OPPOSITION COALITION ALLEGES PLOT TO FRUSTRATE APC’S REGISTRATION

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OPPOSITION COALITION ALLEGES PLOT TO FRUSTRATE APC’S REGISTRATION

Leaders of the opposition coalition have raised apprehension over the alleged plans by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to thwart efforts at registering their newly merged party, All Progressives Congress (APC) by sponsoring a new party with similar acronym.

The discovery of the destabilisation plot came on the heels ill feelings expressed by some parties to the merger talks over the emergence of a new APC logo and slogan.

A top leader of the opposition group and a member of the sub-committee on Legal Framework/INEC registration told THISDAY yesterday that the sub-committee had unravelled the plan and was planning on a strategy to adopt to avoid being caught napping.

He explained that the hatchet plot was to ambush the opposition merger by rushing to  register another phantom political party bearing similar acronym as APC  with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) so as to prevent the coalition from registering the name.

“We have it on good authority that the ruling party is plotting to beat us to the time and register a phantom party with similar acronym as our own APC so that INEC will be forced to reject our application for registration,” he said.

The source said the idea behind the latest plot is to destabilise  the opposition merger and possibly create confusion among its ranks to the extent that it would be difficult to come up with another name within a short time.

A CPC stalwart who reacted to the development said the party believed the plot is real in view of the manner in which the formation of APC jolted the PDP hierarchy.

He also said the growing unity and commitment of the APC governors to the actualisation of the merger was an unprecedented phenomenon that has created panic within PDP circles.

According him, the opposition coalition is monitoring every move being made to frustrate the merger and is determined to scale every hurdle on their move to liberate the country from bad rule.

THISDAY further learnt of the disquiet pervading the atmosphere at the merger committee negotiation. Following the announcement of a new logo and slogan for the merger party last Tuesday, it was gathered that some elements within the merging parties, especially, from the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) were not particularly comfortable with the manner the exercise was conducted.

Apart from grumblings about the seeming domination of the merger by one of the parties, sources from the ANPP camp said some of its leaders did not fully agree with adoption of the logo.

Also some members of the CPC were not in support of the slogan of Justice, Unity and Peace and had lobbied for it to be changed.

The ACN National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, had defended the outcome of the meeting on logo, saying  that the merger committee had worked in harmony with the alliance governors, noting that no member of the committee objected to the logo, slogan or motto of the new party when it was presented for adoption at the meeting.

Mohammed, who is also a member of the merger committee, told newsmen that the new party’s logo, slogan and motto was unanimously adopted after the meeting of the larger committee and the opposition alliance governors which ended late on Tuesday.

He said: “Only the merger committee has the final authority on any issue about the proposed merger, the governors explained that all the decisions the governors arrived at in their own meeting was presented to the larger committee for approval and we all deliberated on them and arrived at a consensus on the ground that there must be give and take by all the intending merger political parties.
“Amazingly, yesterday there was no dissent from any group after the meeting of the governors with the merger committee. The proposal of the governors was endorsed by the chairmen of each of the merger committees of the various political parties,” he said.
Meanwhile, Youth leaders of merging political parties met Thursday in Abuja to drum up support for the opposition merger ahead of the 2015 elections.

The youths operating under a joint umbrella of ACN, ANPP and CPC youth wing called on progressives all over the country and in the Diaspora to support APC in order to save Nigerian from the hand of the ruling PDP.

ACN National Youth Leader, Comrade Ebikibina Miriki, who briefed reporters on behalf his counterparts at the end of the meeting said they will commence mobilisation of Nigerians to support APC in all elections henceforth.

“It is therefore not only detrimental but also unpardonable to entrust our fate and future and that of our children unborn to party and government that has proven incapable of resolving our developmental problems.

“When democracy was ushered in Nigeria by the military in 1990, expectations were high that Nigeria will soon take her rightful place with in the comity of nations, freedom of association; transparency and accountability which are the tripod on which any functional democracy is anchored were the basis of the optimism. For wherever the three factors are found, the product is always good governance. Unfortunately our expectations were short-lived and our dreams have remained just mere dreams.

“The PDP-controlled government lacking a comprehensive employment policy, millions of the unemployed youths shave become vulnerable to manipulation by ethic chauvinist, religious bigots and career politicians to whom politics is not a contest of ideas but a do or die affair.

“We are calling on all youths and progressives all over the country and Diaspora to support and join the All Progressives Congress (APC) not only to challenge the Peoples Democratic Party but also to save this sinking ship called Nigeria from drowning, in which elections are a sham as results are already known before hand,” he said.

-         This day live