APC To Unveil Interim committee chairman, Secretary, Treasurer this week- Fashakin
Says: No Rivalry Between Akande, Ikimi
The national publicity secretary of Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and member of the All Progressive Congress (APC) merging committee, Mr Rotimi Fashakin, on Tuesday disclosed that the persons to occupy the Interim Executive Committee of the merging parties would be announced before the end of the week.
Briefing journalist after an APC merger committees meeting in Abuja, Fashakin dispelled insinuations that there was bad blood over allocation of national chairman, national secretary, and national treasurer positions, adding that the officers of those positions were selected from the set of the national chairmen, Secretary and treasurer of the three major opposition parties- ANPP, CPC and ACN, that signed the application letter seeking the registration for the party from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
He nonetheless, declined to divulge the names of the officers.
As it stands, some of the conditions by INEC for the registration of the party include, a resolution from national conventions of the merging partners seeking to collapse into the merge; the party constitution and manifesto and an interim executive committee to steer the party among others.
However, while the chairmanship slot for interim exco has been given to the ACN, the race for the position has pitt the incumbent chairman of the ACN, Bisi Akande- largely backed by the leader of the ACN, Tinubu, against a chieftain of the same party and an influential member of the merger committee, Tom Ikimi who seems to enjoy the backing of other merger committee members as well as those who believe Akande chairmanship translates to Tinubu’s firm hold of the APC’s.
But clarifying that the interim officers have been selected Fashakin said 'Yes I told you clearly. You will recall that two weeks ago there was a submission to INEC on behalf of APC and a communication passed on to INEC and signed by all the three chairmen, Secretaries and treasurers of the legacy parties. The sets of signatories made that submission to INEC. So among them a chairman was taken, a secretary was taken and a treasure was taken.'
He continued 'you will know in due course. Yes the name is known, but we are still talking about expanding that committee so we can still have juggling. But we are talking about a matter of one or two days. You will know in due course. But know that one of them there is the chairman, one of them there is the national secretary and one of them there is the national treasurer. '
Refusing to name the officers, he said 'expect the final solution, before the end of the week .today is Tuesday before the end of the week, already the party application for registration is already with INEC, so its only about infinitesimal. The bulk of the submission is there. Those areas and positions that are known to law are already settled with INEC and with the electoral act, it's the chairman, national secretary and the treasurer, these positions are the ones the law requires to sign any application to INEC as regards merger. So those positions are already settled with INEC.
We submitted constitutions that yes all these positions needs to be filled so we get through that.
Dismissing claims of a rancour among the merging parties over the emergence of the officials Fashakin, said the purported rancour is in the mind of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
He further noted that the allocation of offices to all the parties would be sorted out peacefully like a family.
He said 'We are looking at APC not ANPP or CPC anymore. Yes indeed they still exist because APC has not been formally registered. But in the spirit of it, those parties have agreed to be subsumed in the APC so among them you have the chairman, secretary and treasurer. there is no rancour.
The rancour is only in the minds of PDP, because they are expecting rancour and exchange if fisticuffs. They are expecting us to disagree.
On how slots would be allocated to parties 'this is a complicated question to answer. Because it is not like number of slots has been allocated. We have looked at some of these positions like family members. So it is not just only the legacy parties that are involved. You have people from APGA from DPP whose interested too are now also put into consideration so when we get the final list it will be one that reflects the extrogenity of our nation.'
Speaking also after the meeting, Ikimi said a further meeting will take place later that evening at the level of party caucuses meetings of the merging parties. He explained that the caucuses will look into their recommendations.
“We have worked out various options that we will take to the caucuses, so that we meet with the leadership of the caucuses and finalize on these matters.”
On the interim officers, he said 'We have looked into various structures that should ensure merging parties are taken along this we will discuss tonight to see that every party is carried along. Well there is much time left now. I am sure it is in a matter of days.”