APC chieftain condemns attack on Ganduje in Gombe

Chief Oliver Okpala, Senior Special Assistant on Public Enlightenment to the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has strongly condemned what he described as an attempted assault on his principal during the party’s North East stakeholders’ meeting in Gombe State over the weekend.

In a statement issued Monday, Okpala said the incident, which involved a group of unruly individuals allegedly targeting the APC National Chairman, was not only irresponsible but a grave threat to democracy and internal party cohesion.

“There is no space for violence in Nigeria’s political space presently,” Okpala declared. “Party members should resort to the civilised tenet of political decency, decorum and comportment in their political activities in the country.”

He described the attempted attack as “a dangerous precedence” and likened it to the political violence that contributed to the collapse of Nigeria’s First Republic.

According to him, the Gombe incident posed a direct threat not just to Dr. Ganduje but to the entire APC national leadership.

“This was not just an assault on Dr Ganduje but to the entire APC national leadership which he leads,” he said. “How do you treat a man who has laboured round the clock for peace like this?”

Checks revealed that while governors and some federal lawmakers from the North East had endorsed the Tinubu-Shettima ticket for 2027, the APC National Vice Chairman (North East), Mustapha Salihu, was silent on the fate of Vice President Kashim Shettima, who hails from Borno State.

Ganduje, however, joined others to reaffirm the Tinubu/Shettima joint ticket.

Okpala said the violence erupted despite Ganduje’s efforts to calm the atmosphere and reassure party members of the APC’s appreciation for the North East region.

“Even when Dr Ganduje tried to diffuse the tension by letting them know that it’s a joint ticket, these individuals whose actions looked recalcitrant by nature failed to see reason to agree with his genuine submission,” he explained.

“He had emphasised that the North East produced Nigeria’s number two citizen and that the APC values the zone. That the President and Vice President are a single ticket under the constitution, yet they refused to listen. What kind of politicians are these individuals seeking violence with lack of tact to resolving whatever grievances they may have?”

Okpala reaffirmed that Ganduje has maintained cordial and strong relations with both President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima.

“The National Chairman of APC is a father to all and since he assumed office he has been working and uniting all members, and showing love to all,” he said. “His closeness and relationship to the President and Vice President is not in doubt, as it is as solid as the Rock of Gibraltar.”

Narrating how the attempted assault unfolded, Okpala said, “As everyone could see, the National Chairman was going to his car and they accosted him just to attack him. Thanks to the Nigerian Police personnel and other security operatives who acted promptly, preventing them from physically attacking the National Chairman and stopping the situation from degenerating into total anarchy and chaos.”

He urged political leaders across the country to discourage their followers from engaging in acts of violence and instead promote dialogue and maturity in resolving disputes.

“Political leaders should advise their followers and supporters to always show restraint and play by the rules,” he said. “Politics is not about violence, it is dialogue, lobbying and consultations. No matter what people feel, they should control their tempers.”

Okpala described the setting of the incident as especially shocking, given that it was a high-level zonal meeting attended by governors and senior party officials.

“This is a dangerous precedence,” he warned. “This was even an occasion where state governors from the zone were in attendance. What an effrontery!”

He concluded by calling on those involved to return to the path of “political rectitude,” warning that violence and brigandage have no place in Nigeria’s democratic development.

“Those responsible for these ignoble actions should immediately return to the path of political rectitude because this is, to say the least, a mark of indiscretion which has no place in the current political dispensation,” Okpala said.

“Dr Ganduje has always worked for peace and the unity of this country and no one should pay him back like this. No, this is unacceptable. Violence can never have a place in our polity.”

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