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From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
Events in the last three weeks have shown that the All Progressives Congress (APC) may have won the battle but certainly not the war in the concluded 2023 general election. Even after the announcement of the APC candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the president-elect by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the mood in the country is still very tense.
Instead of the usual wild jubilation that normally accompanies the emergence of a President-elect, uneasy calm, anxiety and endless protests have enveloped every part of the country.
Anger, bitterness, animosity, internal rumblings within the ruling party and bile among Nigerians have continued to dominate political discourse in the country instead of the expected convivial atmosphere that usually heralds a new administration.
The ruling party family ought to be thrown into ecstasy for retaining and consolidating its hold on power at the presidency, greater number of governorship seats at state levels, and winning the simple majority at both chambers of the National Assembly, but the reverse has been the case with happiness seemingly departing from both the leaders and supporters of the party.
Some political pundits argue that members of the ruling party are suffering from the psychological guilt associated with the controversy trailing reluctance the concluded presidential and governorship election across the country.
The anomie and despondency among the party members have become very worrisome and clearly depicts the peace in a grave yard.
Suddenly, the hitherto usual vociferous members of the ruling party seem to have lost their usual boldness. The voices of the usual proactive, boastful, boisterous and vibrant party members seem to have been enveloped by an air of uncertainty even as they respond only to the words, actions and inactions that the opposition camp throws at them.
Many critical observers argue that the President-elect’s recent travel to France may not be unconnected to the mounting pressure over his emergence and to cool off after the stressful pressure of rigorous campaign before the election.
To express his anger over the discomforting situation, Tinubu recently expressed deep concerns of plans by certain individuals to scuttle his inauguration.
Reacting in a statement signed by the spokesperson of the APC Tinubu-Shettima Presidential Campaign Council (PCC), Festus Keyamo, Tinubu noted: “We have watched with great concern the condemnable activities of some persons and groups who are desirous of truncating our democracy.
“For reasons best known to them, these persons have remained embittered that Tinubu was declared winner of the 2023 general elections. Repeatedly, but unfortunately, these misguided individuals have called for either the cancellation of the results or that the President-elect should not be inaugurated on the 29th of May, 2023.
“We wish to reiterate and emphasise that these positions are not in tandem with our constitutional provisions or our electoral laws. We would have taken these as mere wishful thinking, however because of their implications for national security and public order; we have therefore considered it necessary, if not expedient, to call them to order,” he warned.
Analysts argue that indeed, the ruling party has not enjoyed a breathing space since it was announced the winner of the February 25 presidential poll. If the party was not battling to defend the electoral victories the opposition believed it procured under controversial circumstances, it would be struggling to convince Nigerians that the country is better than they met it in 2015.
To worsen their case, the internal wrangling within the leadership of the party and by extension allegations of embezzlement and or fraudulent mismanagement of campaign funds they levied against one another have contributed in heightening the tension and widening the cracks in the party.
In Kaduna, Ogun and Nasarawa states, protesters occupied the roads for days to demand explanations from the APC-led state government and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on how the ruling party procured victory during last weekend’s governorship election.
The situation was the same, if not worse, in Niger and a few other states where the ruling party is struggling to defend the victories handed to them during the governorship poll.
There has also been an uneasy calm in Kano, Adamawa, Zamfara and Plateau states where APC members and leaders are still in shock over how they woefully lost the March 18 governorship ticket. And in some of these states, the embattled ruling party is still exploring possibilities of how they can manipulate the system to sway the victory at the poll to their favour.
But the precarious situations confronting the party at both the state and national level seem to be mild compared to the battle the party is fighting to consolidate the victory of their President-elect.
Beyond protesters recently urging President Muhammadu Buhari to reject the declaration of Tinubu as the President-elect and constitute an Interim National Government (ING), the opposition parties are not also relenting in mounting endless pressure on the Federal Government and the international community to scuttle Tinubu’s May 29 planned swearing in ceremony.
It became that hurting to them that the spokesperson for the APC Tinubu-Shettima PCC, Keyamo, petitioned the Department of State Service (DSS) to demand the invite/arrest, interrogation and prosecution of the presidential and vice-presidential candidates of Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi and Baba Datti-Ahmed for treasonable felony.
Keyamo’s petition directed to the Director General of the secret police equally demanded charging both individuals to court, if necessary, over; “their incendiary comments and claims capable of causing insurrection or rebellion against the Federal Government and the President-elect, Tinubu.
“I write this petition with the full realisation that in a post-election period such as this, there is a need to sooth frayed nerves, lower the temperature and begin the healing process. The President-elect has issued a statement to this effect a few days ago.
“However, it appears the president and vice-presidential candidates of LP are not prepared to toe this conciliatory path for the sake of peace and national cohesion, whilst exercising their rights to pursue duly laid down constitutional means of addressing their grievances.
“…these comments and claims are made, not just within the boundaries of exercising their rights to freedom of speech and the freedom to air their grievances publicly, but they have since crossed the line to call for the outright truncation of democracy by insisting on the adoption of other processes outside the contemplation of our Constitution. In some cases, their privies have even called for the establishment of an Interim Government.
“It is noteworthy that Obi and Datti have submitted elections petitions to the courts for adjudication, but their conducts and utterances amount to subversion of the processes they have instituted in court and a subversion of our Constitution and the laid-down processes for addrzzzzzzessing disputes and grievances. These conducts and utterances are a build-up to something more sinister and it is important you rein them in NOW!
“In the circumstance, I submit this petition in my personal capacity as a patriotic Nigerian to invite/arrest, interrogate and after investigation, if necessary, charge both individuals to court for their conducts which amount to incitement and treasonable felony,” the copy of the petition read.
Expectedly, the petition has illicit hostile reactions from males, females, young, old and even statesmen, warning of the dare consequences on national security the DSS operative acting on the petition.
Despite the petition and other measures the office of the President-elect and the ruling party have taken, the party is certainly not having an easy ride in managing the volume of negative vibes against the President-elect.
Only recently, the news of Tinubu allegedly meeting with the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Olukayode Ariwoola, trended like wildfire in the media.
Not even the sighting of the CJN in Abuja and rebuttal from Tinubu’s media team on the development could end the speculation over the alleged meeting.
However, all these ugly situations lamentably seem to be a child’s play to the twin issues of the nomination of persons into the soon-to-be vacant appointive positions and more importantly the zoning of the positions of the principal officers in the National Assembly.
These factors, according to bookmakers, are apparently potential time bombs waiting to explode within the ruling party if not properly managed after the swearing-in of the President-elect on May 29.
Should the party overcome the rifts and successfully detonate the landmine that will trail the nomination of members for the appointive positions, the zoning of positions for the principal officers of the National Assembly will certainly be a tough knot to crack and a long dangerous hook capable of wrecking the ruling party in no distant time.
Ordinarily, and going by previous arrangements, the lot to produce the Senate President for the 10th Assembly will naturally fall on either the South East or South-South. Already, the trio of Senator Orji-Uzor Kalu, Osita Izunaso and Godswill Akpabio are ably qualified, as ranking Senators, from those zones to occupy the position.
“Why do you think that Tinubu and the presidency cabal will be comfortable to concede the ticket to the South-East and or South-South ahead of the zones that massively gave him the desired votes that facilitated his emergence as President-elect?” an APC chieftain had asked rhetorically in a chat with Daily Sun.
“Don’t forget that the previous arrangements you were referring to were an undocumented agreement not one cast in stone. That the South produced the Senate President during the administration of a southern president like Olusegun Obasanjo or that the North did the same under President Buhari does not mean it will continue in that fashion.
“That it was adjusted under Goodluck Jonathan as President when the North Central produced the Senate President in the person of David Mark confirms that the arrangement can change.
“Therefore, we cannot be fixated that either South-East or South-South will produce the next Senate President under the administration of the President-elect. Don’t even raise the issue of the morality of accommodating the South-East because there is no morality in politics,” the APC chieftain argued.
Confirming that the controversy over the zoning of the positions is already dividing the leadership of the ruling party, National Chairman Abdullahi Adamu had wondered why politicians could bask in wishful thinking instead of waiting for an official pronouncement from the party.
“The report about the zoning arrangements for the 10th National Assembly is fake news. We have not done any zoning. I have said it times without number. I am still saying the same thing. No zoning has been established yet and agreed to. No zoning has been made public. Anybody who is saying anything, is a rumour. It’s a wishful rumour,” the ruling party’s boss said.
However, former spokesperson of the party, Yekini Nabena, has an entirely contrary opinion over the party’s planned zoning of the National Assembly principal positions.
“I have made it clear to every ear that cares to listen that the day the National Chairman violated the agreement on zoning arrangements in endorsing the senate president, Ahmad Lawan, a faulty foundation has been created. Nobody is going to listen to whatever arrangement the national leadership is making about zoning.
“We should bear in mind that the National Assembly is a different arm of government. They should be allowed to handle their affairs by themselves. We made mistake in the current dispensation by zoning two positions to the same state. The Vice President and the Speaker House of Representatives are from Lagos State because it is only recently that Vice President Yemi Osinbajo moved his voting polling unit to Ogun State.
“I can tell you that nobody is going to respect any zoning arrangement coming from the party’s leadership. What is certain is that the party will not have total control of the legislators especially as the party’s chairman has bungled the initial zoning arrangements on the eve of the presidential primary. We should allow the legislators to take their destiny into their hands,” Nabena insisted in a chat with Daily Sun.
Beyond the challenges the issue of zoning at the National Assembly might pose on the party are also the recent threat from the President-elect to unleash security agencies to apprehend those stoking embers of hate, division, falsehoods as well as peddling misleading narratives.
“By being declared winners, Tinubu and Kashim Shettima are legally entitled to be inaugurated into office as provided or by law and as we have practised since 1999, while those that feel otherwise have the right to seek legal redress in court.
“Why should their situation be different from what we have practised since 1999? Those dissatisfied with the declaration must conduct themselves within the ambits of the law. Nigeria is not a lawless country and should not be portrayed as such no matter the frustrations presently exhibited by some bad losers.
“Those who are stoking the embers of hate, division and falsehoods as well as peddling misleading narratives through some compromised media outlets should detract from such. It amounts to campaigning after elections. Hate speeches, fake news and propaganda at a time like this are needless because Nigerians have already made their choice. Those who are bent on scuttling the process will ignite the fire of destruction and run away. But they should not even start.
“We simply wish that peace reigns in the country. It does not make sense that some persons who should know better are encouraging violence and are so determined to achieve that. We know these persons and their sponsors from within and outside Nigeria and we shall be working closely with the security agencies to apprehend them and bring them to book.
“Our concern is that everyday Nigerians who are unaware of the evil intentions of these persons should not be used as cannon fodders. Enough is enough. Their continuous determination to dare us should cease forthwith. We are not lacking in capabilities and capacities. Our silence should not be taken for cowardice. We should come together for the peace of our beloved country. It is better,” the statement Keyamo signed read.
