Mending the broken walls of progressives

The events of last Tuesday at the National Assembly may have rattled the ruling All Progressives Party (APC), creating a huge crack in the walls of a party that rode to power on the crest of lofty promises. But analysts say it is a test of its ability to properly control the reins of power in a democratic setting.

But John Odigie-Oyegun, the party’s National Chairman, Friday affirmed that the party had accepted Bukola Saraki as the president of the Senate, and that they were ready to live with the reality.

“It is not the first or second time we have passed through this kind of scenario and we came out strong. This may not even be the last time, we come out every time stronger and more determined,” Odigie-Oyegun was quoted to have said.

The APC had earlier vowed to sanction Saraki and Yakubu Dogara, his counterpart in the House of Representatives.

The party chairman subtly supported senators who are heading to court over Saraki’s victory, saying they were within their rights.

“People say they are going to court which is their right, but as a party, we are looking at everything and we are coming out strong,” he claimed.

BD SUNDAY gathered that despite Oyegun’s disclosure, there is still a deep feeling of betrayal by the leadership of the party.

The leadership of the APC has continued to brood over its inability to have its anointed candidates emerge as the Senate president and speaker, House of Representatives, threatening also to sanction all those who frustrated its moves in that direction, but Nigerians have urged the party to tread softly as all eyes are on it to see what it does with the instrument of power it so much desired, which is now firmly under its control.

Analysts recall that the leadership of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN)  which metamorphosed into APC, had hailed Aminu Tambuwal’s action when he played the prodigal son’s role against the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in 2011 by getting his colleagues in the lower house to elect him as speaker contrary to the wish of his party.

The opposition party at the time had commended the independent-mindedness of Tambuwal and described the process that threw him up as “democracy in action”.

Those who spoke with BD SUNDAY wondered why the APC is weeping over a process that it commended in 2011.

An analyst, who spoke on condition of anonymity said: “The only advice I have for the APC comes from what Phillip Massinger, an English dramatist, said, “‘he that would govern others, first should be the master of himself.’ For me, I don’t see any reason the APC should be crying blue murder because some of its members followed the same path it commended in 2011. Do they think that Nigerians have no sense of memory or what? You don’t applaud an action four years ago and now turn around to condemn it. That is not leadership quality.”

A CRACK SO DEEP

The emergence of Bukola Saraki and Yakubu Dogara as Senate president and speaker, House of Representatives, respectively, has been described as a crack so deep for the APC to ignore. Analysts say the development is capable of destroying the party if badly managed.

Anthony Okeiyi, a psychologist, described the reaction of the party to the development in the National Assembly to washing their dirty linen in the public.

“For a leading party to wash its dirty linen in the public the way APC is doing over the Tuesday development at the National Assembly is the height of desperation and lack of tact in approaching knotty issues. For crying out loud, whether it is Saraki or Lawan; Femi Gbajabiamila or Dogara, they are all APC members. What they have done now is to tell the whole world that they hated some of their members and that is not good enough for a party that claims to be faultless. We all witnessed all that they were saying against the past government; for them to descend to the same pit they were condemning will be very unfortunate,” Okeiyi said.

Observers have also described the APC threat to expel Saraki and Dogara in order to assert its supremacy as a step that could be counter-productive.

According to them, the party risks losing Saraki who may conveniently team up with PDP to sink APC. It is their belief that it would be in the ruling party’s interest to swallow its pride and quickly mend fences with the “dissidents.”

Frank Umeh, president, Nigeria Voters Forum, said the ensuing fracas between Saraki group and the APC could crack the party if its leaders mismanage the crisis.

According to Umeh, PDP saw this loophole as an only opportunity to remain relevant and grabbed it with both hands.

Personal ambition versus national good

Umeh said: “APC has shot themselves in the foot. The ambition of a few is trying to crack the party. However, I have observed that the new Senate president and the speaker see Buhari as a partner rather than an opponent.”

“This is basically because he has accepted to work with them,” he added.

Ikechukwu Ibeabuchi, an industrialist and former House of Representatives aspirant in Anambra State, said the overbearing attitude of some APC leaders has cost them a lot and may continue to prove costlier unless efforts are made to relax same.

Sunny Amojor, president, Total Man Fellowship, said the event at the National Assembly was intriguing and that many did not foresee it just as it was almost unbelievable that an incumbent could lose a presidential election in Nigeria.

“The APC was beaten in its own game. I guess the party was over-confident and could not smell the rat. As it stands right now, I really do not expect the APC to tear apart, because Saraki is still an APC member. He was voted in as an APC member and he has not decamped and I do not see him doing so. Saraki and Dagora are APC members with PDP affiliations. The 8th Assembly still has more APC members than PDP. So, this should balance things out,” he said.

He further said that the development would limit to a certain extent the political influence of Tinubu on the nation which according to him was a good sign of better governance ahead.

“I believe that there is still going to be a lot of drama and fighting. The tension is already there and except the hand of God moves again. President Buhari has said he won’t unnecessarily get involved with issues in the Assembly and I think he will not, at least, not immediately. We will only just pray that members of the two political parties and that of the assembly will grow up and remember that they are only there to serve the interest of Nigeria and Nigerians,” Amojor said.

Tough decisions ahead

Adeleke Adedipe, former general manager, Corporate Security of Shell Nigeria, told BD SUNDAY that he was amused Nigerians were surprised about current happenings and explained that what transpired at the 8th Assembly inauguration had happened on June 3, 1999 when former President Olusegun Obasanjo settled for Evans Enwerem instead of Chuba Okadigbo who was widely supported by the majority members of the Senate and the PDP.

“It is time to pray for Nigeria more vigorously than before as we watch how President Buhari and Bola Tinubu will move forward from this event-remembering Nigeria is in dire need of true and positive change. The unfolding events are really not a PDP paying back APC in their own coin. It is more deep-rooted than that. It is a desire to have a foothold (“control” of) in the legislature since someone else within the party had grip of party machinery.

“I believe the sitting President had knowledge of what would play out at the inauguration and gave tacit support to what we have seen. Consider a Buhari who already wrote to the Clerk of the National Assembly to inaugurate the Federal legislative chambers at 10am, June 9, 2015, calling for meeting between him, the party leadership and elected party legislators for 9am without writing to the Clerk for a shift in the time and/or date of inauguration. More curiously, he never showed up at the venue of meeting only for his party big wigs to watch the inauguration of the National Assembly on television”, he said.

According to him, the stability of constitutional order and overall interest of the country were uppermost on the President’s mind as far as the NASS elections were concerned, and that the President needed to wrestle control of the NASS from Asiwaju Tinubu, hence, the seeming but strategic alignment with forces of defiance within the party.

Burying the hatchet

Auwal Ibrahim Musa, executive director, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), appealed to the lawmakers to resort to peaceful dialogue in the resolution of the current leadership tussle and warned that struggle for leadership positions should not become a priority over national interest.

“We demand that such development should be accepted in the interest of the nation’s democracy as the matter is now clearly outside of the party’s control. We charge the elected and appointed principal officers in the Assembly to constructively dialogue and reconcile with the aggrieved colleagues and their political party. Opposition members to facilitate collaboration in the exercise of their fundamental mandates- lawmaking, oversight and representation, in the interest of peace, harmony and democracy of the country”, he said.

Expectations from 8th NASS

On the agenda for the 8th Assembly, Umeh advises the law makers to put in place a law that will make it difficult for politicians to defect from one party to another. According to him, this will entrench ideology and stability in the polity.

“There have to be laws that will impose big punishment and sanctions on corrupt people and make politics less attractive. Again, I am proposing an education trust fund or loaning scheme that will ensure indigent but intelligent children go to school,” he said.

Ikechukwu Ibeabuchi expressed the opinion that by the development, “The South-West may continue to look for how to retain their relevance. There may be caution on the support they give any zone next time. This may position the South-South or South-East properly in the party. But one thing I know is that this is not capable of disintegrating the party as leaders may wade in to quell the impending danger,” he said.

“But there has to be caution on the way APC leaders are becoming overbearing,” he added.

Ibeabuchi said he will like to see a brand new National Assembly that will make life meaningful for Nigerians.

“I will like to see harmony between the legislature and the executive. There must not be rancour, disharmony, unfairness and infighting. Nigerians do not want things to remain the way they were. That was why many of them won,” he stressed.

He specifically mentioned the power sector as one area the National Assembly must critically look into in an oversight manner to raise the sector to grow economy. He said the Petroleum Industry Bill should be quickly passed to make deepwater investment possible and stop perennial divestments as well as joint venture failures in the oil and gas sector.

Zebulon Agomuo, Odinaka Anudu and Nathaniel Akhigbe