By Eric elezuo
An aspirant for the National Chairmanship position of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Barr Mohammed Bello Mustapha has made public his intention to hold the exalted position of the party, insisting that the zoning formula agreed upon by the rank and file of the party must be respected and put to work.
Mustapha made his remarks while addressing members of the press in company of notable party associates at the CitiHeights Hotel in Lagos on Monday.
The seasoned party faithful said that time has come to reposition the party for greater achievements, hand leadership over to the youths and put every mechanism in place to heal the nation, which presently is divided along ethnic and religious lines.
Acknowledging the giant strides of the party and President Muhammadu Buhari so far, Mustapha said that he has glorious strides up his sleeves to put the party on the positive front burner, and right every wrong that has set the people of Nigeria against one another, especially among the APC family.
Acknowledging the faith the party and his associates reposed in him, Mustapha said he has itemised glaring cardinal objectives that will propel his administration’s vision as the party chairman. He mentioned them as Zoning, Supremacy of the party, Entrenchment of party discipline, Restoration of internal democracy, Reactivation of motivation and rewards system, and not forgetting to give the women the opportunity they deserve.
He further informed that there is no going back on zoning, which happens to be an agreement reached by the party earlier in 2013 when it came on board, saying that reneging on the agreement will be tantamount to betrayal of trust.
“There was an agreement on board since 2013 on how to rotate power between the north and the south in terms of the presidency and the party chairmanship. This understanding must be strictly adhered to – the presidency should go the south while the chairmanship returns to the north,” he said.
He noted that with the youths commanding more 60 per cent of voting strength in the party and across all other parties, it is high time the youth took up the challenge, and dictate who runs the affairs of the party, and the country at large.
“It is high time the elders stepped down and allow the youths a chance to run the parties at all levels,” he announced.
Mustapha lamented the indiscipline that has engulfed the party in recent times, going down memory lane to the first and second republics, to recount how disciplined party leadership was, using the tenure of Adisa Akinloye as Chairman of the defunct National Party of Nigeria (NPN) as a case study.
“As we can see today, recklessness in speech and action has become the order of the day. There are no functional disciplinary mechanism anymore, and no one seems to caution anyone. My administration as the chairman of our party will correct all that. I will further ensure all round inclusiveness where every member of the party will be carried along.
“Not only that, when I become the chairman, I will see to it that every party member who has paid his dues are well rewarded and taken care of. I promise everyone the APC of our dreams when I become the chairman,” Mustapha said as a matter of fact.
In his entourage were other party faithful including Mr. Kingsley Chinda, Comrade Ayodele Adewale and Mr Shaka Momodu.
MB Mustapha is an APC stalwart, who has been an active participant since the party’s inception in 2013. He hails from Jalingo in Taraba State, and was born on January 2, 1972.
A Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, Mustapha stands tall against all odds and his sterling credentials in party politics and wealth of experience speak volumes. He had contested elections on the highest levels including 2011 governorship election in Taraba and senatorial aspiration in 2019.
He is a responsible married man, and blessed with children.
