From Femi Mustapha, in Kaduna
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, PhD, has urged the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje to constitute reconciliation committees to unite the members of the party nationwide.
Speaker Abbas noted that some members of the APC were aggrieved, which was why there was a need to reconcile and make peace with them.
Speaking at the APC stakeholders’ meeting for the Northwest in Kaduna on Sunday, the Speaker said such action would bring more success to the APC as one big political family.
He said, “I want to call on the National Chairman and our party to ensure peaceful coexistence among all party members. As previous speakers have said, we are bedeviled with many issues in different states, and every local government.
“It is time to draw a line. Elections are over; this is the time for governance. We should forget what has happened; let’s forgive one another; let’s embrace one another.
“I want to suggest to the National Chairman, and by extension, the National Vice Chairman to, as a matter of urgency, constitute reconciliation committees for the zone and for every state to constitute the same reconciliation committees so that we can make peace and bring those that we may have offended back to the party.”
Speaker Abbas also urged Ganduje to use his position in addressing the high turnover rate of members of the National Assembly, saying APC members who perform well should be allowed to return in 2027.
“On the issue of the high turnover of members of the National Assembly, this is a golden opportunity under your tenure to ensure that you do everything humanly possible for current (APC) members of the National Assembly and States Houses of Assembly to return in 2027.
“Some people may say others are waiting. But I need to emphatically mention that the National Assembly is an institution where the older you are in the system, the better you become.
“Today, the Northwest, based on the 2023 elections, is worse off. That is the reason, perhaps, we did not get the kind of prominence we should have gotten. So, let’s ensure that only the worst of us do not get reelected. We should allow the competent ones to return to the National Assembly.”
Speaker Abbas commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for giving some key positions to the Northwest, saying the zone should appreciate him by redoubling its efforts in 2027.
“We thank Mr. President for finding the Northwest worthy of many important positions. This is the first time that we have the Speaker, the Deputy President of the Senate, and the National Chairman of our party emerging from the zone.
“To whom much is given, much is expected. It is our turn to appreciate Mr. President, to appreciate our party by ensuring that we do everything humanly possible to bring dividends of democracy to our people; to ensure that the insecurity that has bedeviled our zone is brought to its logical conclusion; to also ensure that in 2027, we redouble our efforts for the APC to do better in every ward, every local government, every state and the country as a whole.”
He called on party leaders at different levels to support the party structures, saying “What I observed is that attention is given to the party when elections are near. After elections, nothing moves, nothing happens.
“I want to implore us, the leaders, to support our party not only during elections but at all times. That’s the only way we can guarantee success for our party.
“On our part at the National Assembly, we’ll sit with the leadership of the party in the Northwest to come up with some measures of support. I’ve already briefed the National Chairman during our last meeting that we would reach out to every member to ensure that every month, something is sent to the party to support it. We expect that all members of state caucuses will replicate the same.”
On the ongoing constitution amendment by the National Assembly, Speaker Abbas said, “This is an opportunity for us in the Northwest to sit down and bring up the areas that we can do better as a country.
“We want to see if we can replicate what we did in the 8th Assembly by empowering all our senators and Honourable members to go back to their constituencies on an appointed date to interact with the people, giving them the areas of priority so that by the time we come back, every member will vote based on the mandate given by his people.”
He said some of the critical areas that the National Assembly identified in the constitution review were state police, local government autonomy, women’s inclusion in politics and governance, and the role of traditional institutions.
