Tells PDP writing of election results no longer in vogue

Why I didn’t hand over on Monday — Oyegun

By Omeiza Ajayi

ABUJA—Comrade Adams Oshiomhole yesterday assumed office as national chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, vowing a revolution in party administration, even as he pledged that former President Olusegun Obasanjo must return the $16 billion he alleged was allocated to the power sector during his Presidency.

Oshiomhole said under his watch, the party would be supreme and that all party stalwarts, including the President, would be bound by party decisions.

He also affirmed a new regime of regularity in the meetings of the party’s statutory organs.

National Chairman of All Progressive Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole (M), receiving the Handover Note from his predecessor Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, at the Party’s Secretariat in Abuja on Tuesday (26/6/18). With them is the party’s National Secretary, Alhaji Mai Mala Buni.

The new chairman at the handing over ceremony whch held in Abuja yesterday, also said the ruling party will not change its slogan of “Change”, in spite of the confusion created during its national convention at the weekend when party faithful were urged to adopt progress as its slogan.

No one will kill Obasanjo, he must be alive to face prosecution

Speaking yesterday, he said:  “As I was reflecting, I watched our president recently asking questions   rhetorically, ‘you have spent $16bn on power under PDP, to lay emphasis, he repeated, where is the power?’. Nigerians in their various homes, those who have power that day or generator said, Mr President, we don’t have. So, $16 billion spent. It was like, the more dollars they spent, the more darkness the people suffered.

“Now, the questions I had in my mind were, maybe because the president has not yet proceeded to now ask the follow-up questions since we cannot find the power, then, you must bring the  $16 bn that you spent. If he (Buhari) does not do that, then the accusations of limited anti-corruption fight may begin to gain some currency.

“So, to assist PDP to overcome these, our President needs to do the needful. After all, it is already on record what other presidents didn’t do, with regard to the issue of MKO Abiola, and the criminal manner by which the election was nullified, and people pretended that, that was never an issue, but the President showed courage.

‘’That same courage should not fail him, so that he can proceed to recover the $16 bn back into the treasury from the man who superintended over the spending of that money.  When he does that, people will say, yes, there is a difference.

“There are Nigerians, including Prof. Soyinka who are asking that if people had immunity as sitting presidents, when the immunity expires, should they transit to immunity or impunity? I think impunity is deadlier than immunity. I think they want to distract attention when they are in trouble and they begin to shout, ‘but, they want to kill me’. Since President Buhari assumed office, no political player of note has been assassinated for political reasons but the president under whose watch a Minister of Justice was murdered in cold blood and the minister could not get justice, and so, when the ghosts of the Harry Marshalls, Dikibo and several others…then the man says ‘they want to kill me’. No! To kill is to prevent investigation. You must be alive to account. That is a typical distraction. So, I think all of us should be ready to do everything we can to help Nigerians not to forget in a hurry those who looted us for 16 years, destroyed the fabric of our growth system, to tender apology letters so that they can be allowed to come back. But my people say if either a husband or wife has been known for serial adultery, and he says sorry I won’t do it again, how much can you trust? So, I want to thank my brother Secondus who said he congratulates me and that I should be ready for constructive criticisms. I cannot wait to have it. I cannot wait.

On the forthcoming governorship elections in Ekiti State, he said; “I am also clear that we are assuming office on the eve of an election in Ekiti State but I am very confident that all we need to do is to make sure that the instrument that was ruthlessly deployed by the then ruling party to rig us out, that rigging machine has been dismantled.

‘’They must now go through the rigours which we had always gone through, persuading people and sermonizing to people why we are better than People Destroying People. That, we will just have to do.

‘’We won’t resort to using their own tactics because we promised to be different. We will be different. But I know that old gangs cannot change their habits. They cannot learn what they have never known – how to win votes.

‘’They have perfected how to write results and the writing of results is no longer in vogue. In fact, as Asiwaju Tinubu said, writing now is only for the analogue people. You use Gmail if you are using generator and Email if you are using electricity.

‘’So, I am very confident that Ekiti state will be won on the basis of our records in comparison with their own records and ensuring that there is free and fair election”.

Announces yearly conventions

“We will create a situation where every year, we must have conventions, not in an open air like Eagle Square where people will beat drums and praise singers would have a field day. We will have conventions in convention centres which we will choose every year and the agenda will not be elections. It is to look at our manifesto and look at our performances. What is the difference between what we promised and what is happening? If there is a gap, to close that gap and we get those elected to explain to us what they would do differently to avoid deficit between promise and reality.

Manifesto to be reviewed

“I also believe that in a world that is always changing, the manifesto you wrote in the morning might become even obsolete in the evening.

‘’A typical example; we committed ourself as a party to ensure that Boko Haram was defeated and I believe to the credit of Mr President and the armed forces, the Boko Haram that forced us to postpone national elections in 2015…they no longer have that capacity.

‘’But at that time, we never imagined that this other thing about herdsmen or herds women clashes with farmers in some parts of the country. Those have always been there, maybe they have escalated.

‘’Now, in terms of going forward, we must review our security architecture to deal with new forms of criminality as they arise.

‘’As you deal with one issue, new issues emerge and therefore because the environment is dynamic, policies reflected in our manifesto must be subjected to constant review and ensure that they meet changing realities.

Party remains Supreme

“Above all, when we talk of party supremacy, it can only be operative if there are organs of the party meeting to take decisions on variety of policies and when we take decisions like that, for example in the National Executive Council NEC meetings and the President is seated, if the President violates or acts in contravention of a decision taken by NEC, even the President can be accused of anti-party activity because it is a party decision. The same thing goes for the National Assembly.

History will be kind to Oyegun

“I want to thank you (Odigie-Oyegun) on behalf of myself, the new leadership and all our party members for your leadership of the party over the past four years and leading us to victory in the presidential elections and leading us to get more states more than those that came together to form the All Progressives Congress.

‘’However hostile a historian might be, there are facts that are stubborn. These are stubborn facts to your credit and I think you have every right to enjoy the fact that you made record as the chairman of our party.

Why I couldn’t hand over on Monday — Oyegun

Speaking earlier, the former National Chairman of the party, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun expressed optimism in the ability of his successor to steer the party to electoral success in future elections.

He, however, apologized for not being able to hand over 24 hours earlier, saying it was due to fatigue having stayed awoke for over 48 hours during the national convention of the party.

“I must apologise that I kept this ceremony on hold for more than 24 hours. After two days of sleepless nights at the Eagle square, for those who are over 70 years, it does take its toll and I pleaded that you would allow me to have a full day of at least, attempting to enjoy my new freedom. So, I welcome you Mr Chairman. I wish you the best”, he said.

According to him, he had carefully compiled the hand over notes to include inventory of the material and human assets of the party as well as records of all meetings of the party.

‘’I make this point because people are too busy pursuing their basic needs and some things often escape them. We have had the PDP as the first ruling party in Nigeria, and I just found out that in their 17 years of existence as a political party, they have had 14 national chairmen.

‘’So, sir, when they are going to write the history of internal democracy, stability of leadership and adherence to constitution in terms of how people leave and when they leave, you would be the only one in our history since  1999, who was elected, ran the party by its rules and exited in glory on the basis of those procedures provided for in our constitution.”

‘’It is to your credit sir, that you did not have to prepare pepper soup for the president to enjoy and when he had enjoyed the pepper soup, pulled out a shortgun and asked you to resign. It is to your credit that you did not have to be warned that if you did not resign, then you would live to regret it and you would have to be chased from office. ‘’There are many things you have accomplished. So, when we talk of democracy, stability, due process and internal democracy, you led us to internalize all of these values and our president also demonstrates a difference that you cannot, when it is convenient, speak about party supremacy and the next minute the executive is treating party leaders as if they were his appointees.

‘’I think between you and President Buhari, you have laid the foundation which I hope others will be able to copy but I know it will be tough because they (PDP) do not have the capacity to tolerate contestants. They think that if you parrot a different view point, it is a capital offence requiring summary dismissal from office even as a national chairman.”