SAN FRANCISCO, May 20, (THEWILL) – Leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) are set to meet on Monday with leaders of the defunct New Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP) over their grievances.
The group, led by one-time Acting PDP National Chairman Kawu Baraje, had claimed marginalisation of its members by the APC-led Federal Government a fortnight ago and gave the party a one-week deadline to meet with it and address its grievances.
The party was said to be aware that some of the nPDP leaders had made up their minds to defect from the ruling party, but wanted to give those protesting the opportunity to air their grievances.
Among those suspected to be planning their exit are Senate President Bukola Saraki and House Speaker Yakubu Dogara.
Other members of the former nPDP in the APC believed to be aagrieved and being wooed by the PDP and other political parties are Governors Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto) and Abdulfatah Ahmed (Kwara).
There are also Senators Rabiu Kwankwaso, Dino Melaye, Danjuma Goje, Adamu Aliero, Shehu Sani, Suleiman Nazif, Aliyu Wamako, Hamisu Misau, Sani Yerima and some House of Representatives members.
According to a member of the National Working Committee (NWC), the outcome of the meeting will be presented to the Presidency and other organs of the party for consideration.
“We asked the nPDP leaders to come for interaction on their letter to shed more light on their grievances, collate facts and figures and get their opinions on the way forward.
“He who alleges must prove. We want to get the facts and figures on the allegations they have put in the public domain.
“We have also invited the nPDP leaders to give them a sense of fair hearing in order not to give them any justification for leaving APC.
“The truth is that politics is about dialogue, shifting grounds, and finding solutions to issues.
“We will relate the outcome to our leaders in the Presidency, the NWC and all other organs of the party.
“At the end of the day, we will take a decision on the way out,” he said.
Baraje also confirmed that his group had been invited to a meeting with the party leadership.
“The last time we met here in 2016, I told you that the way the party was going on we were on the road to perdition.
“If you look at the letter we wrote, we never said we gave ultimatum but that we advised them; we hinted the party because of the ongoing primaries of the party.
“Now the party has invited us, exactly on the seventh day of the letter and they wanted us to meet that same day but because we were speaking for several leaders across the country we told them we couldn’t meet that same day; so now they have scheduled a meeting for tomorrow (Monday) anytime from 2pm.
“We have travelled a long way with the APC and now we are seeing things worse in APC than in PDP. If we are leaders worth the name we should be bold enough to speak about it.
“We are desirous that Buhari wins, are desirous that our party wins the presidential election and the only way we can do it is to ensure that everybody is carried along.
“This is the right time for those of us who are aggrieved to complain so that we do not carry the grievances to elections period. It is not as if we are rebelling,” Baraje said.
