The National Executive Committee (NEC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) will today (Monday) at its meeting take a final decision on the tenure of the Chief John Odigie-Oyegun-led National Working Committee.
Ahead of the meeting, which from all indications will be stormy, governors and state chairmen of the party arrived in Abuja on Sunday.
NEC will review the decision it took in February, when it said the tenure of the party’s officials had been extended.
The tenure of Oyegun and other NWC members will come to an end on June 28, 2018.
But NEC, at its meeting on February 27, 2018, approved a one-year tenure extension for the party’s officials.
However, at its meeting on March 27, President Muhammadu Buhari opposed the tenure extension, saying it was illegal.
Following the President’s objection, the party set up a 10-member committee to advise it on the issue.
Last week, the APC governors, who initially supported the tenure extension, backed Buhari’s call for fresh congresses.
On Sunday in Abuja, it was gathered that members of the NEC, including governors and state chairmen, who were opposed to tenure elongation for the Oyegun-led NWC, met to perfect their strategies ahead of the Monday meeting.
Also, Oyegun’s supporters, including the Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, had reportedly been mobilising support for the chairman.
It was gathered that some governors, who on February 28 backed tenure elongation, had changed their position.
It was learnt on Sunday that the Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun; and his Kogi State counterpart, Yaya Bello, had started pushing for fresh congresses.
Apart from Amosun, governors in the anti-tenure elongation group are Abdul’aziz Yari of Zamfara State, Rochas Okorocha of Imo State, Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State, Jibrilla Bindo of Adamawa State, Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State and Abubakar Badru of Jigawa State.
Besides El-Rufai, it was gathered that Governor Abdullahi Mohammed (Bauchi) and Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto) were in the pro-Oyegun group.
A chieftain of the APC in Ogun State, who declined to be identified, said it was not true that Amosun was still backing tenure elongation for Oyegun.
He said although the governor was one of those that ensured victory for the tenure elongation group on February 27, he had changed his position after listening to the President’s argument on March 28.
The pro-tenure elongation group had on February 27 emerged victorious with 104 votes against four recorded by opponents of tenure elongation.
The party chieftain said the Ogun State governor changed his position when he realised that the President would not support tenure elongation.
He stated, “When it became obvious that the President is against tenure elongation, Amosun as a loyalist of Buhari is duty bound to support him to realise his vision for the party and the country.”
Efforts made to speak with the Ogun State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Otunba Dayo Adeleneye proved abortive.
