APC membership registration: Protesters storm party secretariat

In an orchestrated plot to pave way for an extension of the All Progressives Congress Caretaker and Extra-Ordinary Convention Planning Committee, protesters stormed the party national secretariat on Monday to seek tenure extension for the Interim leadership led by Yobe state governor, Mai Mala Buni.

The group under the aegis of Coalition of Political Action Group, led by Habeeb Mutallib claimed the timeline for the registration and revalidation exercise was too short and should continue without a timeline.

The National Executive Committee meeting of the Party held last December had extended the tenure of the CECPC to June this year to convene a meeting of the highest organ of the APC, the national convention where a new set of national officers are expected to emerge.

The protesters with placards with several inscriptions, “Don’t close the door against others, Don’t stop the registration’; ‘like INEC, new members registration should be a continuous process, “Extend the registration exercise’; ”Millions of members are yet to revalidate their membership and new members are waiting,” maintained that the exercise should be indefinite.

The letter signed by Mallam Mutallib on behalf of the coalition group noted that the exercise is expected to end in two days, March 31, 2021.

“It is our firm expectation and demand that the exercise should be extended indefinitely until such a time as it becomes incompatible with the electoral laws and timetable.

“The membership registration and revalidation exercise have proven to be an inspired idea by the National Caretaker Committee led by the able chairman. It has provided a reason for many of our warring leaders and factions to unite around a common objective in the higher interest of our party as they work together to make certain the exercise succeeds in their constituencies.

“Bearing in mind that our father and most valuable player, President Muhammadu Buhari, will not be on the ballot in 2023 which means we must devise sustainable means to retain power and continue his legacies, the exercise is the only political event within our party since 2015 which has rekindled our hopes that the grassroots energies which propelled us to victory and displaced the PDP from the President in 2015 still exists.”

The statement further warned that: “if the APC wraps up this exercise prematurely as planned, the PDP, the APC’s perennial opposition which has always fancied itself our would-be nemesis, will immediately exploit the breather to start her own raucous mobilisation exercise in a bid to distract the populace from her heinous crimes against the Republic while she held sway between 1999 and 2015.

“Good politics demand that we deny the PDP such an opportunity. To do so, we must remain prolific in counting Nigerians both by sustaining an unending flow of good governance manifesting as the dividends of democracy as well as by direct engagement programmes like this exercise.

“We, therefore, appeal to the National Caretaker Committee to grant an indefinite extension of the APC membership registration and revalidation exercise. Our request is predicated solely on the proven benefits of the exercise to our numerical strength and political standing as a party and especially in areas where we have hitherto faced resistance, such as the South-East.”

National Secretary of the CECPC, Senator John James Akpanudoedehe, who received the letter commended the protesters for being peaceful and assured them that their letter would be presented to the National chairman, Governor Mai Mala Buni.

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APC membership registration: Protesters storm party secretariat