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| Group photo of the governors |
…as ACN, CPC, ANPP, APGA meet in Lagos
The plan to wrest power from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the 2015 elections by the leading opposition parties thickened as 10 governors met yesterday in Lagos to endorse merger talks.
Governors of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN; All Nigeria People’s Party, ANPP; Congress for Progressive Change, CPC and All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA met and unanimously
endorsed the merger arrangement among the political parties.
Also, several merger meetings were held in Abuja and Kaduna yesterday. The PDP, however, said it was unfazed by the development, saying the governors’ endorsement of the merger talks was not a threat to the dominance of the party.
After a four-hour meeting at the Lagos State House, Marina, the governors said they took the decision to “rescue Nigeria” from her present situation and it is “the only way out of the political quagmire” under the PDP-led Federal Government.
Present at the meeting were Governors Babatunde Fashola (ACN-Lagos), Ibikunle Amosun (ACNOgun), Kayode Fayemi (ACN-Ekiti), Abiola Ajimobi (ACN-Oyo), Rauf Aregbesola (ACN-Osun), Rochas Okorocha (APGA-Imo), Umaru Tanko Almakura (CPC-Nasarawa) and Abdulaziz Yari (ANPP-Zamfara), Kashim Shettima (ANPPBorno) and Ibrahim Gaidam (ANPP-Yobe) who was represented by Senator Dejere Alkali.
Shettima, who read the communiqué to journalists shortly after the meeting, said the governors reviewed the situation in the country and resolved to endorse the merger initiative with a primary intention to ‘fix Nigeria’.
He said: “We, the Governors of Borno, Ekiti, Imo, Lagos, Nasarawa, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Yobe and Zamfara, rose from a meeting at Lagos House, Marina, today, Tuesday, February 5, 2013. Having reviewed the situation in our country, we resolved to rescue Nigeria. This is a task that must be done.
“As progressive and patriotic leaders of our people across party, religious and geopolitical zones, we are extremely concerned about the state of the nation and we put our heads together in the interest of our people to deliberate on what can be done to rescue our country.
“As governors, we fully endorse the merger initiatives already commenced by our various political parties and we will put our full weight behind these efforts.
“Nigeria is greater than all of us and we have a duty to make it work for our people and for the future of our children yet unborn.”
Also briefing journalists after the meeting held behind closed-doors, Fashola said the discussion was essentially borne out of their concern for Nigeria, saying key decisions had been taken on the way forward.
When asked if the merger would materialise this time in view of previous botched talks, Fashola dismissed insinuations that the plan would die before its arrival.
He argued that the drive behind the merger would produce some of the best hands the nation could boast of, saying Nigerians deserved better than what they were presently getting from the PDP-led federal government.
Fashola said: “Well, scepticism is one thing; the commitment that we bring to the table will certainly override any scepticism. I am convinced that the full weight of 10 of us governors and many more who unfortunately could not make it today, is a much stronger force, the underlying reason is clearly how to make this country a better place.
“This is not the best that this country can have and we intend to deliver Nigeria’s best.”
Yari expressed optimism that the brains behind the merger would offer a better political option to what the nation had witnessed since the return to democratic rule in 1999.
“The objective is to fix Nigeria in the right perspective, overthrowing the PDP is something else and if we, as opposition, say that we are right and you as journalists and many people outside here, go and ask them whether they are happy since 1999 till date or not.
“So, it is a duty for all of us as leaders to drive our people right. And we believe the PDP has done less.
“We have the idea, the knowledge and the progressive idea to move the country forward. So, if you say that we intend to get the PDP out of power, yes, we are ready to do that,” the Zamfara State governor stated.
Okorocha said the merger was very crucial to save Nigeria from being turned into a one-party state, stressing that he had been part of the merger plan from the outset.
He said: “The merger has become very necessary to save our democracy and the likelihood of turning Nigeria into a one-party state that does not augur well for democracy.
“Therefore, I personally fully endorse this movement and this new merger at least to rescue the nation, and we say we are on a rescue mission here and to make sure Nigeria gets better, the essence of this whole merger is to make Nigeria a better nation.”
Amosun also expressed optimism that as the modalities for the merger unfolded, more people would soon join the move to dislodge the PDP-led Federal Government through the parties.
“Many people will come on board once they see our sincerity. That is why we are not taking this lightly; we are very determined and I am sure that with the support of Nigerians, this merger will work,” he said.
Fayemi said the merger aimed at rescuing the country from bad governance even as the governors had resolved to work in patriotism and serve the people of Nigeria.
He added that the representation from the different political parties and geopolitical zones was a proof that the merger plan would rescue the future of the country and the citizens. Senator Jejere said that the merger would end the reign of the PDP in 2015 and put the country on the right path.
He stated that the PDP had not served the country and its people well since 1999 when it came to power. The senator, however, assured that the opposition parties had the requirements to serve the people and put the country on the right footing.
But the PDP said the endorsement from the governors was a welcome development “as long as they are not out to deceive Nigerians.”
PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, said: “We welcome the merger as long as they play to the tenets of democracy. We do not want opposition that would dwell on deceit; we do not want an opposition that would heightened tension and we do not want opposition that will make utterances that will throw Nigeria into violence.
“We want an opposition that will discuss issues like that of economy or there is an area which the PDP is not doing enough but could offer a better solution.
“We want opposition to offer solutions to the issues on ground. That is how oppositions are run all over the world. We do not want those who will play mere politics.” Metuh said the parties in the merger arrangement must have something to offer that is different from what is obtainable now.
“They must be able to table and offer their programmes for Nigerians. Nigerians will not fall cheap to the political propaganda of the opposition in order to gain power through the ballot box. No, they want to see the alternative.
“Nigerians want to see a viable opposition and the programmes of this so-called party and will be able to decide whether it is worth rescuing them. “PDP will not mind the outcome of 2015 elections as long as it is fair and people vote according to their conscience.
What we do not want is for the people to be deceived. I would not want a political party that would come to the system and cause political tension,” Metuh said. The PDP top shot also insisted that the merger arrangement was not a threat to the dominance of the party in Nigeria’s political space.
“Their coming together is not a threat to the PDP. You are aware of what happened in Kano in the recent by-election where PDP won over 80 per cent of the vote. The PDP has directed our officials to make sure that this trend is repeated all over the country.
“If this trend continues in at least two-thirds of each state in the country, PDP will have at least 80 per cent of the votes of Nigerians. That means we are going to win 2015 elections by a landslide. “So, we are not in any way threatened by the formation of any party.
“We are the only party that accommodates all the various interests of this nation. We are the only party that promotes the unity of this county.
We are the only party that is not owned by any individual in the country. We are the only national party that gives room for religious tolerance.”
At the end of yesterday’s meeting between the CPC and ACN in Abuja, it was agreed that an enlarged meeting of major opposition parties, including the APGA and ANPP will hold today.
This is even as sources at the CPC headquarters revealed that former military Head of State and leader of the CPC, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, might have soft-pedalled on his initial stand that ANPP would not be part of the merger arrangement.
Although, no statement was issued after the meeting, a source at the meeting said that the attendance was massive as most of the leaders of the parties, who were members of merger committees, were present.
According to the source, “The ACN and CPC merger meeting was a success. It agreed to an enlarged meeting on Wednesday (today) with ANPP and APGA.” The source also said that the inclusion of APGA was based on a motion moved by former Anambra State governor and a serving senator, Dr. Chris Ngige.
He said that Ngige had noted that for the merger to achieve its goal, it was necessary to increase the spread and membership of the evolving party.
The senator argued that the inclusion of both ANPP and APGA in the merger formation would boost the chances of the emerging party. Sources confirmed that Buhari would no longer stand in the way of the ANPP from joining in the arrangement.
Former governor of old Kaduna State and Chairman, Conference of Nigeria Political Parties, CNPP, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, yesterday said the ongoing merger talks were bigger than the ambition of Buhari and former governor and leader of ACN, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
The CNPP leader said the opposition should not bring to bear their personal political interests for the merger to succeed in the overall interest of progressive Nigerians.
In an interview with National Mirror in Kaduna, Musa stressed that the PDP’s plot to halt the exercise through its contracted agents would fail, adding that other political parties would join the merger before the 2015 elections.
“The merger will succeed but my advice is that both Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and Bola Tinubu should bury their political ambitions and interests and work for it to succeed. I can tell you the ongoing merger party talks are bigger than Buhari and Tinubu ambitions because Nigerians are waiting to see the positive outcome of the merger.
Again, PDP agents will never succeed in their efforts to frustrate opposition merger.” In a related development, the ANPP yesterday sought the support of its members in the North- West on the plans to merge with other political parties.
The Chairman of the party’s National Rebuilding and Interparty Contact Committee, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, told party members at a meeting in Kaduna that the ANPP would not accept any precondition for the merger.
Shekarau and other ANPP leaders from the zone were in Kaduna to take a common stand on the matter. He said that the meeting was to aggregate the opinion of all stakeholders in the North-West that would guide the party in taking a final stand on the issue, adding that the merger would not be an “Abuja round table affair.”.
The governor said that the essence of the interparty contact committee was to receive the endorsement of party stakeholders and generate ideas that would strengthen the party. “ANPP is presently undergoing transformation; if all opposition parties involved reached a successful conclusion, ANPP with definitely be transformed.
“We would have had the interparty tour in all the states but because of the April deadline given by opposition parties, we have decided to have it in the four geo-political zones, simultaneously today.
“After this, a conclusion would be drawn on the way forward with all the opposition parties involved,” Shekarau said. He said that the ANPP would undertake a national survey to determine its strength in each geo-political zone and ways to fund its activities.
Shekarau added that it would also enable the party to identify party leaders that would be effective and versatile before and after the merger.
Kaduna State Chairman of the party, Senator Muhammad Aliyu, pledged the support of party members in the zone to the ongoing unconditional talks for merger with other political parties. Source:nationalmirroronline
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