The powerful and influential governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC, have succeeded in convincing President Muhammadu Buhari to convene a meeting of the party’s National Executive Council (NEC) where the embattled national chairman of the party, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, will be formally forced out of his post, party sources say.
THEWILL gathered that the NEC meeting has been slated for March 17, 2020.
The ruling party has been in turmoil following a face-off between Oshiomhole and some members of the party’s national working committee, who have the backing of most of the state governors.
Oshiomhole has vowed to remain in office despite mounting pressures for his resignation.
If Oshiomhole is forced to step down, an Acting National Chairman will be appointed to lead the party in the interim.
THEWILL had previously reported last January that Buhari had withdrawn his staunch support for Oshiomhole and tacitly approved the governors’ bid to oust him only via legal means.
The Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) Friday declared support for the suspension of Oshiomhole after the FCT High Court gave the order in a joint suit instituted by the Deputy National Chairman of the APC, North-East, Salihu Mustapha and aggrieved leaders of the party in Edo State, Oshiomhole’s home state.
READ ALSO: Convene NEC Meeting Or Resign – APC Governors Tell Oshiomhole
PGF’s Director-General, Salihu Lukman, described the Abuja High court injunction against Oshiomhole as a “big opportunity” to reposition the party ahead of the 2023 general election.
The forum, while acknowledging the existence of the conflicting court orders of the Abuja and Kano federal high courts, called for the appointment of an acting chairman for the APC until the determination of the issue relating to the legality of the suspension of Oshiomhole in court.
“The reality is that our party APC is faced with a big problem whereby none of our organs are meeting as provided by the constitution. In fact, we are even not sure who our members are. There is, therefore, the urgent need to resume the process of party building with confirmation of our members as well as recruiting new members,” Lukman said in a statement.
“We need to invoke provisions of Article 17 (vi) which provides that in the event of a vacancy, “the relevant Party organ shall appoint another person to act in his place pending ratification by the National Convention or Congress.”
Absolving President Muhammadu Buhari of blame in the crises rocking the party, the forum called on the national executive committee (NEC) to convene to resolve pending issues relating to the affairs of the party.
The national secretariat of the party has been sealed off since Thursday by the police and officers of the Department of State Services following the conflicting court orders.
No one has been allowed into the secretariat including journalists and staffers.
(The Will)
