By Adeleye Kunle
Hon Nze Chidi Duru, Deputy National Organising Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, has revealed how an internal schism among stakeholders in Osun State cost the party victory in the governorship election.
Duru stated in a post-election statement that if the party’s differences were addressed, the ruling could have won the election.
He went on to say that the election results show that the APC does not impose anything on the Independent National Electoral Commission.
“Yes, of course, the party had continued to send the signal and the message that we needed to close ranks,” Duru said on the 16th of July 2022 governorship election. To spite our faces, we cannot cut our noses. Politicians should understand that being on the inside is always preferable to being on the outside.
“We understand that in the political sphere, what is important is assisting the party in winning the election and being accommodated after the party comes to power in a specific locality.” We do not dismiss the possibility that if we had resolved the apparent schism among Osun State’s stalwarts and stakeholders and brought them together, the outcome would have been different. But then again, we don’t know.
“Despite all of this, the APC performed well in some states.” In Ekiti State, for example, there were party stalwarts who worked in different ways, but the party worked very hard and we won the election by a landslide. The scenario was repeated in Osun state, but the outcome was different. In the party administration, we have come to recognize that there are parties, personalities, and stakeholders who have chosen not to work together for various reasons.
“What has also become clear is that the APC government has no hand and does not impose anything on INEC in carrying out its responsibilities.”
“As a party, we are committed to assisting the commission in ensuring that Nigeria has the opportunity to hold free, fair, and transparent elections.” As a party, we believe it is the only guarantee we need as a country to hold leaders accountable.
“If the electorate speaks as they did in Osun, we will abide by it, and if the law court interprets what happened in Osun, we will respect the judiciary as well.” This is what it takes to build a country.”
This article first appeared on Track News.
