In his first open reaction to the crisis rocking the All Progressives Congress (APC) since the emergence of principal officers of the national assembly, President Muhammadu Buhari has urged “warring” lawmakers to respect the supremacy of the party and put their personal interest in their pockets for the sake of the country’s democracy.
Buhari, who was speaking on Friday at the opening of session of the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting at its secretariat in Abuja, called for an amicable resolution of the crisis rocking the party.
“What ever your personal interests, put them in your pocket. Let APC work. Let the system work. I appeal to you to accept the superiority of the party. I cannot confine myself in Sambisa forest and refuse to participate in the meeting because I respect the superiority of the party,” he said.
“The elections have come and gone and the APC has won the battle and lost the war, this is the paradox of democracy and we can see how we are going to manage it.
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“I have a worthy appeal to you, the chairman, to you the leadership of the party, to you the senators and members of the house of representatives and to you the governors that the APC must not disappoint our constituencies and the nation state.
“We thank God in four years we have to convince our constituencies that we are individually worthy of the sacrifices they have made, we have stayed awake days and nights, travelling around to make sure that the party emerge victorious. What subsequently happen is human, and as human beings, we are not perfect but let our collective action in this party rules because we have won the election and we will eventually win the war.”
Buhari emphasised that the party remained superior to any member since it was on the platform that “they” were elected.
“As for me as a president, I have to clearly understand the constitution of the federal republic of Nigeria, the constitution of APC, and having tried three times and successfully lost three times and successfully ending up at the supreme court. I think I have tasted the bitter disappointments and the sweetness of success,” he said.
“What happened to APC must be given to God almighty. The opposition party, has ruled the country for sixteen years, with all the treasuries, literally in their pockets and all the coercing forces in their command, but they still meekly conceded defeat. We congratulate them for that.
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“I clearly understand the constitution from which INEC was developed with clear terms of reference and one of its important responsibilities is to register political associations as political parties, and whoever wants to participate in elective office as a Nigerian must seek a platform. And that platform is the political party, hence, the superior state of the parties. APC has been damn lucky. If I can use that.”
On the way out of woods for the APC, Lai Mohammed, APC’s spokesman, said the party’s governors, lawmakers and leaders would meet after which a resolution for ending the logjam would be reached.
The genesis of the upheaval in the APC is the emergence of leaders of the national assembly whom the party did not endorse or choose.
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