asking Buhari to deal with the issues in NNPC in his first 100 days in office, while ensuring that all government revenue should go into a single account, which will give instant reputation for fiscal prudence.
“This is very important for your government and your future,” he advised.
Earlier, Osinbajo had stressed that the dialogue was aimed at presenting the party’s agenda in a consultative manner, so that stakeholders could offer advice to the incoming administration.