In this interview, the National Vice Chairman (South-South) of the All Progressives Congress, Hilliard Eta, speaks on the decision of the party’s National Working Committee to settle for the direct mode of primaries for the Edo governorship elections, amongst other issues.

Could you take us through what led to the decision of your party to settle for the direct mode of primary for the coming Edo State governorship election?

There are two reasons. The first is that it has become a culture in the party that the mode of primary chosen in other (previous) elections other than the governorship election would be adopted when the governorship election becomes imperative. It is a culture that the same mode of primaries will be used. We have done so in Kogi State and other elections; so that is number one. Number two, any state we have found that members of our party have gone to court on the matter of who occupies party positions in that state, we usually prefer members of the party as delegates in the election of candidates of the party. The other alternative is to use indirect primaries which will mean that party officers will be the candidates. All parties are expecting judicial pronouncements on these court matters and because we are not too sure where the pendulum would swing with regards to court pronouncements, we would rather not imperil the candidates of the party.

What happened to the 2018 decision of the National Executive Committee of the party which gives state chapters the right to decide what mode of primaries to adopt?

That’s exactly what I have told you. The Edo State chapter of the party had decided for direct primaries before the election of 2019. This is the conclusion of that election. This governorship election is part of that election. That election (2019) was without the governorship election, so you cannot treat them as separate elections.

Are there two factions of the APC in Edo State?

At all times the party recognises its state executive committee.

Okay, which of the two claimants of the position of chairman does the party recognise in the state?

That would depend on the pronouncement of the courts.

There are those who argue that because of the crisis of confidence within the rank and file of your party with respect to the political situation in Edo State, the APC risks losing the state. Do you nurse such fears?

Not at all. I have often told those who care to listen that a political party is an organisation made up of human beings. And in any human organisation you must have friction, you must have disagreements and all sorts because we are not robots. Even in the other political parties, don’t they have their altercations too? All the parties have it just like I believe that all the major parties in Edo have their issues to deal with. That will not in any way impact on the governorship election of Edo.

Has the party taken a decision on the mode of primary to be adopted in Ondo?

You saw the advertisement that we put up for the primaries in Ondo; that is the only thing we have done for now. We believe that since Edo election comes before Ondo election, Edo should be dealt with first. Ondo will be dealt with in due course.

I’m asking this question because the mode of primaries has raised a lot of issues… (cuts in)

What you need to do is to find out the mode of primary Ondo chose during the last elections. If I remember correctly, Ondo chose indirect primaries and we have yet to conclude on Ondo in that regard because the governorship election is outstanding. It has become a culture in our party; until we have a new set of elections, we will go with the mode chosen for the primaries preceding that election.

The former National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun has warned against undue interference with the Edo governorship primary. What is your take?

First of all, I have yet to confirm if the advertorial in question came from the desk of the former National Chairman because everything contained in that advertorial stood reason on its head when it comes to Chief Odigie-Oyegun. First of all, Chief Odigie-Oyegun talking of people absenting themselves from or distancing themselves from the processes in Edo, yet, Chief Odigie-Oyegun was in charge of the processes that threw up the present governor of Edo. He also had a favourite candidate in that election which we know. I was still the National Vice Chairman (South-South) at the time. Chief Odigie-Oyegun is talking about free, fair and transparent processes; he has no business talking about things he could not give. He was the chairman of the party for four years; he could not deliver on the things he is now asking other people to deliver. So, Chief Odigie-Oyegun should not get himself entangled in revisionism; he should not revise the history of the APC. The APC bit the dust in his time and that is what the APC is trying to resolve now. The various issues we are working night and day to resolve were created by him, so he stands in no good stead to advise us on how to run the party. He had his time and history will give him his due. I think the best thing for a man his age who is in retirement, rightly so, is that he should observe some level of decorum in his public pronouncements.

Some have said the only rope holding the APC broom is the person of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), what is your response to such fears?

I’m not one of those who believe in that narrative and I believe our party will not allow that to happen. I do know that there are some especially within the party in my zone who are busy attempting to see whether this narrative will happen after the end of President Buhari’s tenure. I can assure you that the APC will remain long after the tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The party set up the Chief Bisi Akande-led APC National Reconciliation Committee to reconcile aggrieved party members, but instead of the crisis to abate, the crisis appears to be deepening.

Like which one?

Rivers State, for example.

There was to be a process that would lead to the election of a new state executive committee, what is happening?

I am not aware of any such process. I am the National Vice Chairman in charge of the zone. I am at least saddled with the responsibility of supervising the administration of the party in Rivers State. I do not know of any process that was to herald any new state executive committee. I am not aware.

Will it then be right to say you have a state executive council in Rivers State?

No, no, no. Unfortunately for us in Rivers State, we do not have an executive committee in place at the moment. The caretaker committee that was set up by the party was declared illegal by a court of competent jurisdiction. As we are now, we do not have an executive committee in the state and I don’t know of any process to put one in place as we speak. I know that what we are trying to do was to get Chief Bisi Akande to see how we can get some of the dramatis personae to sit down and begin a process of healing and reconciliation in Rivers State. Unfortunately, the coronavirus pandemic has made it impossible for the committee to do its work. That for me is the only reason why the committee has yet to fully get to work.

With benefit of hindsight, can you tell Nigerians that your party has delivered on its promises made to them when you all fought so hard to form government in 2015?

Let me say that I’m very glad that what happened in 2015 did in the political history of Nigeria our country; an opposition party was able to take over power from an incumbent government. That in itself is one of the salutary achievements of our movement and our message to the people of Nigeria. Having said so, after six years, of course, we have to sit down and introspectively analyse our stay in government. My take on the matter is Nigeria is still a work in progress. We have made some advancements in certain areas of our national life; we have also not done too well in some other areas. I think that in the critical areas of the national life in Nigeria we have tended to rewrite the narrative of Nigeria in a positive light. Not many will agree but I am sure that with time, Nigerians in the coolness of the evening will sit and do a proper appraisal of the time of the APC in government and they would not be as disappointed as most commentators especially in the social media would love to have people think. It’s been a mixed bag; we’ve had successes in certain critical areas and we’ve not done so well in some other areas but that itself is the way the national life of a developing country usually is.

The Deputy National Chairman (North), Senator Lawal Shuaibu, in a recent letter accused the National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, of dictatorship. What’s your view on that?

Lawal Shuaibu is accusing Oshiomhole of what he just did. The positions he advertised in the newspapers were not canvassed on the floor of the NWC. And he is indeed a member of that august body. For me it’s a display of cowardice. It is easy for you to sit in the comfort of your home and rake up mud and throw at people. One would have expected that the distinguished senator would have come to the floor of the NWC and state his case. I’m not here to take issues with him; I believe he is the deputy national chairman in charge of the north. If he has personal issues with Mr Adams Oshiomhole, it’s their business but when it comes to the business of the South South, which Edo State happens to be part of, I dare say that it will be, to say the least, hunting on very strange ground. It is strange that a man saddled with the responsibility of supervising the north will leave his jurisdiction and traverse the south and begin to make pronouncements on issues that were not his business. I think Shuaibu, with all due respect, should at this age begin to understand the requirements and job specifications of his office.

Justin Nwosu

Justin Nwosu is the founder and publisher of Flavision. His core interest is in writing unbiased news about Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. He’s a strong adherent of investigative journalism, with a bent on exposing corruption, abuse of power and societal ills.