Former governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole, would on Saturday be crowned as the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at its National Convention holding in Abuja. Oshiomhole is the sole candidate for the party’s national chairmanship.
The former President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) will be succeeding his kinsman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, whose tenure ends on June 25. Oyegun, who was initially defiant, insisting to contest in the June 23rd convention, withdrew from the race after the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party reversed the decision to elongate the tenure of the national officers.
Former governor of Cross River State, Chief Clement Ebri, yesterday stepped down for Oshiomhole to make the contest a one-man race. Ebri, who had vowed not to withdraw from the race, quit and endorsed Oshiomhole’s candidature.
The former governor was the third chairmanship aspirant to have stepped down for Oshiomhole. His U-turn came 24 hours after another aspirant and ex-Governor of Edo State, Senator Oserheimen Osunbor, pulled out of the race and endorsed Oshiomhole. Osunbor, like Ebri, had vowed to stay on till the end, declaring that President Muhammadu Buhari and governors’ endorsement for Oshiomhole won’t deter his aspiration.
Alhaji Ibrahim Emokpare, also from Edo State, was the first national chairmanship aspirant to bow out of the race and endorse Oshiomhole. Former governor of Lagos State and National Leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, is the chief promoter of Oshiomhole’s ambition. President Buhari had, at a recent meeting, charged the 24 APC governors to support Oshiomhole’s candidature.
Subsequently, virtually all the 24 governors elected on the APC platform endorsed Oshiomhole to lead the party. As soon as Oshiomhole opened his campaign secretariat, most of the governors visited the office and endorsed him.
The former governor has promised that he would ensure party supremacy if elected as the party’s national chairman. Oshiomohole, at an interactive session with APC young stakeholders in Abuja on Wednesday, maintained that if elected, he would subject the president and other elective officers to the dictates of the party. He specifically said that his leadership would be clear on issues of the economy and governance and would promote core values of progressive governance.
My hope is that, if by the special grace of God I become the APC National Chairman, we will need to be very clear about all these and other issues. “Anyone elected on our platform, including the President will be expected to conduct government and governance in a way that promote the core values of progressive governance,” he said.
Ebri stated that he withdrew from the race and endorsed Oshiomhole in the interest of the party. His words: “Following deep consultations with my family, friends, associates, party leaders and other stakeholders in the progress of our great party, the APC, I have reached the decision to withdraw my candidacy from the race for National Chairmanship of APC.
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“This decision has been taken in what I consider to be the overall interest of the party and my belief that all stakeholders must row in the same rancour-free direction as we approach general elections in a few months.
I believe too that a fundamental task of the APC is to win elections. After this is achieved, it behoves the party to offer its elected officials a means for organizing government as it then becomes the primary link between the people and government. I considered myself well suited for this and other enormous responsibilities and, on that basis, proceeded with my campaign.
“My sincere gratitude goes to everyone who believed in me sufficiently to invest their time, energy and other resources in that process. I hope that, in recalling their tireless sacrifices during that period, they will not feel disappointed at the decision that I am announcing now, but will rather feel inspired by it and gear up to the large visions of service underlying it.
I enjoin them, as faithful party loyalists, to transfer the support they had hitherto reserved for my candidacy to our aspirations for peace in the party and endorse Mr. Adams Oshiomhole as the National Chairman of the APC.
We should all render him every support and encouragement he needs as he and his team proceed to rebuild our party into a formidable, unified and inclusive organisation where every voice counts.”
No fewer than 6,800 delegates are expected to vote for aspirants contesting for positions in the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC at its National Convention on Saturday. The chairman of the Media Sub-committee for the National Convention Planning Committee, Governor Abiola Ajimobi, who spoke yesterday after the committee members inspected the Eagle Square, venue of the convention, added that the party was prepared to ensure a rancour free convention. “We are very happy about all the preparations, everything is in place, you can see what we call a very professional arrangement for tomorrow,” he said. He added that some aspirants may, however, drop from the race before the convention.
“Politics is about conflict and resolution. Today, we are meeting the aspirants to interview them, there will be a give and take, so that it will be a smooth operation on Saturday,” he said. Meanwhile, the Federal Capital Territory’s Administration has said that it will deploy 900 Traffic Management personnel, 100 patrol vehicles, 17 motor bikes and 15 ton trucks for special traffic management during the party’s convention, which will hold at the Eagle Square, Abuja. Secretary, Transportation Secretariat, Kayode Opeifa, said that vehicular movement through Shehu Shagari Way will be diverted at Ralph Sodeinde Street by Bullet building to link Central Business District.
Motorists will also be diverted at Kur Mohammed Street and Constitution Avenue at Bayelsa House to Central Business District while traffic on Ahmadu Bello way will equally be diverted at Ralph Sodeinde Street by Finance Junction to Central Business
In addition, officers of the Directorate of Road Traffic Services and other relevant Traffic Enforcement Agencies would be deployed to the venue, various routes adjoining the venue and other parts of the City to ensure seamless traffic flow. Opeifa, however, urged the motorists and other road users to take special note of the event at the Eagle Square and use the alternative routes provided by the FCT Administration.
