APC National Executive Committee to Meet Amidst Leadership Crisis

Strategic Insights -

The National Executive Committee (NEC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is set to meet on Thursday in Abuja to discuss key issues threatening the party's cohesion. The meeting comes as the party's leadership is mired in a crisis, following the resignation of Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje as national chairman on June 27. The agenda for the meeting is expected to include the fate of the current acting national chairman, Ali Bukar Dalori, as well as other members of the National Working Committee (NWC). While some party insiders believe that the NEC will ratify Dalori's role and give him a timeframe to organize an elective national convention, others speculate that President Bola Tinubu may choose a substantive chairman during the meeting.

Key Takeaways:

  • The NEC meeting is scheduled to take place on Thursday in Abuja to discuss key issues affecting the party's leadership.
  • The agenda for the meeting is expected to include the fate of acting national chairman Ali Bukar Dalori and other members of the NWC.
  • President Bola Tinubu holds the decisive card in determining the party's leadership and may choose a substantive chairman during the meeting.
  • The NEC is empowered to appoint a substantive national chairman under Article 13:3(ii) of the APC Constitution.
  • The current NWC has a tenure that cannot be dissolved arbitrarily, and any such move could spark crisis.
  • Several contentious issues threaten to plunge the party into crisis, including the potential for internal unrest, weakening cohesion, and exploitation by political opportunists.
  • A group under the aegis of the All Progressives Stakeholders Forum has appealed to President Tinubu not to dissolve the NWC, warning that such a move could cause division within the party.

Statistics:

  • The APC Constitution limits the acting tenure of national officers, including the national chairman, to 12 calendar months (Section 13.3(c)).
  • 13-member caretaker committee may be appointed to oversee a fresh elective convention if the NEC decides to dissolve the current NWC.
  • The current NWC has been in office since the last national convention in 2022.

Sources:

  • Daily Trust
  • Nigerian Tribune
  • APC Constitution (2022)
  • Article 13:3(ii) and Section 13.3(c) of the APC Constitution.