Buhari’s Meeting with APC governors ends in deadlock
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The meeting President Muhammadu Buhari held today with governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Tuesday ended in deadlock.
None of the governors addressed state house correspondents when they left the council chamber of the presidential villa at the end of the meeting.
Rochas Okorocha (Imo), Simon Lalong (Plateau) and Nasir el-Rufai (Kaduna), explained to reporters that a unanimous agreement was reached at the meeting not to talk to the media.
The meeting which was under closed-door at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja started at about 2:15pm and ended at 3:30pm, with all the governors coming out with long faces and maintained sealed lips
However, on his way out, one of the governors said “Some people think they are tall but they can never control us. Never!”
Elombah News learnt that the meeting was called to discuss the tenure of the party’s national working committee (NWC) led by John Oyegun.
During the last national executive committee (NEC) meeting of the party, Buhari said he was against the extension of the NWC period in office by a year.
As a means to prevent a fresh crisis, some stakeholders had reportedly proposed a caretaker committee to be led by Adams Oshiomhole, a former governor of Edo.
Oshiomhole and Oyegun are from the same state.
On Tuesday, all the governors elected on the platform of the APC met with Buhari to iron out the issue.
The governors, who are divided over the tenure extension of Oyegun, were reportedly engaged in fierce arguments during the over one-hour meeting.
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One of the governors leaving the venue of the meeting was heard telling his colleagues with him, “some people who think they are tall, think they can control us, it will not work.”
Earlier, before President Buhari entered the Council Chambers for the meeting, the governors had formed a circle round, the Chairman of APC Governors’ Forum, Rochas Okorocha of Imo State, and were seen arguing.
Some where overheard saying “what they are bringing to the table today, we will not allow it to stand. This is a coup and we will not allow it to stand.”
One had been overheard saying angrily in Hausa language, “ba zamu yeda ba,” meaning, “we will not agree.”
Along the same line, another governor was heard saying that they would not allow themselves to be controlled by anybody.
A source said that the president had to reschedule the meeting, asking the governors to pick another date.
Abdulaziz Yari, governor of Zamfara state, had chosen April 9 but el-Rufai tackled him on the choice of the date.
All the APC Governors were in attendance including, the governor of Ogun, Ibikunle Amosun, who later joined 30 minutes after the meeting had commenced.
Apart from the governors, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Chief of Staff to the president, Abba Kyari and deputy chief of staff to the president, Ade Ipaye were also in attendance.
