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APC tackles Akande, says membership registration constitutional

Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Caretaker/ Extra-Ordinary Convention Planning Committee, Governor Mai Mala Buni has disagreed with the party’s interim National Chairman, Chief Bisi Akande on the ongoing membership registration and revalidation process.

Akande had, on Wednesday, said that the membership registration was not necessary as the previous exercise was not up to 10 years. According to him, such membership registration takes 10 years from each other and the last membership registration of APC was done in 2014.

“No population census is repeated within less than a decade and that voters are not reregistered at every election. Within this context, I see the present APC membership registration within less than a decade after the original register as an indefensible aberration, leading to certain ugly perceptions,” Akande had said.

But reacting to this yesterday, Buni, in a statement from his Director General of Media, Mamman Mohammed, said the APC membership registration and revalidation is constitutional. Buni said the exercise is carried out as a strategic measure taken to give new and existing members a sense of belonging.

He said: “The membership registration and revalidation exercise was a constitutional provision which is part of the strategic measures taken by the committee to give existing and new members a sense of belonging.

“Since the initial exercise in 2014, the party has neither registered new members nor updated the personal information of our existing members as provided for by the constitution. “The registration exercise gives our new members a sense of belonging and the existing members will update their information while those who left the party will have their names removed from the party register.

“The registration and revalidation exercise would assist the party to generate a valid, accurate and up-todate data on party membership to enhance and support its planning process.” The Yobe State Governor said that the APC Caretaker committee has succeeded in building a new confidence among its members and reassuring them of a new hope in the party.

Buni said:” Our focus is to strengthen the party through a bottom-up approach and to carry everyone on board, while those aggrieved have happily rejoined APC just as new ones have joined the party. “The caretaker committee has reconciled many aggrieved members and factions across the country, including the Zamfara State factions among others and bringing in prominent politicians into APC, including Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State with more coming.”

Buni dismissed claims that APC was wooing former President Goodluck Jonathan to contest the 2023 presidency on its platform, saying 2023 is not on its agenda for now. “It is diversionary to start discussing 2023 elections now. We have a sitting president, Muhammadu Buhari, who is less than two years in office of his second term; we are concentrating on the success of his administration,” he said.

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