By Abiodun Esan
Members of the Caretaker Executive Committee of the All Progressives congress (APC) in Kwara have rejected the ongoing membership registration and revalidation exercise in the state.

The executive members, at a media briefing on Wednesday at the party’s secretariat in Ilorin, declared that the process in virtually all the registration centres was in breach of the guidelines of the APC on the exercise.

Chief Sunday Oyebiyi, the Vice Chairman of the party in the state, who read a prepared statement, said majority of the executive committee members were not carried along in the events leading to the exercise.

“We are in the dark till this very moment as per the process of the registration exercise. The same is true of our LGA Chairmen and their executives and the Ward Chairmen and their executives.

“Assuming without conceding that the Chairman, Bashir Bolarinwa, is suspended, are we all also suspended?

“Is the Organising Secretary, Samuel Ndazoko Isa, who by our parry’s constitution is supposed to be responsible for the exercise, also suspended?

“Is the majority members of the executive committee here present also suspended? So why did the Senator John Danboyi-led team sidestep all of us.

“If this is bad, what is happening on the field is worse. The guidelines are being severely raped across all the 1872 units without exception.

“Unfortunately, Senator John Danboyi and his team are not only looking away but are also seemingly enabling these aberrations for reasons best known to them.

” In virtually all units of the state that we have monitored, both the Registration Forms and the Register of Members are never provided.

“Instead, party members who are revalidating and others who are prospective are being asked to write their personal details, including their NIN, on a rough sheet of paper,” Oyebiyi said.

Oyebiyi said the guidelines of the party were being brazenly breached adding that the exercise in Kwara was different from other states.

“Since registration materials have been said to be delivered to the state, we ask, where are the materials?

“Why are people being forced to write their details on N100 exercise books instead of on APC Membership Register as provided?

“Why are people not given the Temporary Membership Slip on registration as the guidelines stipulate?

“Why is the Kwara State APC membership exercise different from the rest of other states of the federation?

“We are ashamed that the legitimate expectations of several thousands of members are being dashed right under our noses and we are unable to do anything about it.

“We are alarmed that minority elements in the party are holding the majority of members to ransom.

“We are alarmed that a party that professes adherence to the rule of law is being dragged in the mud without any consequence,” he said.

He said the current registration and revalidation exercise ought to be considered beyond the crisis in the party.

” The issues are about due process, about the integrity of our party, about the sanctity of our constitution.

“The issues are about the hopes and aspirations of thousands of people who worked tirelessly to bring the APC in Kwara State thus far but are now being relegated and abused for no fault of theirs.

” It is really disappointing and unfortunate,” he added.

Oyebiyi, who called for a level playing field in the conduct of the registration exercise, said the guidelines as enumerated by the party’s national leadership must be adhered to.

“If the registration is about the people, and more people, and very more people, we demand a fair and credible conduct of the exercise, without fear or favour.

“We demand an immediate deployment of the registration materials to all the units without exception. We demand that they be brought out from where they are presently being hoarded.

“We demand a complete stop to the use of exercise books to record the personal details of the registrants.

“It is an aberration that must stop and the wanton exposure of the National Identity Number (NIN) of members without control poses a grave danger for them.

“We demand a more inclusive approach to the exercise.

” If we, the State Executive Committee members are in the dark, if the LGA Chairmen and their executives are in the dark, if the Ward Chairmen and their executives are in the dark, what then is the essence of the exercise?

“We urge our members to continue to be peaceful and law abiding. No matter the level of provocation, they should remain peaceful and report swiftly to relevant security agencies,” Oyebiyi added.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the statement was signed by 26 executive committee members of the party.

By Ismail Abdulaziz
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has called on Nigerians to register with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) as a vehicle and platform to achieve progress and justice.

The Vice President stated this when he revalidated his membership with the APC at his Unit in Ikenne Ward one, Ikenne Local Government Area of Ogun State.

Mrs Mary Noel-Berje, Chief Press Secretary to Gov. abubakar Bello of Niger, disclosed this in a statement in Ikenne on Tuesday.

Bello, who supervised the event in Ogun state, is the APC National Chairman of the Membership Registration and Revalidation Committee.

Osinbajo, who said the APC stands on the shoulders of social Democratic philosophy that ensures maximum happiness and well being of its members, enjoined party members to situate the exercise within the context of their ideology.

The Vice President said that the exercise was an opportunity to have a credible membership register so as to reach out to all their members.

” Party Registration and Revalidation is important because it offers us an opportunity to have a credible roll of our members such that we are able to reach our members from the polling booths, all the way to the Wards, Local Government and Federal Constituencies.

” The people are the Party and the Party is the people,” the Vice President said.

He said though they have come to government at a most challenging times of the country, their party is the best with the leaders to solve the problems.

Osinbajo said the present administration has continued to come up with policies and programmes such as Micro credit schemes, N-Power, Mass Agricultural Schemes among others due to their grassroots orientation.

The Vice President said the security challenges confronting the Nation is not insurmountable with renewed commitment and strategies.

Earlier in his address, Gov. Dapo Abiodun of Ogun, said the exercise was an inclusive one as it would revalidate old members and register new ones.

He encouraged the old members to welcome those coming, stressing that the more their number, the more the party’s chances of winning future elections.

The Chairman National Registration and Revalidation Membership Committee of the APC and Governor of Niger State Abubakar Bello re-iterated that no one would be left behind.

He said the last time similar exercise was conducted was in 2014 and since then some have died, few left the party and many have joined.

Bello added that many have also turned 18 years of age in the last seven years giving them that opportunity to register now.

Bello said the Committee members would ensure the exercise is conducted in a peaceful manner in order to allow the party grow bigger and stronger.

” As Chairman of the National Registration and Revalidation Committee, no one will be left behind. Committee members will ensure that the exercise is conducted in a peaceful manner,” he said.

Present at the event were the State Coordinator of the Registration and Revalidation exercise for SouthWest Zone Sen. Lawal Shuiabu, Ikene Ward one Chairman Prince Segun Awomuti and the former Ogun State Governor, Chief Olusegun Osoba among others.