National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Adamu, is currently fighting, perhaps the toughest political battle of his life to retain his seat.

Though he has fought and won several political wars over the years but this one he is currently battling may definitely be the most arduous struggle to retain his position in the party.

His future, as the national chairman of the ruling party, is not only bleak but also hanging precariously in the balance, despite leading the APC to win the ultimate trophy in the February 25 presidential election.

For some political pundits, Abdullahi Adamu, former governor of Nasarawa State, is really the architect of his misfortune due to his leadership style in handling the affairs of the party since assumption of office last year.

Although he usually prides himself as a man who has never lost any electoral and political battle, however, from all indications, it might take divine intervention for Adamu to wriggle out of the current obstacles before him.

Critical observers argue that if he escapes the fury of the victims of his hostile attitude towards the President-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, before and on the eve of the presidential primary, he still has to contend with the allegation of a dictatorial administrative style levied against him.

There are those who also believe that if he escapes the allegations of lack of financial transparency levied against him, he still has to deal with his frosty relationship with members of the party’s national leadership and the National Working Committee (NWC).

Again, will he also overcome the impending vengeance and vitriolic attacks from the aspirants to the national leadership positions during the party’s elective national convention he promised to refund the money they used to purchase nomination forms but failed to do so?

Many observers insist that if he escapes all these multiple infractions against him, he may be shoved out based on the insistence by many stakeholders on the need to change the party’s headship to a Christian to reflect religious balance of power and more curiously the recent bribery allegations rocking the NWC over the choice of the National Assembly leadership.

With the tough battles threatening to consume Abdullahi Adamu, it is certainly not the best of times for the ruling party’s boss and considering the enormity of the forces mounting against him, Adamu may probably be disgraced out of office through the same back door that brought him in.

Adamu, who prides himself as king of witches (Mai), is perceived as an artful dodger and usurper who capitalised on the opportunity as the chairman of APC national reconciliation committee to snatch the ticket. He wormed his way into President Buhari’s heart and became his anointed candidate, from several other aspirants that transversed the country to campaign for the same position.

While other aspirants deployed enormous human and material resources to secure the national chairmanship ticket, Adamu watched as an apex predator, and snatched the game from them, emerging winner through endorsement without going through the rigours of campaigns and competitive election.

Other aspirants had complained endlessly even but they were helplessly shutout through threats and intimidation to give way for Adamu.

However, sooner had he assumed office than he started targeting every imaginary enemy, ranging from the aspirants that stepped down for him, to the secretariat staff and even members of his national leadership, the NWC.

To the aspirants for chairmanship and other elective positions, he bluntly refused to refund the funds they used in purchasing the expression of interest and nomination forms contrary to the initial agreement.

To the secretariat staff, he threatened with staff audit and sack; he successfully intimidated them to secure their loyalty.

Adamu issued a stern warning to the NWC members to demand an absolute submission from them, warning them to be ready to be shown the exit door if they act in the contrary.

Adamu did not also spare the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, when he threatened him with heavy sanction due to his utterances against President Muhammadu Buhari in his Ogun State outburst.

Even though it became an empty threat, Adamu had furiously declared that the ruling party will not tolerate such unguided comments from Tinubu, and will certainly go a step further to unleash heavy punishment on him.

He worsened the situation by complicating his relationship with the President-elect when he unilaterally attempted to compulsorily impose President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, on the NWC members as the consensus presidential candidate without any consultation.

The endorsement of Lawan incidentally became the first noticeable crack between him and members of his national leadership on one side and the APC Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) which really resulted in conducting the party’s presidential primary under rancorous circumstances.

He however lost the battle and the war when NWC members did not only resist him and the source of power propelling him in a public show of shame but also ensured that Bola Tinubu emerged the party’s candidate against Adamu’s will and expectations.

Ever since he lost that battle, things have almost completely fallen apart without the centre holding again between him and his NWC members.

He has been accused of ineptitude, embezzlement, incompetence, favouritism, high handedness, divisive tendencies, unaccountability, deliberate stifling of party organs and flagrant subversion of the party’s constitution among a litany of others.

His help will definitely not come from the state chapters because despite heading the reconciliation committee and secretly campaigning with it, there has not been a conscious effort toward resolving the crises ravaging almost all the state chapters of the ruling party since he assumed office.

North West zonal Chairman and NWC member, Salihu Moh Lukman, captured Adamu’s many sins in his synoptically serialised first, second and third letters to demand his sack or resignation.

Hinging his first letter on the imperative of balancing power along ethnic and religious cleavages, Lukman wrote: “With a National Chairman, Adamu, who is also a Muslim, it will be important that every necessary step is taken to inject a change of leadership for the party so that a new National Chairman who is a Christian takes over.

“The current National Chairman has done an excellent job to manage a successful campaign to win the 2023 election with all the attendant challenges; there should be no difficulty in convincing Adamu to resign as National Chairman to create opportunity for a new chairman of APC to emerge who is a Christian.

For that to happen may require emergency national convention because if the hierarchy of the current leadership is to be followed, the successor to Adamu will be Abubakar Kyari who is a Muslim from North-East.”

Lukman demanded Adamu’s sack or resignation in his second letters, accusing him of running the party autocratically, violating party constitution and lack of accountability for generated funds.

“One year after assuming office, there was only one meeting of the party’s NEC. There was never any meeting of the National Caucus. Instead, meetings of the NWC hold without necessarily ensuring that existing constitutional provisions are respected.

“In the circumstance, critical functions of the NEC, which include approving the national budget of the party as provided in Article 13.3A(xiv) of the party’s Constitution is simply ignored.

“Further, Article 13.3A(xv) of the party’s constitution directed the NWC to give quarterly financial reports to NEC. Also, Article 13.4(ii) direct the NWC to present reports and Article 13.4(iv) compel the NWC to present financial report on income and expenditure of the party. All these have been ignored.

“Yet, it is public knowledge that the party has earned billions of Naira in revenue from sales of forms to aspiring contestants for the 2023 general elections. We are yet, as NWC, to declare to any organ of the party how much we inherited from Mai Mala-led Caretaker Committee and how much was received as donations and contributions for the 2023 elections.

“Large-scale expenditure, which include the renovation of the national secretariat complex are undertaken without any organ of the party exercising the powers of due diligence.

“As a member of the NWC, I can say without fear of contradiction, all decisions bordering on managing the finances of the party are being taken by the National Chairman, Adamu and the National Secretary, Iyiola Omisore.

“Most members of NWC are reduced to onlookers or at best rubber stamp. All appeals for accountability have fallen on deaf ears. Decision of the NWC to convene NEC meeting in August last year was simply sabotaged.

“Once the party’s constitution is no longer the guide for managing the affairs of the party, discretionary decisions of leaders take over. Consequently, even what gets paid to party officials and organs becomes acts of benevolence by the National Chairman or anyone he delegates.

“As a result, something as fundamental as the decision on what proportion of the party’s income is paid to States, Local Governments and Wards is exercised solely by the National Chairman and National Secretary.

“Party staff are hired and fired by the National Chairman and National Secretary without report to any organ, including the NWC. Given all these, there are embarrassing reports of party members who served in Screening, Primary and Appeals Committees for the 2023 elections yet to be paid their allowances,” he enumerated Adamu’s multitude of sins.

Not done yet, Lukman wrote that; “there was also the case of aspiring contestants for party offices during the March 28, 2022 National Convention who voluntarily stepped down in the spirit of facilitating consensus and therefore entitled for refunds of the cost of their nomination forms who are yet to be paid.

“Democracy without accountability means dictatorship. Once organs of the party are not meeting as enshrined in the constitution of the party, accountability will be absent, and the character of our party will be autocratic and retrogressive,” Lukman submitted.

Again, in his recent allegation, the former Director General APC Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) accused the Adamu-led NWC of collecting bribe from the aspirants for National Assembly leadership.

His words: “I think our leaders, notably the chairman, Adamu and the Secretary Omisore, should rise to the occasion by stopping this unethical practice because if they don’t give the permission, I don’t see why bags of rice and bags of sugar will enter the Secretariat and even get distributed to us.

“I called you because I want to appeal to our leaders and my colleagues in the NWC. We have to take every step to stop some unethical conduct in the fight. As things are, it is so worrying that people who are aspiring for positions in the leadership of the National Assembly are reaching out to members of the NWC in an unethical way. I don’t think that is right.

“As of today, we have not yet taken a decision on zoning for offices in the party. And I think it’s wrong for leaders at the level we are talking about to engage in unethical conduct,” he warned.

Lukman was not alone in passing a vote of no confidence in the national leadership of the party. In his own assessment, former spokesperson of the party, Yemeni Nabena, seems to be more bitter.

Speaking to Daily Sun, he argued that; “the crisis rocking the NWC ought not to come to anybody as a surprise. The foundation upon which the leadership is laid is faulty, wrong and weak. The fact that the National Chairman endorsed a presidential aspirant should be enough reason for crisis to fester within the NWC.

“It has never been done for a party’s National Chairman to openly endorse an aspirant before the primary. It is even more worrisome when such endorsement altered the zoning arrangement of rotation between the North and South.

“I don’t blame the APC National Chairman because he is not even elected in the first place. He is a product of endorsement. There will continue to be problems in the NWC because all of them are selected not elected. They don’t know the ideology of the party and what the party stands for. They came with the mission of making money from the party.

“I have said it before and I am repeating the appeal that the EFCC should investigate the financial transactions of the current leadership of the party. We know how much the party made especially in the sale of nomination forms for the presidential election that many aspirants bought for N100 million each. EFCC must investigate the party’s financial dealings,” Nabena insisted.

In his take on the leadership crisis, APC chieftain and Director General, Voice of Nigeria (VON), Osita Okechukwu, noted; “On the challenges facing the national chairman of our great party, Adamu, it may be tough, however with dexterity solutions are not far-fetched.

“Take for instance, the issue of factions in many state chapters, they seem endemic; indeed arising from most political actors over the years deliberate refusal to adhere to the principles of internal democracy.

“Methinks Adamu should deploy his vast experience in politics and the findings of the Reconciliation Committee he headed before his election as the national chairman to heal the wounds ravaging the party. This will enable the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, to inherit a harmonious political party for seamless delivery of democracy dividends nationwide.

“Secondly, one will advise that some of the crucial issues raised by Malam Salisu Lukman, national vice chairman North West, should be urgently addressed, instead of sweeping them under the carpet.

“Yes, some may dub Lukman agent provocateur, whichever angle, it is imperative for our dear chairman to adhere strictly to the principle of internal democracy. The principle of internal democracy is sine qua non for successful party administration. Internal democracy at national level trickles down to sub-national levels, engenders esprit de corps, coherence and avoids dictatorship.

“Lastly, on the issue of financial transparency and accountability Lukeman raised, the quickest solution is full disclosure. Full disclosure is the fastest resolution of allegations of financial misappropriation throughout history,” Okechukwu insisted.

(Daily Sun)

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