My mission is to rebrand APC — Musa, chairmanship aspirant

Senator  Sani Musa representing Niger East at the National Assembly, a leading aspirant for the post of national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), speaks, in this interview, on why is vying for the position and recent developments in the polity. KUNLE ODEREMI brings the excerpts:

What reforms would you introduce to reposition the APC ahead of the 2023 general election?

If given the opportunity to lead the party, I will completely re-engineer its internal structures and workings. I will be adaptive to participatory work style that will usher  in visionary and pacesetting leadership for the party. My reform agenda for the party is expressed in what I call the three Rs for success, that is, reconciliation, reorganisation and redirection. We need to immediately reconcile aggrieved members of the party on a sustainable basis. We need to reorganise the party in such a manner that it is able to effectively mobilise all segments of the country from youths to women groups for elections. And thirdly, we must redirect our efforts towards winning elections and nation building and not wrangling. We’ll run an inclusive leadership that is devoid of the habitual grain of the entrenched political culture of dynasty politics, sectionalism, favouritism, money politics and parasitism on the public payroll, cronyism and patronage. We’ll run a party that will preserve the legacy of our founding fathers to build a strong country that is more tolerant, more prosperous and fairer by giving every member of the party equal opportunity.

Most of the contenders for the chairmanship position are former governors, what support base do you have in the party that makes you believe that you are the man for the job?

Since I indicated interest in the chairmanship of the APC, the support has been overwhelming across the leadership of the party at the state level, down to the grassroots and back to the federal level. Those who are sincere will tell you I am the candidate to beat. Even my opponents know that I am a better candidate based on my pedigree. My contributions to the party and my sincere commitment to ensure the stability and success of the party. What are the qualities of a good leader? Make your assessment based on those qualities that makes a good leader and you will see that I stand higher. Leadership isn’t something people are born with; it’s a skill that can be cultivated over time. When you’re able to develop strong leadership attributes, you’re positioned to inspire your entire organisation, team or country.

Do you see the consensus option muted by some leaders of the party being adopted in electing the next national chairman given the number of personalities, who have declared for the position?

In any democratic process, all options are always on the table. You must also bear in mind that consensus candidature is one of the recognised modes of electing the leadership of the party. So, you cannot foreclose the possibility of a consensus candidate arrangement emerging even at the eleventh hour to the convention.

Many are wondering why you want to leave the Senate to become the national chairman of the APC. What exactly is the motivating factor?

The desire to be for everyone is one of the cardinal reasons that sees me aspiring for the national chairmanship of the APC. Before I was elected a senator, I had worked in the public and private sectors. I have also been a leader in the APC since 2014 and served as a member of the National Executive Committee (NEC) from 2019 to date. If you look at the antecedents, you will notice the consistency. As a serving senator, representing the good people of Niger East senatorial district and Chairman, Committee on Senate Services, I have served my people well as a first-term senator, and it has been an amazing experience. So, my interest in the chairmanship of our great party is another call to national service just like my current position as a senator. You must bear in mind that as the national chairman of the APC, I can leverage on my experience in the Senate to push the manifesto of the party to the National Assembly more efficiently. It will also give me a vantage position to deliver reconciliatory leadership, which the party needs now to navigate out of its present challenges. Also, my leadership of the party will reinforce our commitment to keep the towering legacy and leadership of our amiable President Muhammadu Buhari, who has given our party an ideology and presence in the international community. His democratic ideals and work within the sub-region and Africa, fight against corruption and his efforts at providing security, stand him out hence the need to have a leader, who will continue to give full support and attention to such progressive efforts.

There’s going to be a continuation and all my efforts will be directed to support the deepening of democracy in Nigeria. It is a necessary sacrifice I must make to build our party in particular and the nation in general.

Have you been able to consult with party leaders on your aspiration and what has been their response?

Right from the inception of our campaign, we have always been reaching out to party leaders and members at every level. I stated earlier that my pedigree, experience and personal sacrifice to the party, as well as in building of democracy in Nigeria are my selling points and I have a clear vision of where I want to take the party as encapsulated in the three Rs – Reconciliation, Reorganisation and Redirection. I am not just seeking the office of the national chairman of the APC for the sake of it but to reposition the party to win elections and take Nigeria to its pride of place in the world.I want to provide for the party, leadership that will continue making Nigeria stronger, more tolerant, more prosperous and fairer by giving every member of our party equal opportunity. If found worthy to lead, I will devote my all in adhering to the goals and aspirations of the party, abide by the nation’s constitution, rule of law, the APC constitution and manifesto.

What measures will you put in place to return the party to the era when parties were supreme and had clear manifestos that were canvassed by their candidates as against now that individuals are bigger than their parties?

I don’t know about other political parties but the APC, as a party, is guided by the principle of party supremacy. In every organisation, some individuals are often more influential but no individual is bigger than the organisation. If individuals are supreme, then we won’t be talking about a convention to elect party leaders. Nigeria’s democracy has grown and it is above any godfather. So, I don’t know where your fears are coming from. For me, I will continue to strengthen the party to an institution, an entity that is operating on the basis of ideals, rule of law and constitutionality.

You will be leading APC to battle in the 2023 general election at a time the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is gearing to return to power. Are you not worried over the threat posed by the main opposition party?

The PDP, as a party, is a shadow of its former self and remains a toothless bulldog. It cannot even offer credible opposition, which is expected of it under the present circumstances of our democracy. Since the PDP was defeated in the 2015 general election, it has not recovered from the shock of the defeat and it is obvious in all that the party does at the moment. They are now going about with a very scandalous mantra ‘to rescue and rebuild; Nigeria.’ I would have said the mantra itself is ludicrous but I would rather say it is embarrassing because I don’t know how a party like PDP has forgotten about its atrocities so fast.

But members of the PDP are of the view that the APC-led Federal Government has run Nigeria aground….

That is not correct. In less than eight years of President Buhari, the APC has transformed the country into an infrastructural hub with critical infrastructure in every part of Nigeria. The moribund rail sector has been resuscitated; our airports are now world standard, roads are being rehabilitated, there are social investment programmes permeating every home and individual in Nigeria and even with the intractable security situation, supports are given to our gallant security forces. All these put together, makes the party the court bride every day.

Nigeria’s economy was not only going to cripple under PDP, they did everything possible to undermine democracy, especially free and fair elections. Today, PDP is gaining from the free and fair electoral process entrenched by the APC and has the audacity to promote that insensitive mantra ‘to rescue and rebuild’ Rescue what?

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