By Hamilton Nwosa (Head. The New Diplomat’s Business and data tracking desk)
About fifteen governors elected on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress(APC) are scheduled to hold a crucial meeting with president Muhammadu Buhari today. The scheduled meeting is expected to take place at 11:00 am at the presidential villa.
Multiple sources revealed to The New Diplomat that the crucial talks would centre on the subject matter of designing the most appropriate, legal, political and democratic approaches to addressing the crisis rocking the party.
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A Presidency sources confided in The New Diplomat that the governors are unhappy, and alarmed with president Buhari’s acknowledgement of Chief Victor Giadom as acting national lead of the APC, stressing that the president was mis-advised into taking such a decision that has very far-reaching and devastating implications that touch on the very foundation of the APC.
Said the source: “ The President is meeting with about 15 governors that are supportive of Oshiomhole standpoint on the state of the party. The meeting would hold at 11am. I believe that they should be able to sort out issues. But it is clear that some people just want to cause problems in the party and then run away to another party later after they have caused maximum damage.”
Read also: APC NEC In Aso Villa: Buhari Violated His Oath Of Office, Says PDP
Among the fifteen governors reportedly being expected at the meeting are governors of Lagos (Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu), Imo, (Senator Hope Uzodinma), Kano( Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje), Osun( Mr Gboyega Oyetola), Ogun(Mr Dapo Abiodun), etc.
Recall that the crisis rocking the APC escalated on Wednesday with the party’s NWC expressing its position in clear terms to president Buhari that recognizing Giadom would amount to an illegality. In response to the acknowledgement of Giadom as acting national lead of the APC, the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) that is backing Senator Abiola Ajimobi as national chairman had turned down an invite extended to it to attend a virtual Emergency National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting scheduled for Thursday.
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In declining the invite, the NWC stated that President Buhari was either offered wrong advice or blackmailed in approving the proposed meeting scheduled for Thursday at 12 noon.
The NWC which held a meeting that lasted for several hours on Wednesday night, rose at 9.45 pm, informing President Buhari in no uncertain terms that the proposed NEC meeting was illegal and that attending a meeting called by Giadom would amount to an endorsement of illegality.
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The statement which was signed by Chief Hillard Eta and Alhaji Waziri Bulama, respectively Acting National Chairman and Secretary respectively reads in part:
“We wish to unequivocally state that members of the National Working Committee (NWC) believe that the President was offered wrong advice or blackmailed into lending his weighty office to the illegality of the National Executive Committee meeting purportedly convened by one Victor Giadom on 25th June, 2020.
“We hereby respectfully implore Mr President to kindly avail himself with facts of the matter regarding the impasse presently experienced by the Party so as to guide him in his assessment of the matter because we are sure that the President if properly advised, would come to the conclusion that the meeting convened by Chief Victor Giadom bothers on illegality and criminality.
“The National Working Committee (NWC) regrets to turn down the invitation to the illegal and unconstitutional National Executive Committee (NEC) convened by Chief Victor Giadom.
“We believe that attending such a meeting will amount to embracing illegalities and turning a blind eye to the infractions on the Constitution of our great Party.”
