The recent pronouncement by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume at the 10th Memorial Anniversary Celebration of the Late Prince Abubakar Audu with the theme “A Legacy of Visionary Leadership” ascribing the position of “Supreme Leader” to former Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State has stirred controversy within the All Progressives Congress (APC) with many members describing it as an expensive joke but may be indicative of the fact that all may not be well with the ruling party.
This position of “Supreme Leader” was reechoed by Former Governor Yahaya Bello himself to the surprise of many party faithfuls who were present at the time when he gave his remarks at the event which held at the glass house of Government House in Lokoja.
It is pertinent to state unequivocally that the statement of the SGF negates the standing order of the All Progressive Congress which alludes the position of “Supreme Leader” only to the President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, in this case President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, provided that he is a member of the party.
For the avoidance of doubt, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu remains the only “Supreme Leader” of the All Progressive Congress (APC). All other leaders of the party at the National, State, Local Government and Wards are expected to be subservient to his Leadership and are simply to be recognized as leaders.
Without mincing words, it is traumatizing for well meaning members of the All Progressive Congress to learn that a man who is currently standing trail on a fraud case brought against him to the tune of N80.2 bn by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) be so referred to as the “Supreme Leader” of the APC.
However, since the statement which ascribes the position of “Supreme Leader” to the Former Governor is coming from no less a person but a very Senior Member of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Administration in the position of the Secretary to the Government, it will be interesting to watch how Former Governor Yahaya Bello plays this role in the coming days, weeks and months leading to the nomination of candidates, primaries and general elections of the party.
– Mohammed Jiba wrote from Bida in Niger State.
