Buhari, Tinubu, ANPP: new dawn as INEC okays APC Posted by: Yusuf Alli, Gbade Ogunwale, Vincent Ikuomola, Victor Oluwasegun, Dele Anofi, Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja and Tony Akowe, Kaduna in Featured, News 8 mins ago From opposition politicians to the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) came yesterday a stern warning: be prepared to quit in 2015. The warning followed the registration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) — the vessel with which progressive forces will fight the 2015 electoral battle — by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The APC is the baby of the merger of the three main opposition parties – the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) – as well as a part of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). The main parties in the merger ceased to exist following the registration of the APC. INEC, in a statement by its Secretary Abdullahi A. Kaugama, said: “The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has approved the application by three political parties – the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) – to merge into one, to be known as the All Progressives Congress. “On considering the application, the Commission found that the applicant-parties have met all statutory requirements for the merger, and has accordingly granted their request. “Consequently, the Commission has approved the withdrawal of the individual certificates of the applicant-parties, and the issuance of a single certificate to the All Progressives Congress.” National leaders of the APC Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu lauded the INEC decision. Although Gen. Buhari, a former head of state, said he would react comprehensively later after consulting with the new party’s interim leader, Chief Bisi Akande, his spokesman quoted him as congratulating “patriotic Nigerians clamouring for change and indeed all Nigerians and INEC alike for the historic registration of APC. “He congratulated all the leaders of the defunct ACN, CPC and ANPP including their governors and legislators, for their tenacity, understanding and perseverance during the process. It is a new dawn in the Nigerian political engineering and a new baby is born” Tinubu congratulated Nigerians and INEC Chairman Prof. Attahiru Jega, saying “with the registration of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the momentum for change has gained in acceleration as this merger is ready to set Nigeria on an irreversible cause of change and people-oriented development”. The former Lagos State governor recalled the tortuous journey to the registration and urged Jega to go the whole hog by ensuring a proper election with the use of biometrics. The AC N, in what was its last statement, titled “A new party is born! Congratulations Nigeria” by its National Publicity Secretary Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said: “With the birth of APC, Nigerians now have an alternative to a ruling party that has taken the people for a bad ride in the past 14 years.” It described APC registration as “victory for Nigeria and for democracy”, adding that “it has now also propelled the country to the league of top democratic nations with two major political parties.” The AC N said: ‘’The journey has been long and tortuous. All sorts of obstacles were thrown into our path by anti-democratic forces, but we were painstaking, determined and unrelenting in our quest for a formidable platform that will allow our country, Nigeria to achieve her full potentials and join the league of respectable nations.” Mohammed, who is the interim National Publicity Secretary of the APC added: ‘’With the approval of our merger by INEC and the emergence of APC, today marks the beginning of a new dawn for our country and her long-suffering people. We thank Nigerians both here and in the Diaspora for standing by us. We thank the media for their fairness, and we commend INEC for doing the right thing and for not succumbing to pressures from phantom political associations that sought to force it to circumvent the law. ‘’We promise not to disappoint Nigerians who have reposed much confidence in us. We say that contrary to the lies being peddled by the naysayers, we are not seeking political power for the sake of getting it, but in order to use it to empower our people and allow their long-nursed hopes and dreams to become a reality. And to those who have vowed to change their names if APC survives for a year, we hope they will live up to their words,’’ it said. The APC said Nigerians would now look forward to a truly democratic party in the best traditions of what the world considers as the best form of government. The party promised to unveil, in the days ahead, its membership registration plans to give all Nigerians, especially those who have become disenchanted with the way things are going in the country, the much-awaited opportunity to be part of the country’s democratic process in the true sense of the word. ‘’We will also be unveiling our plans to turn today’s hopelessness into a time of great opportunities, to reverse the downward slide in our socio-economic development, and to ensure that every Nigerian benefits from the commonwealth, instead of the present situation in which a few fat cats are milking the system dry at the expense of the citizenry,’’ the APC said. Gen. Buhari’s former party, the CPC, commended INEC for not listening to the PDP, which it alleged did not want it to register APC. Its National Publicity Secretary Mr. Rotimi Fashakin, in a statement, said: “Nigerians shall by this registration of APC be at the driver’s seat of their common destiny. They shall truly have the will to choose between good and evil; truth and mendacity; mediocrity and competence. Let all Nigerians rejoice because the course of true democracy has just been charted! “It is APC in 2015. We must commend INEC for the professional handling of the registration process. The pressure from the PDP did not dim the far more important task of entrenching the nation’s democracy. The more arduous task lies ahead. Indeed, to dethrone impunity and enthrone decency with good governance is a task that must be done. God bless Nigeria.” The former ANPP National Secretary, Alhaji Tijani Tunsal, said the PDP should accept its fate over the registration of APC, adding that Nigerians are yearning for change. He said: “I think INEC has done a very credible job by going through stress from the PDP to register APC and it is victory for democracy. The APC will win the 2015 presidential election.” The Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) said the registration of APC is the death of one-party state. Its National Publicity Secretary, Osita Okechukwu, said “CNPP rates the registration of APC as the death of one party state in Nigeria; it has taken our democracy to the next level”. The PDP congratulated the APC and described its birth “as healthy for development of the nation’s democracy”. The PDP, however, said the registration of the APC does not pose any threat to the ruling party, adding that the PDP still maintains its pre-eminent position and enjoys acceptance across the country. The statement by acting National Publicity Secretary, Tony Okeke, said: “Nigerians now expect the leaders of the opposition party to eschew all forms of bitterness and desperation and desist from politics of propaganda which characterised their former parties. “The PDP urges the APC leaders to focus on issues and engage in more robust debates on the economy and other issues of governance in the general interest of the country. “The leadership of the PDP congratulates the leadership of the APC on the successful registration of their new party. This is very healthy for our democracy. “We hope to see a vibrant opposition that will constructively engage the PDP on issues of governance in a way that Nigerians will be the utmost beneficiaries, instead of overheating the polity by promoting violence and hatred among the people.”
Posted on: Thu, 01 Aug 2013 01:26:01 +0000
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