The dust raised by the much-anticipated national convention of the All Progressives Congress (APC) may have settled at the Eagle Square in Abuja, but the issues and political messages that emerged from the gathering continue to generate reactions across the country.
The convention, held on Saturday, June 23, 2018, saw the emergence of new national officers who are expected to steer the affairs of the ruling party ahead of the 2019 general elections.
However, beyond the election of the new executives, the gathering also exposed some of the internal disagreements and political tensions that have continued to shape the APC since its formation.
Questions surrounding party unity, internal democracy and the ability of the APC to manage its various interests featured prominently in discussions surrounding the convention.
Given the diverse political backgrounds of the members who came together to form the party, disagreements have remained a recurring feature of the APC’s internal politics.
One of the major highlights of the convention was the speech delivered by the party’s National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Tinubu used the occasion to recall the political negotiations and alliances that culminated in the formation of the APC, as well as the challenges the party faced before its historic victory in the 2015 general elections.
He also highlighted what he described as some of the achievements recorded by the APC-led Federal Government since it assumed power.
While acknowledging that the party was facing internal challenges, Tinubu urged members to resolve their differences and remain focused on the larger political objective ahead of the 2019 elections.
His remarks, however, attracted particular attention when he spoke about what he described as elements within government who were allegedly working against the administration’s reform agenda.
At the time, the APC was dealing with significant disagreements involving some of its influential members, including then-Senate President Bukola Saraki and Speaker of the House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara.
The disagreements had fuelled concerns about the level of cohesion within the ruling party and its ability to maintain a united front ahead of the 2019 elections.
Although Tinubu did not specifically name Saraki or Dogara in the portion of his speech, his reference to what he called “PDP remnants” within government was widely interpreted in political circles as a reference to members and interests associated with the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Tinubu said the presence of such elements had, in his view, affected the implementation of the APC’s reform agenda.
“Before closing, I must mention something of high concern. Our progressive agenda has been hampered because elements of the PDP remain embedded in the many agencies and ministries so crucial to daily governance,” he said.
According to him, those he described as “a fifth column” were allegedly undermining government policies while also working towards the return of the PDP to power.
Tinubu consequently called for what he described as a change in the composition of government institutions.
“It is time to sweep out the PDP remnants and put in position people who actually care about the people,” he declared.
The APC leader also used the imagery of the rain, which was threatening to disrupt the convention, to make a broader political point.
Some members had reportedly expressed concern that rainfall could affect the event, but Tinubu urged them not to worry.
“Let the rain fall if it must. For it is a sign of a great washing,” he said.
Linking the symbolism to the party’s broom emblem, Tinubu said the rain represented an opportunity to “wash away the remaining shards of the old, unjust politics” and create what he described as a better path for Nigeria.
His speech provided one of the defining political moments of the convention, coming at a time when the APC was seeking to reconcile its internal factions and strengthen its structure ahead of the 2019 elections.
With a new national executive committee now in place, attention has shifted to how the party intends to manage its internal differences, consolidate its political structure and present a united front going into the next general election.
For a party that came to power in 2015 on the strength of a historic political alliance, the challenge remains how to preserve that coalition while accommodating the competing interests of its many political blocs.
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