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Tag: progressives

  • Progressives dance of victory in South-East

    Progressives dance of victory in South-East

    As Imo State, under the leadership of Owelle Rochas Okorocha, formally endorses the merger of opposition political parties to form All Progressives Congress (APC), Okodili Ndidi in Owerri reports that the success of the progressives dance of victory, tagged Imo Rally, has redefined South-East politics.

     

    The journey to takeover the South-East geo-political zone by the emerging All Progressives Congress (APC), took off on thunderous note in Owerri, the Imo State capital, when eight serving governors and their host, Governor Rochas Okorocha, formarly introduced the party to the people of Imo in a grand style.

    The battle-ready APC warriors tested their feet in the waters of Southeast politics with the sensitisation and awareness at the political carnival, simply tagged Imo Rally.

    The event which held at the Heroes’ Square, in Owerri, may have been outwardly named Imo State Rally, but the attendance and the behind-the-scene intrigues confirmed that it was the take-off of a seemingly well conceived political revolution aimed at changing the political leadership and political temperature of the entire South-East zone.

    According to the eight APC governors present at the glamorous carnival, what happened that day was a mere starter of what is to come in the next few months as the party takes its message of change across the five states of the zone.

     

    How far can APC go in the South-East?

    The tumultuous crowd that greeted the unveilling of the APC in Owerri suggests strongly that the party may have an easy ride in the zone. One thing that seemed most obvious at the event was the fact that the people had long become tired of the old way of doing things in politics and governance and are anxious for a change, which the new party is offering in a rather convincing manner.

    As early as 7.30 in the morning of that Tuesaday, May 7, 2013, the old and young, women and children, have thronged into the Square to listen to the much anticipated words of hope that have been preached in other parts of the country. They defied the scorching heat and dared the security agents who fought tirelessly to keep them under check.

    In attendance were governors Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State, Adams Oshiomole of Edo State, Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State, Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State, Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State, Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State, Ibrahim Shetima of Bornu State and Tanko Al-Makura of Nasarawa State.

    Speaking at the rally, which was also part of activities to mark the Imo Freedom Day celebration, Okorocha noted that his party, (APGA),” is not joining any political party nor is it in any alliance but in a merger to form a new party called APC.”

    He said it was a matter of time for the APC to take over every level of governance in the country, adding that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has failed the people of the South-East for the twelve years of democracy, stressing that the entire Ndigbo are for APC.

    Okorocha told his teeming supporters that the selling point of the new party is the visible achievements of its proponents, “these my brothers (APC Governors) have transformed their states and are doing more, that is what the new party stands for, it means freedom to the people, the poor masses and the indigent widows, who have been victims of PDP’s misrule.”

    The visiting governors, who were visibly impressed by the massive turnout at the rally, took turns to deride the PDP style of leadership assuring that the APC is committed to give Nigeria better leadership.

    Fashola who drew a resounding ovation from the ecstatic crowd, described APC as a great train of change, “we have set about a course that is irrevocably committed to giving power back to the people. We believe that Nigeria needs a change and APC will bring about that change.”

    Also speaking, Ajimobi, noted that the PDP has gone from bad to worse, noting that the only option left to salvage the nation is APC.

    In his speech, Shetima said the exceptional performances of the APC Governors are testimonies of how great the country would be if APC emerged the ruling party and urged the people to support the party for their good.

    He said the party was not for self but out to redefine the concept of governance, stating that the party is on a rescue mission for the nation.

    Amosun, in his speech, said they were pleased to see that the performance of the Imo State Governor was real and concrete and not a newspaper achievement.

    “This is what we want and this is what APC represents. The battle has just begun; APC must succeed for the benefit of Nigerians because there is no better platform.”

    Nasarawa State Governor, Al-Makura, said Okorocha’s performance was just the beginning of what the people of the state will witness in terms of development, noting that it was worth celebrating. He urged the people to support the governor, especially now that the right party has emerged.

    “You cannot salvage the country with people who are fake, people who are pseudo-democrats,” he said.

    Kayode, was emphatic when he said: “a time like this calls for visionary leaders as seen in all the states where the APC are holding sway. No amount of intimidation will deter us from working together to salvage the country.”

    According to him, “no one is happy with what is going on, that is why we have embarked on this rescue mission; that is why we have embarked on the freedom journey.”

    Aregbesola who held the surging crowd spell bound with his songs and dancing steps, described APC as a bulldozer that will crush everything on its way including the PDP.

    He called on the people to say no to unemployment, poverty, hunger, which he said PDP has given Nigerians as a political legacy.

    Comrade Oshiomole noted that when he led a protest of workers to Imo State as a labour leader, he met a state with filthy streets dilapidated infrastructure, “but now everything in Imo state has changed.”

    He said that was an example of how Nigeria will look like in every area of national life when APC becomes the ruling party. He called on the people to continue to support the governor for more of the good works.

    Another thing that was obvious during the Imo rally is that what had remained of the resistance by the PDP in the state caved in after the invasion of the progressives.

    Also with the public declaration made by many APGA members, it is likely the party leadership at the national level will have no choice but to fully endorse the merger.

     

  • All Progressives Congress steals Jonathan’s thunder in Maiduguri

    All Progressives Congress steals Jonathan’s thunder in Maiduguri

    It may be too early to begin to speak in superlatives about the All Progressives Congress (APC), a party still in formation but comprising some four political parties determined to challenge the dominance of the PDP. Last Thursday, nine governors and one deputy governor belonging to the four parties in the APC met in Maiduguri, Borno State, the hotbed of Boko Haram fundamentalist violence, for talks on their proposed merger. The meeting, which was third in the series of meetings being held for the special purpose of unification, was successful. The APC probably shifted the venue to Maiduguri because President Goodluck Jonathan was yet to visit the unsettled state. It was a deft political move. In fact, it was a move that stole the thunders of both Jonathan and the PDP.

    The APC governors pressed home their advantage by moving round some parts of the city to soak in the adulation of the wearied but grateful Borno people. They also very significantly donated N200m to succor victims of Boko Haram violence. And with an eye on the main chance, they told the press at the end of their meeting that they came to Maiduguri to show solidarity with the people and to prove that leaders needed to show courage in the face of danger. The message was not lost on Jonathan’s government. Cut to the quick, presidential aides quickly announced that the president had planned to visit the state on March 7, and that the APC leaders merely preempted the president.

    Planning to visit is unfortunately not the same as actually visiting. By meeting in a city wracked by sectarian and socio-economic uprising, APC has indicated it is capable of thinking on its feet. In addition, the party, even before it is registered, is exhibiting the advantages of nurturing another party to shake the PDP out of its complacency. It will no longer be business as usual. Not only is the polity gradually transiting into a two-party system, it is also evident that the race to 2015 has really begun. Many elements favour the APC already, including dominance in critical regions. If the party can overcome its teething problem, get its zoning arrangement right without the constraints that shackle the PDP, and conducts rancor-free primaries to produce credible and popular candidates, it is hard to see them losing the next polls, or winning by a margin that is less than assertive.

    But far beyond whooping for a political party, Nigerians must begin to think less partisan by ensuring that real democracy is enthroned through the availability of credible choices. The way to begin is to defeat the rather incestuous PDP in the coming polls, give a new party with a different set of developmental and socio-political paradigms the opportunity to preside over the country, and let the people have the satisfaction of knowing that waiting in the wings every election year is another beautiful bride in a brilliant, lawful and luxuriant polygamy.

  • ‘Progressives will liberate Nigeria’

    ‘Progressives will liberate Nigeria’

    Former Kano State Governor Ibrahim Shekarau has said that the All Progressives Congress (APC) will liberate the country from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    He allayed the fear that the merger will collapse because of power sharing, assuring that the APC leaders are ready to make sacrifices in the national interest.

    Shekarau told reporters in Kano, the state capital, that Nigerians were eager to vote for a progressive party in 2015 because the PDP has failed them in the last 14 years.

    The former governor spoke at a ceremony marking the declaration of Hon. Kawu Sumaila for the governorship. The aspirant hailed the leadership qualities of the former governor, stressing that members of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) have confidence in him.

    Kawu said that the APC will form the next government in Kano, urging the people to support the new platform.

    At the event, ANPP members passed a vote of confidence on the merger process and Shekarau’s contributions to the effort.

    The former governor told the party faithful that only the combined forces of parties opposed to the PDP can dislodge the party from power.

    He said: “The merged parties; the ANPP, Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and the All Progressive Grand Alliance; are equal partners. Collectively, they will work as one team. At the merger talks, each of the four political parties had 21 members to form the 84-member committee.

    “Nigerians need not fear for the outcome of this merger plan as we will not disappoint the electorate because we have realised that PDP’s oppression, misrule and mismanagement of nation’s resources should not continue.

    “What we need from the teeming masses is their collective prayers and votes, and their determination to end the 14 years of misrule. It is just as matter of patience.”

    Sumaila described the PDP administration as a disaster, urging Nigerians to wake up from their slumber.

    He lamented that the ruling party has turned the country to a personal enterprise, thereby subjecting the masses to abject poverty.

    He said: “The APC will surely bring to an end the era of the retrogressive cabal in the PDP who are bent on milking the resources of the nation to the detriment of millions of innocent Nigerian”.

     

  • Are the progressives back?

    Are the progressives back?

    The past week was loaded with political activities. It was the week of celebration of the centenary of Nigerian nationhood. While the President and the government he heads insisted that the drums would be out for a full year to commemorate the January 1914 celebration, a number of scholars and opposition parties’ leaders thought that it was a misplaced action as the event itself was not borne out of altruism on the part of the colonial masters. Others argued that what we should take into consideration at this point is what we have made of the nation in all of a hundred years. The debate continues and I do not intend to join at this point.

    What interests me this week is not much of the past, but the present. And the future. Where do we stand today? In the comity of nations, where is Nigeria? What have we made of this potentially beautiful country? Today, the debate is whether Nigeria is failing or has failed. The Americans have warned that it could disintegrate within the next two years. Some have dismissed the suggestion as far-fetched, but events of the past giddy years suggest that we need to think out of the box to salvage whatever we can of the federation. It is obvious that Nigeria is not working. We have not got the political structure right. We are yet to have a government of the people as each attempt at an election throws up the worst candidate. The economy is consequently in shambles. For how long shall we be in the wilderness?

    It is in this context that I received with a gladdened heart the news that four political parties had decided to merge into a mega party that could actually confront the behemoth Peoples Democratic by 2015. The four- the Action Congress of Nigeria, All Nigeria Peoples Party, Congress for Progressive Change and All Progressives Grand Alliance had been holding talks for months. Each had set up a merger committee to negotiate terms with others. It was clear to them that the only way to stand a chance against the PDP was combine efforts and present a genuine alternative to the electorate.

    The new party unveiled on Wednesday in Abuja says it is progressive. How? We may get to know in the course of the next set of activities. We need to see a manifesto that sets out progressive ideals in bold relief. We want to see how the allies intend to run Nigeria. The new party should not deceive itself into believing that merely announcing its birth and even registration by the electoral commission would win the next general election. The current statistics still suggests that the PDP has the upper hand. It is in control of 23 of the 36 states. Labour Party that also has a handful of members in government and controls a state is not on board. Accord, too, has not indicated how it intends to move. The people need assurance that the word progressive is not a misnomer in the All Peoples Congress.

    The first hurdle to scale is INEC’s. It is true that this is not the Second Republic when the electoral commission proved to be an arm of the ruling National Party of Nigeria. Under that arrangement, the “progressive parties attempted to fuse into a Progressive Peoples Party (PDP). It was frustrated within and without. It is unlikely that the Jega commission would do that. In any case, the merging parties took a good strategic decision in coming up with the new parties well ahead of the next elections. All the issues could be straightened within the time left.

    The tallest hurdle standing in the way now is managing the egos of the leaders. The legal requirement may be the least obstacle. What about the political? It is good that the allies have settled for a name. Agreeing on logo, objectives and motto may pose no problem either. But, setting up an executive council could be tricky. Whichever of the merging parties that produces the national chairman knows that it might have been knocked off the presidential race. This could be a bone of contention as sectarianism continues to threaten corporate existence.

    The current president is from the South South. The South East knows that allowing him another term could ensure its ineligibility in 2019. The North has not hidden its desire to bounce back on the national plane in 2015. What it lost through the death of President Umaru Yar’Adua, it wants to reclaim in 3015. It is a power game; a game of numbers. So, who gets the first chance to fly the APC’s presidential flag?

    Then we saw what became of the CPC especially in the period leading to the 2011 elections in the states, especially in the North. How would the parties in the North be harmonized to produce state executive committees? What happens when it is time to decide who picks the governorship ticket in each of the states of the North?

    The euphoria of the moment may make these simple questions. But the days ahead could prove very tricky. Anyone who thinks that the PDP is sleeping should perish the thought. The leaders realise that this is the clearest danger to the dream of running the country for 60 years. They also have tacticians who know what to do to make things more difficult for the allies.

    This is just the beginning of a chain of events. We shall continue with this next week.

  • Ondo progressives task INEC on fair election

    Ondo progressives task INEC on fair election

    The Ondo State Progressives,Lagos chapter have called the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct free and fair election in the October 20, governorship polls in the state.

    Addressing reporters in Lagos the chairman of the pressure group, Prince Dele Oduwale said it had become very crucial to ensure that Ondo people freely choose their leader and allowing the best candidate to emerge.

    They maintained that whatever government could do to improve on the security situation in the state that would lead to a free and fair election is welcomed.

    “All we are saying is that we don’t want bloodshed, if it warrants the deployment of soldiers to the state as long as the safety of the people is assured, it will be welcomed.”

    Oduwale explained that Ondo people are well educated people and would not tolerate any act that compromises their rights. “They are always ready to defend their rights no matter what happen. We are living witnessed to previous elections where they have to defend their votes even with their blood.”

    The group membership which cut across party lines, said they would be willing to work any candidate that emerged at the elections as long as the best candidate was produced through a fair election.

    He said: “Why we are calling this press conference is that there has been lot of rumours and controversies in Ondo State that Ondo State progressives Lagos Chapter has followed Dr Olu Agunloye to Labour Party, we need to correct that impression.”

    “What happened is that when he could not get the Action Congress of Nigeria’s ticket we had to re-examine and review the situation. What happened thereafter, was that the association became a divided, split along people who felt we are core ACN members and our loyalty belong to the party and believes ACN is where they align and others who believe in Dr Agunloye and we are following him to wherever he goes.

    “So the situation today is that Ondo State Progressives, Lagos chapter is divided into two, some members of the association followed Dr Agunloye to LP, there are other members of the association who are committed members of ACN and remained with the party, it is imperative that the misconception is corrected.

    “We have resolved that the association will remain indivisible; we might have political difference but remain indivisible such that after the election, we will all come back again and sit down and say okay the election is over let us progress.”

    Primarily our intention is not political, what is important to us we want to uplift through our individual contribution and collective contribution to the progress of Ondo State, we want to contribute that quota, so after the election we all come back together again and work,” the chairman emphasised.