Buni: PDP places ‘political caveat emptor’ on APC

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), yesterday, placed what it called a political caveat emptor on the All Progressives Congress (APC), warning the members who had political ambitions to abandon the ruling party.

The opposition party alerted Nigerians that the “APC has become technically invalidated and now lacks the statutory structure to operate as a political party in our country.”

The PDP anchored its position on the pronouncement of the Justices of Supreme Court in the Ondo governorship case, “which pointed to the nullity of APC’s subsistence and activities as a political party, for having a sitting governor, Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe state, as its chairman, in total violation of section 183 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) as well as the provisions of Article 17(4) of the APC constitution.”

The PDP said: “A further interpretation of the pronouncement of the Supreme Court showed that all activities of the APC under Mai Mala Buni, including the nomination of candidates for elections, agreements, the official decision reached, the establishment of committees for statutory activities as well as its planned ward, local government and states congresses now hang loosely on the threat of invalidity.”

At a press conference addressed by the PDP through its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, in Abuja, the party pointed out that “the fate of the APC as a defunct party is already sealed and the party cannot come out of this self-inflicted quagmire even if it engages in the drama of appointing a new national chairman in place of Mai Mala Buni.”

“This is because the APC has become statutorily vacuous, without a valid National Working Committee, without a valid National Executive Committee (NEC) and without a valid Board of Trustees (BoT) to legally initiate or carry out any official function including convoking any platform for the administration of the party. It is the end of the road for the APC,” it stressed.

The PDP counseled all aspirants for the planned APC ward, local government and state congresses as well as the national convention to note that the APC was in a state of “let the buyer beware.”

“Such intending aspirants” according to the PDP, “should be cautious of putting their precious time and resources in a damaged vehicle that has come to the end of an ill-fated journey.”

“In the same vein, those hoping to use the APC as a vehicle to realise their ambitions as president, governor, federal and state legislators as well as other elective offices should note the fate that has befallen the party,” the party added.

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