ANN crisis deepens as NEC members postpone presidential primaries

The crisis rocking the Alliance for New Nigeria (ANN) deepened on Saturday following the decision of members of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party to postpone the Presidential primaries of the party to Wednesday next week.

A faction of the party led by the National Chairman, Dania Emmanuel had earlier fixed a convention for Saturday in Abuja, something the NEC members say was against the party’s constitution.

The party’s NEC members at a press conference in Abuja on Saturday said that the guidelines for the National Convention of the party must first be ratified by the NEC before the convention can hold.

They said that a meeting of NEC to ratify the guidelines would hold Saturday night, while the convention proper would hold on October 3.

Presidential aspirant of the party, Mr Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, who also spoke at the press briefing on Saturday said that he remains on course to clinch the party’s presidential slot, adding that some relics of the defeated Abacha dictatorship were threatening to hijack the ANN.

ALSO READ: Action Democratic Party is the real third force

According to him, he and the party leaders would not abandon the structure of the party for the desperate elements whom he said are working for the ruling All Progressives a congress (APC).

He said: “I am in the race. I have only pulled out of the hurried convention of the ANN fixed for today, Saturday, purportedly to elect the presidential candidate. I am still in the race for 2019 by the special grace of God.”

Deputy National Chairman, Alhaji Yunusa, who spoke rapt the event noted, “The party believes in doing things right in light with the party constitution and that of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. In line with that, NEC will hold to determine the date of the convention, adding that NEC members and nineteen state chairmen have already aligned with this decision”

Kogi State Chairman, Hon Sunday, who spoke on behalf of the nineteen state Chairmen and the NEC members, said: “The chairmen believe in following the constitution of the party. He also said that the guidelines for the convention were yet to be ratified, while logistics issues were also not sorted out. In view of that, the chairmen have resolved to hold an NEC meeting late Saturday evening to ratify the guideline and also fix the convention for Wednesday, October 3.”

Some of the issues said to justify the postponement  of the Presidential Primaries to Wednesday, 3 October 2018 include the  adoption of a credible list of delegates to be authenticated by chairmen and secretaries of each state, and the decision on the states who have held congresses and who are still omitted in the list of delegates, such as Kano, Katsina among others.

The others are the decision on the status of women and youths of states who were excluded in the delegates’ lists, and the decision of the states that have not yet conducted their congresses, but are legally constituted, such as Abia, Adamawa, Gombe among other.

Other NEC members who were at the press conference included the former Chairman, Dr Jay Osi-Samuels, Mr Olawepo-Hashim, National Secretary, Deputy National Chairman, Alhaji Tijani Isa, Alhaji Sahid Umar, National Organising Secretary, Hon Makanjuola Ogundipe, amongst others.

They jointly reinstated the determination of the party to truly remain a new platform for the revival of Nigeria. They, therefore, vowed to resist “the infiltration of desperate boy scouts and neophytes benefiting from diverted public funds.”

Pursuant to the more proper convention, the state chairmen are to hold a National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting Saturday evening in what is said to comply with “procedures and in the interest of laying a good foundation for party processes and programmes.”

In a letter to the National Chairman of ANN, Olawepo-Hashim regretted that the “issues raised in the first letter dated September 28 have not been addressed.