Nuhu Ribadu is going to be
readmitted into All Progressives Congress (APC) with a former governorship candidate of the
defunct Action Congress of Nigeria( ACN ) in the state, Mr. Marcus Gundiri,
with their supporters.
According to the Nation,
the former Vice President, Atiku
Abubakar, Adamawa State Governor Jibrilla Bindow, and two others have protested
to National Chairman John Odigie-Oyegun and the National Working Committee
(NWC) against Ribadu’s return.
The APC leadership told
Atiku, the governor and others that the constitution allows an individual to
join a party of his choice.
Once a state chapter of the
party is receptive to anyone’s membership, there is a limit to which the
National Headquarters can do, they were told.
Ribadu accepted to return
to APC following overtures from the leaders of APC at the national level,
ex-Governor Murtala Nyako, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation
Babachir David Lawal, the state and local government chapters of the party.
A June 22, 2016 letter by
the Adamawa State chapter, signed by the Acting State Secretary, Alh. Saidu
Naira invited Ribadu back to the party.
The letter reads: “We the
entire APC Adamawa State chapter wish to invite you back to your “Home party”,
APC.
“Given your track records
and progressive nature, we strongly believe APC
is where you belong to.
“We are also mindful of the
efforts and contributions you made during the merger without which the merger
would have been difficult.
“To this end, we reaffirm
our request for you to come home to APC and assist and contribute to the
success of the APC government both at the state and national levels.”
A party source said: “We
decided to invite Ribadu to return to APC because he was frustrated out by some
PDP elements who defected to our party during the merger and countdown to 2015
elections.
“Ribadu did so much for APC
in Adamawa State but the setback which made him to go to PDP was frustration
following a disagreement with some of our leaders, like ex-Vice President Atiku
Abubakar, on the impeachment of ex-Governor Murtala Nyako. Ribadu worked
tirelessly to save Nyako from impeachment but our leaders paid lip service and
stoked the fire which made ex-Speaker Umar Fintiri to remove the former
governor.
“The insincerity of APC
leaders in the state made Ribadu to defect to PDP against his own volition. So,
he left APC as a result of local politics. It was a state affair but today
things have changed.
“When Ribadu was pushed to
the wall, he had no choice than to pitch tent with the PDP which needed a
credible candidate. Ribadu was frustrated out of APC for being a true party man
to save Nyako.
“And the PDP elements, who
joined APC, were uncomfortable with the anti-corruption stance of Ribadu and
his acceptance in the party. So, it was convenient to hatch a plot to kick him
out of the party.
“Today Nyako is vindicated
and Umar Fintiri is under investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission( EFCC).
“We are now out to correct
the past by asking him to return to APC
because Nyako has been vindicated. The court said his removal was wrong. Ribadu
has also been justified because he insisted that Nyako was a victim of
political vendetta and abuse of power. Nyako is back.
“We have realised that we
have all wronged Ribadu. We want him back.”
Asked if Ribadu has
accepted the offer, the source said: “He has agreed to return to our fold. We
are all happy with him.”
Atiku, Bindow, the
Secretary to the Adamawa State Government and the Chief of Staff on Monday
protested to John Odigie-Oyegun and the NWC.
The four-man delegation
met with Odigie-Oyegun and his team.
It was all about Ribadu, a
source said.
The source, a member of the
NWC, said: “We were all shocked that the ex-VP came with the governor and two
others to prevail on the leadership of
the party not to readmit Ribadu into APC.
“They spoke of the need for
party discipline since Ribadu contested on PDP platform against Bindow. They
said Ribadu’s coming back will spell doom for APC unity in the state.
“They all forgot that they
were once in PDP too before defecting to APC. Bindow is a former PDP senator.
“Some of us spoke about
added value which Ribadu can bring to our party as one of the brains behind the
merger politics which led to the birth of APC.
“Contrary to their mission,
the leadership at the national level and stakeholders are extremely excited
about the return of Ribadu. He is a progressive in thinking and action. The APC
needs his service. We became suspicious because no leader of APC at the state
level followed them.
“At the end of the day, the
party said constitutionally you cannot stop anybody from joining a party. We
told the delegation that it is a state issue. If the state executives of APC
accept Ribadu, we cannot reject him.
“We will however do our
best to reconcile all members of the party, whether old or new. Our ultimate
target is to keep the APC family united.”
It was also gathered that
President Muhammadu Buhari’s supporters endorsed the return of Ribadu.
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