Bauchi APC sacks chairman over ‘leadership failure’

The Bauchi chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has sacked Babayo Misau as its chairman.

Speaking with journalists at the end of an emergency meeting on Thursday, Rabi’u Garba, the party legal adviser, said the state working committee took the decision over the “apparent failure” of Misau to lead the party effectively.

He said 27 out of the 37 members passed a vote of no confidence on Misau and appointed his deputy — Mohammed Tide — as the new APC chairman in the state.

He added that the members took the decision to avoid a collapse of the party in the state.

“Following the executive committee meeting of the All Progressives Congress this morning, November 30, 2023, and having resolved and reflected on the issues and crisis bedeviling our party, particularly, what we are facing immediately after the elections up to the general election to today, we have witnessed a lot of negativities happening within the party,” Garba said.

“Members are beginning to lose confidence in the administration of Bauchi state. In order to tackle the situation, the state executives decided to meet this morning and took a stand.

“Consequently, pursuant to article 17 sub article 5 of the All Progressives Congress 2022 as amended, we unanimously passed a vote of no confidence in the state chairman, Alhaji Babayo Misau.

“And under article 17 sub 6 of the same constitution, we appoint his deputy, Alhaji Mohammed Tilde, in acting capacity. He’s now the state chairman of APC, Bauchi state.

“And as the constitution requires, we shall render the same report to the national secretariat of the All Progressives Congress in Abuja, and subsequently, a congress would be held for ratification.

“This decision followed the apparent failure of the former chairman to lead the party effectively. We have witnessed a lot of problems and issues bedeviling the party which we deemed fit to tackle by taking this decision otherwise, the party will collapse in Bauchi state.”

Garba noted that the party lost the Bauchi governorship election as a result of leadership failure.

“We know that most Bauchi state people support APC but for the lack of leadership, we have lost some seats, we couldn’t emerge victorious particularly in the gubernatorial during the last election,” he said.

“It is not as if people did not vote for APC, majority of Bauchi state people voted for APC but we couldn’t defend or secure our votes due to apparent failure of leadership.

“We have taken this bold decision and we make it public that Alhaji Babayo Misau is no longer the chairman of APC in Bauchi state and we have immediately resolved and appointed his deputy, Alhaji Mohammed Tide as the state chairman in Bauchi state.”

In April, Misau was suspended for not voting for the party’s governorship candidate at the March 18 elections.

He was accused of engaging in anti-party activities before and during the general election.