By Adesina Soyooye
The rift between President Muhammadu Buhari and APC Chieftain, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu was, last week, very obvious. After an uncomfortable silence, which dealth a blow on the party, the President finally intervened.
The leadership crisis had threatened to break the party. It had clearly divided into pro and anti Adams Oshiomhole factions. The crack widened when a Court of Appeal affirmed an earlier suspension slammed on Oshiomhole.
The pro-Oshiomhole group quickly appointed the now late former Governor of Oyo State, Abiola Ajimobi, the Acting National Chairman. And because he was hospitalized, they appointed Hilliard Eta to hold fort for him.
This faction was backed by Tinubu and a couple of Governors.
The anti-Oshiomhole group backed Chief Victor Giadom. And was backed by a number of State Governors as well as a couple of powerful Ministers.
Then the President stepped in, and did what was, at once, commended and condemned.
He dissolved the NWC, effectively, sacking Oshiomhole, and the about 18 members of the of the NEC loyal to him. The Governor of Yobe State, Mai Bunu, a former National Secretary of the party, was appointed the head of the Interim Management Committee.
For days, Tinubu was dumbfounded. He was, allegedly, seething in anger and frustration. Friday night, he finally issued a statement, backing the President’s action. Many said he had no choice. He caved in, they allege, because he has been boxed into a corner, and was covering his humiliation; that the Presidency was waiting for his faction, which had threatened to go to Court, to carry out its threat before giving him a final, deadly blow.
A few groups within the party had asked for an expulsion of anybody or group who dares go to Court.
One by one, Tinubu’s faction began to cave in – Oshiomhole who had addressed the press, and had gone to court, challenging his suspension, the NWC, which had condemned the NEC (President) for its action, then Tinubu. They all fell in line. They had no choice.
Saturday evening, the Presidency, to douse the tension, and not to be seen to have easily confirmed the strong speculations of a rift between the President and Tinubu, issued a statement to the contrary.
Signed by Garba Shehu, a Presidentential Spokesperson, it said both men were in touch, and their relationship as strong as it has been from when they began to work together. It explained the President’s action, and blamed the opposition for fuelling the story of a rift.
The statement said:
“The very essence of the requests put to the Emergency National Executive Committee meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) by President Muhammadu Buhari, which were unanimously approved aim to pull back the party, faced with an existential crisis from the brink of collapse, follow the constitution and take everyone along,” Shehu said.
“While this action has been widely accepted with great relief by lovers of democracy and the rank and file of the membership, we are concerned that political vulturism masquerading as ‘smart analysis’ is selling the commentary that this is a Buhari-Tinubu ‘showdown.’ Nothing can be farther from the truth.
“To put the records straight: In the formation of this great party and giving it leadership, President Buhari and Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who are reckoned as the founding fathers of the APC are both inspired by democratic norms, national interest and not at all by partisan motivations. These are the qualities that have made them move past cynical distractions.
“They are in touch with one another. Their relationship remains as strong as ever and between the two of them, only they know how they manage their enviable relationship.
“Try as hard as they could, the opposition parties have used all their intellectuals and their supporters in the media to break this relationship and have failed. And they won’t.
“For President Buhari who has received much of the cynical commentary, Nigerians know him as someone who will not do anything with bad intentions. Neither will he do anything out of partisan motivations or for himself.
“This whole exercise, that should lead to massive reform and overhaul of the leadership of the party, as he said in that brilliant speech, was ”to save the APC from the imminent self-destruction. We have to move ahead. We have to take everyone with us and ensure that the party is run in accordance with democratic norms and with consensus. We have to work for the benefit of the country.”
“The leaders of the party, who have received two successive massive mandates to govern the country and a majority of the states should be judged by how this exercise turns out in achieving these objectives, not cursed at the mere commencement of the process.”
The next few months will cofirm how strong the relationship is, as the Governor Bunu-led IMC is expected to organise a national convention to reconstitute the NWC.
