The National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, yesterday, survived renewed efforts to oust him, as the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party extended his tenure by an additional year, The Guardian NG reports.
The extension also covers both elective and non-elective members of the NWC, and the chairmen and executive members of the 36 state chapters.
Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State made this known at the end of the NEC meeting attended by President Muhammadu Buhari, the party’s 24 state governors and chairmen from the 36 states of the federation.
According to the report, Bello justified the decision, saying it was aimed at preventing the crises plaguing the party from getting worse. He explained that the extension starts from June 30, after the tenure of the Oyegun-led NWC expires.
He also reiterated the party’s belief in the ability of National Leader Bola Tinubu to reconcile warring APC members, stressing that the party would still conduct its non-elective convention before the end of the year.
He said: “Considering the time left for the party to conduct all the congresses and convention and the considering that our leader, Bola Tinubu, has been charged with the responsibility of reconciling all aggrieved members of our party, we cannot afford to approach the general elections with more disputes and crises.
“And relying on Article 13 of our constitution, which empowers the NEC to carry out functions of the convention, the NEC has decided to extend the tenure of the current NWC and other executive committees at various levels for another 12 months, starting from June 30, this year.”
The decision implies that both the NWC and the state chairmen have been saddled with the responsibility of conducting the presidential, National Assembly, and state Assemblies primaries ahead of the 2019 election.
Read More: The Guardian NG
