Court cases: APC NWC faults Buhari, may expel aggrieved members

Some aggrieved members of the All Progressives Congress, who
fail to withdraw their court cases instituted against the national
leadership of the party over the outcome of the party’s primaries,
may be expelled.

The National Working Committee of the party may have thus
ignored President Muhammadu Buhari’s stand on the festering
crisis.

Buhari had, on Monday, submitted that the aggrieved APC members
had the right to seek legal redress over the results of the
primaries.

The National Vice Chairman of the APC, South-South, Chief
Hilliard Eta, gave the hint in an interview with SUNDAY
PUNCH.

Buhari, in a statement last week, said members of the party, who
were not satisfied with the outcome of the party primaries
conducted across the country, were right to have approached the
court to seek redress over the alleged unfair treatment.

The President faulted the position of the NWC of the party,
which asked aggrieved members to withdraw their court cases or be
ready to face sanctions.

But Eta said many of the aggrieved members currently in court
over the results of the party’s primaries did not exhaust the
party’s dispute resolution mechanisms before rushing to court.

He said the party would not change its position on the issue,
insisting that it would sanction errant members, which might
include expulsion for failing to explore Article 20, subsection 10
of the APC’s constitution.

He said, “We need to juxtapose the President’s utterance with
the position of the party. The constitution of the party states
that you must exhaust all internal party conflict resolution
mechanisms before you seek redress in court.

“The party’s constitution does not stop any member from seeking
legal redress if they think that their rights have been infringed
upon. What it says is that it is only after you have exhausted all
the internal conflict resolution mechanisms that you can go to
court. But if you have not exhausted them and you proceed to court,
the party reserves the right to expel such person because you have
brought the party to odium.”

When reminded that the party’s position contradicted the
President’s pronouncement on the issue, Eta said, “The President is
a loyal party man and if that provision of the constitution is
brought to his notice, I am very sure that he is going to abide by
the constitution of the party because the President is the man who
will always stand on the side of the rule of law and that is the
rule of the law of the APC.

“I can tell you categorically that most of these aggrieved
members did not exhaust the internal conflict resolution mechanisms
before approaching the court. Take the Cross Rive State’s case for
instance, at no time did the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs,
Pastor (Usani) Usani, exhaust the internal party mechanisms before
going to court.

“Also, the aggrieved party members in Delta State did not
explore the party’s conflict resolution mechanisms before
approaching the court. The same thing with those in Imo State; they
did not come to us at the NWC.”

Eta added, “In most of the states, aggrieved members abandoned
the internal party mechanisms and proceeded straight to the
court.

“For us, there must be discipline in the party. Regardless of
the rank of an army officer, if he is not disciplined and tutored,
that officer is a disaster waiting to happen. So, regardless of the
largeness of the party and regardless of the membership that we can
boast of at any time, I can tell you that we would enforce
discipline in the party.”

Also, the Deputy National Chairman (South), Otunba Niyi Adebayo,
argued that Buhari’s statement did not contradict the position of
the NWC.

Adebayo, a former governor of Ekiti State, submitted that
members of the party must explore all avenues to resolve internal
conflicts before heading for the court.

He stated, “I believe the President’s statement is in tandem
with that of the National Working Committee. He is absolutely right
that nobody should be denied the opportunity of going to court if
he feels aggrieved. It is not the intention of the NWC that people
should not be allowed to go to court.

“All the NWC is saying is that members should explore all the
party’s dispute resolution mechanisms. If thereafter they are not
satisfied, they have the option of going to court.”

Vice chairmen differ

In the same vein, the National Vice Chairman, South East, of the
party, Emmanuel Enekwu, agreed with Eta that members of the party
must subject themselves to the provisions of the APC’s
constitution.

Asked if the party’s position, asking members to withdraw their
court cases on the primaries or face the sack still subsisted,
Enekwu answered in the affirmative.

He stated, “The constitution of the party is supreme and binding
on all members. It is derived from the Constitution of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria. Every member of the APC is subject to the
provisions of the APC. That document provides the guidelines for
party activities and actions of members.

“The President asked members of our party to subject themselves
to the appeals’ committee set up for reconciliation. The President
is a man who respects the law. He wouldn’t ask them not to subject
themselves to the dictates of the internal party mechanisms (of
conflict resolution) before going to court.”

However, the National Vice Chairman, North-West, Inuwa
Abdulkadir, in agreeing with Buhari, stated that if members were
not given the chance to seek redress in the face of perceived
injustice, the result would be chaos.

Abdukadir said, “The President reiterated the position of the
law which is the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
1999 (as amended).

“The party or its agents cannot be a law unto themselves; that
is why we have rules. If the party knows that if it does anything
wrong, people can challenge such actions in court, those in charge
will do the right thing. This will promote accountability and
transparency. That is what democracy is all about.

“What the President said is in order; there is no ambiguity in
it. If people are not allowed to ventilate their grievances through
laid down provisions of the law, there will be chaos. There is no
human organisation without conflict.”

‘Eta not better than Buhari in party
matter’

But a factional chairman of the APC in Cross River State, Mr
Etim John, said Eta did not understand the party’s constitution
more than Buhari, wondering why the NWC member had continued in the
same line of argument.

Besides, John noted that the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs,
Usani Usani, exhausted the internal party conflict resolution
mechanisms before approaching the court.

He said, “Does Hilliard Eta really understand what he is saying?
Does he think that he understands the party’s constitution more
than the President of Nigeria? Do you think that the President of
Nigeria is so foolish that he will wake up from his bed and make
serious statements relating to party issues without getting some
legal advice from the Attorney General of the Federation or any
other top legal practitioner?

“Well, I do not think that reacting to what he said is of any
issue. First, let them implement the sanctions; then, we would know
whether they are qualified to do that. “Talking about not
exhausting the party’s internal conflict resolution mechanism,
Hilliard Eta is lying because the party set up an appeal panel
after the governorship primary and all aggrieved members appeared
before them (committee members).

“Having appeared before an appeal panel, those who were not
satisfied went to court. Because they were not satisfied, that was
why they went to court and for that reason, the President is very
correct.”

I’m ready to withdraw my case from court –
Marafa

Meanwhile, the Senator representing Zamfara Central Senatorial
District in the National Assembly, Kabiru Marafa, has expressed his
preparedness to withdraw the suit involving him and the APC if the
party compels him to do so.

He told SUNDAY PUNCH on Saturday that the
case he instituted was actually against the party’s congresses held
in March and that the court ruling on the matter so far had allayed
his fears and those of his supporters.

Marafa said, “I am ready to withdraw the case now if the party
insists. As it stands now, it is the governor and the APC that are
in court. We only joined ourselves in their cases because we are an
interested party.

“I am not technically in court at the moment. I went to court to
challenge the APC congresses that produced the party’s executives
in the state. The governor unilaterally appointed executives of the
party at the wards, local government and the state levels.

“The case is still in court but the development has allayed our
fears. We had expressed the fears that Governor Yari’s party
executives might be recognised to conduct the primary but the issue
had been overtaken by events now.”

We’ll conclude suit, says Delta factional
chair

Also, the factional chairman of the APC in Delta State, Chief
Cyril Ogodo, said his faction was unperturbed by the fresh threat
by the Adams Oshiomhole-led NWC to expel aggrieved members who
failed to withdraw their suits against the party.

Ogodo, who was inaugurated by the then National Chairman of the
APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, before Oshiomhole’s NWC ousted him,
said his group would go ahead with the case.

He told SUNDAY PUNCH on Saturday that he
would pursue the case to its “logical conclusion” until the Delta
APC was served justice by the national leadership.

The chairman, who enjoyed the backing of the state leader of the
party, Olorogun O’tega Emerhor, Chief Hyacinth Enuha and several of
the governorship aspirants in the state, added that the faction
would act in line with the position of Buhari.

He added, “Like I said before, I’ll pursue my case to its
logical conclusion. However, I have taken advantage of the
purported reconciliatory committee the NWC has set up. If justice
is served by that committee, there will be no need pursuing the
case further.

“But as long as they (NWC officials) keep denying Delta APC,
which I am the authentic chairman, justice, we’ll stay in court
until the end. The internal mechanism, which they are talking about
were exhausted before approaching the court.”

Repeated calls placed to the National Publicity Secretary of the
APC, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, on Saturday, were not returned.

He had also yet to respond to a message sent to him
by SUNDAY PUNCH as of the time of filing this
report on Saturday.

Culled from Punch

Related