The
Independent National Electoral Commission on Wednesday last week approved the
registration of the All Progressives Congress, thereby putting an end to
the series of political horse-trading over the ownership of the
acronym, APC.
A terse statement issued in Abuja by
Mr. Kayode Idowu, the Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, Prof.
Attahiru Jega, said with the approval, the Action Congress of Nigeria,
All Nigeria Peoples Party and the Congress for Progressive Change which
formed the APC, had satisfied the requirements for registration.
INEC also approved the withdrawal of
the individual certificates of the three parties and issued a
single certificate to APC.
The statement reads: “The Independent
National Electoral Commission has approved the application by three
political parties – the ACN, the ANPP and the CPC – to merge into
one, to be known as the All Progressives Congress.
“On considering the application, the
commission found that the applicant-parties have met all statutory
requirements for the merger, and has accordingly granted their request.
“Consequently, the commission has
approved the withdrawal of the individual certificates of the
applicant-parties, and the issuance of a single certificate to the APC.”
The registration drew immediate
reactions from the APC, the Peoples Democratic Party, Arewa
Consultative Forum, a former Lagos State Governor, Bola Tinubu, and
the presidential candidate of the former ACN in the 2011 presidential
election,Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.
While the APC described the development as victory for Nigerians, the PDP said it would not lose sleep over it.
The APC, in a statement by its
Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said with its
registration, Nigerians now had an alternative to the ruling PDP,
which it said had taken them “ for a bad ride in the past 14 years.”
It added that its registration
would propel the country to the league of top democratic nations with
two major political parties.
The statement reads, “The journey has
been long and tortuous. All sorts of obstacles were thrown onto our
path by anti-democratic forces, but we were painstaking, determined and
unrelenting in our quest for a formidable platform that will allow our
country, Nigeria, to achieve her full potential and join the league of
respectable nations.
“With the approval of our merger by the
INEC and the emergence of the APC, today (Wednesday) marks the
beginning of a new dawn for our country and her long-suffering people.
We thank Nigerians both here and in the Diaspora for standing by us.
“We thank the media for their fairness
and we commend the INEC for doing the right thing and for not
succumbing to pressure from phantom political associations that sought
to force it to circumvent the law.
“We promise not to disappoint Nigerians
who have reposed much confidence in us. We say that contrary to the
lies being peddled by the naysayers, we are not seeking political power
for the sake of getting it, but in order to use it to empower our people
and allow their long-nursed hopes and dreams to become a reality.
“And to those who have vowed to change their names if APC survives for a year, we hope they will live up to their words.’’
The party promised to unveil, in the
days ahead, its membership registration plans to give all Nigerians,
especially those disenchanted with the way things were going on in the
country, the much-awaited opportunity to be a part of the country’s
democratic process in the true sense of the word.
‘’We will also be unveiling our plans to
turn today’s hopelessness into a time of great opportunities, to
reverse the downward slide in our socio-economic development, and to
ensure that every Nigerian benefits from the commonwealth, instead of
the present situation in which a few fat cats are milking the system dry
at the expense of the citizenry,’’ it said.
One of the founders of the APC, Asiwaju
Bola Tinubu, said the registration by INEC signalled “the commencement
of a new phase in the struggle to bring true democratic change to
Nigeria.”
Describing the coming together of the
ACN, CPC and ANPP as not just a merger, he said “this is the first
ever merger in the history of Nigeria and it represents a paradigm
shift in our politics.”
Tinubu, who congratulated the ACN, CPC
and ANPP governors as well as other leaders of the APC for making the
registration possible, however, challenged all progressive
politicians to “ rise up to answer the call of history to liberate
our people.”
He also hailed “millions of Nigerians
who stood by us during the long process to form the APC,” and the
leadership of INEC “for this positive pronouncement.”
“Nigerians must give INEC a pat on the
back for complying with the law of the land. What INEC has done is to
follow the constitution and the electoral act to the letter. We hope
INEC will continue in this spirit of independence and respect for the
rule of law in all its future operations, “ Tinubu said in a statement
by his media aide, Sunday Dare.
A co-founder of the APC and the
presidential candidate for the CPC in the last presidential poll ,
Maj-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, said he would not react now on the
registration because the National Chairman of the new party, Chief
Bisi Akande, had yet to brief him.
“ The general cannot react to the
registration now because he is yet to be briefed by our national
chairman , Chief Akande. So until the general hears from the national
hierarchy of the party, he will not comment on the registration of the
party. He will talk to the press as soon as he is well informed from the
national level,” said Buhari’s spokesman, Yau Darazo.
Ribadu also welcomed the registration
and charged members of the APC to strive hard for the ultimate goal of
dislodging the PDP.
In a statement in Abuja, he
congratulated key players in the ACN, CPC and ANPP “for setting their
personal interests aside in order to allow for the mutation of a
pan-Nigerian party that can provide a credible alternative to the ruling
party”.
The statement by his media aide,
Abdulaziz Abdulaziz, quoted him as saying, “Like millions of Nigerians
from all over the country, I am immensely delighted over the successful
registration of the All Progressives Congress by INEC.”
According to him, the registration of
the party by the electoral body “is not the end but the beginning of the
end of misrule and cluelessness” by the PDP.
The former CPC also threw its weight
behind the INEC decision, saying it had given Nigerians a choice
between “good and evil.”
“Today(Wednesday) Nigerians now have a
choice between good and evil. Now that the APC has been registered,
genuine choice has been put before Nigerians.For the very first time,
Nigeria and Nigerians have now been put at the driver’s seat of their
destiny, it said through its ex-National Publicity Secretary, Rotimi
Fashakin.
On its part, the ACF said the registration of APC would enhance the growth of democracy in the country.
Its National Publicity Secretary, Mr.
Anthony Sani, told one of our correspondents that any democracy
without a viable opposition was as good as a fraud.
“The registration of the APC as a
political party is a healthy development needed for the growth of
democracy, especially when regard is paid to the fact that any democracy
without a viable alternative platform is a sham,” it said.
However, the PDP which also welcomed
the registration, said the APC was not a threat to its
dominance of the nation’s political scene.
“The registration of the new party
poses no threat to the PDP. The ruling party still maintains its
preeminent position and enjoys the widest popularity and acceptance
among Nigerians across the country,” its Acting National Publicity
Secretary, Mr. Tony Okeke, said in a statement.
The PDP added, “With the registration
of the APC, Nigerians now expect the leaders of the opposition party to
eschew all forms of bitterness and desperation and desist from politics
of propaganda which characterised their former parties.”
According to the PDP, Nigerians would
like to see a “vibrant opposition” that would be constructively
engaged in issues of governance instead of overheating the polity.
One of the groups that almost thwarted
APC’s registration, the African People’s Congress held an emergency
meeting, barely 30 minutes after INEC issued its statement approving
the new party.
The African People’s Congress which
will on Thursday (today) issue a statement on the APC registration,
may have assembled a legal team to fine-tune the suit it filed at a
Federal High Court, Abuja challenging its non-registration by INEC.
“We are aware of INEC’s decision. We are
currently meeting on it. We will come out with a press statement
tomorrow (today) and you will hear our appropriate response,” its
National Legal Adviser, Mr. Kingsley Nnadi, told one of our
correspondents in Abuja.
Culled from Punch
