APC Lagos Crisis: the world is suspended
A preliminary peace meeting scheduled last Thursday by supporters of former Lagos Governor and APC national leader Senator Bol Tinubu to end the crisis in the losing party’s Lagos chapter, The Sunday Tribune revealed.
The disrupted meeting, which took place at the request of Chief Tadjudin Olusi, failed, according to a Sunday Tribune poll, because there was no way to form a quorum among those on the list.
Two federal cabinet ministers, the interior minister and former governor of Osun Rauf Aregbesola and the minister of labor and housing and former governor of Lagos state Babatunde Fashola, duly invited to the meeting, did not. they appeared.
Former speaker of the Lagos House of Assembly Adeyemi Ikuforiji, who was also expected at the meeting, did not appear.
Olusi is Tinubu’s man on Friday and one of his leaders who recently met with President Muhammadu Bukhari to avoid disbanding the executive branch of the Lagos state.
The mission fell through as the Party’s National Executive Council (NEC) dissolved all executive committees in all states of the federation on Tuesday, December 8, 2020.
It is firmly believed that Tinubu is witnessing the presidential race, and the peaceful assembly is considered the first of a series planned for the remaining five states of the Southwest.
Once a unity was formed between the trends in Lagos and the two existing factions rallying around the former governor, it was believed that it would be easier for him to keep delegates safe from the rest of the territory, despite supposed aspirations. presidential elections for former Governor of Ogun Ibikunle Amosun State and Governor of Ekiti State Kayode Fayemi.
Before the January 7th date was set, Olusi, who will act on Tinubu’s direction, will meet with the Fuad Oki faction leader at APC in the state to ask for a truce.
Also present at the aforementioned meeting was the disgruntled party leader (hidden name), who is currently displeased with Tinubu despite their past friendly relations.
The party in the state is currently split into factions between a group loyal to Oka, a former close associate of Tinubu, and another, led by the respected Tunde Balogun, fiercely loyal to the party’s national leader.
Balogun is currently the chairman of the state committee, but in an interview with the Sunday Tribune, Oki was convinced that Balogun’s important days as party chairman were numbered.
It is reported that a date has been set for the peace talks in the future.
A source told the Sunday Tribune that both factions should appoint their representatives for a future meeting, although Oki faction leaders are skeptical that the meeting has accomplished much.
The main reason for the existence of the faction on Tinubu is the alleged lack of internal democracy in nominating candidates for government and party positions.
Senior members of the Oki faction also accused the national leader of imposing, but this charge was rejected by the former governor’s camp.
It is known that for the peace agreement to have any meaning, a faction loyal to Oki would strongly demand that the party be returned to members in the state, and members should be allowed to choose their leaders and representatives at different levels of party politics. and management.
The emergence of current Senator Tokunbo Abiru, who represented the Eastern Senatorial District of Lagos as the party’s candidate, was heavily criticized for lack of internal democracy, as the party leadership allegedly asked other candidates to step down in his place.
The dissolution of the state executive, along with others, was seen as a victory for the Oka faction, which fiercely fought against the emergence of exco Balogun.
The faction has already started mobilizing members for the upcoming registration / confirmation of membership, which is also seen as another milestone for the anti-tax faction.
In an interview with the Sunday Tribune, Oki boasted that political power would soon pass into the hands of the state within the party, adding that the leader’s supporters would soon cry.
As the Sunday Tribune has learned, while the peace movement is still in limbo, a new crisis is breaking out in the state branch of the party.
At the heart of the roaming crisis is the constitutional question of whether the head of state can manage interim leaders in 57 local government and local development districts, or only 20 constitutionally recognized local government districts in the state.
The Balogun faction, which controls the guardian leadership, currently operates the exco local government parties in all 57 LG and LCDA and 377 quarters.
As the Sunday Tribune learned, the Oka faction is contesting the deal.
During the 2018 party conventions, the Oka faction limited itself to 20 LG and 245 constitutionally recognized districts, while the Tinubu faction held its own congresses at 57 LG and LCDA and 377 in the chambers.
The current refusal of the faction to recognize the legality of party gatherings in 37 LCDA and 134 additional chambers is expected to be resolved by the national leadership of the party in Abuja prior to the commencement of membership registration on 25 January.
