We targeting 100 million Nigerians — Senate President

Says party determined to dominate Nigeria’s political space

APC Asking for 16 Years to continue to dominate the Presidency

By Henry Umoru – Abuja

President of the Senate, Senator Ahmad Lawan said Saturday that at the end of the ongoing registration and revalidation exercise of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the party would have got one hundred million Nigerians as members of the ruling party.

Lawan has also vowed that the APC is determined to dominate Nigeria’s political space, even as it asking to control the Presidency for sixteen years as a party.

Speaking yesterday immediately after revalidating his membership of the party at Katuzu ward in Bade local government Area of Yobe North Senatorial District, the President of the Senate said that the exercise was conceived to further democratize the party ahead of the 2023 General Elections and also reposition the APC to dominate the country’s political space by winning more elective seats at the state and federal levels of government.

According to Lawan, “When it is time for them to decide who should run for any political office, it should be their decision. So, this is further democratizing the APC.

“And, I believe that this exercise is one that the APC should approach very positively. We should not register anything less than a hundred million Nigerians. And we have every chance and every reason to register more than one hundred million Nigerians in this exercise.

“The exercise will see the party at the National and state zonal and local government levels moving forward to ensure that APC continues to dominate the political space of Nigeria.”

“We have elections this year in Anambra, and by the grace of God, APC will win that election. We have gubernatorial elections in Ekiti and Osun – these are states that are APC – and we will continue to keep them.

“But in 2023, by the Grace of God, APC should win more National Assembly, Gubernatorial seats. APC should continue to dominate the Presidency, and we are not asking for sixteen years.

“We want to do things that will make Nigerians continue to trust the APC; to continue to identify with our government and presidency because we mean well and will continue to do well for Nigeria.”

Speaking further, Lawan said that the registration and revalidation exercise would afford the youths a critical role in governance, and provide Nigerians at the grassroots the opportunity of being major stakeholders in the nation’s decision-making process.

According to a statement, on Saturday by his Special Assistant( Press) Ezrel Tabiowo, the President of the Senate said that the exercise became imperative in view of the need to weed out members of the APC who had decamped to other political parties and are still recorded in the party’s register and also to afford new or intending members the opportunity to get registered.

Lawan said, “The youths, who will be the majority of those that would register, will now have a very critical role to play in the politics of APC and the democratic process of Nigeria.

“I also want to say that this exercise is essential because we have names of people who have decamped to other political parties and yet their names are in the register of APC.

“We cannot continue to carry the names of people who have shifted ground. And, essentially, democracy is about the people take and make decisions on behalf of themselves.

“This is about taking the party to the grassroots. As Mr. President said in Daura, the party should be built from the bottom up.

“The people at the grassroots should have the party so that when it is time for them to make decisions on whom they should vote for in congresses, they should take that decision.

The President of the Senate who further disclosed that the exercise would continue after the March deadline to enable young Nigerians who attain the legal age of eighteen thereafter, an opportunity to become registered members of the ruling party, said, “This exercise of registration and revalidation does not terminate at the end of this month or in the first week of March.

“This period is only given to provide for a symbolic environment for registration and revalidation.

“The process will continue even after then because we would have to register many more who will become eighteen years of age after this exercise is over.”

Lawan while appealing to party faithfuls across the country to shun infighting amongst themselves, called on leaders of the party at the state levels to embrace reconciliation and desist from attempts to thwart the efforts of intending members who are willing to join the party.

He said, “I want to also appeal to my party men all across the country. We should not in any way try to stop the registration of any Nigerian who wants to be a member of our party.

“This party has enough space and room to accommodate everyone. And, the broom is there to ensure that we don’t leave any dirt around.

“So, please, there should be no fighting, and where we have issues in any of our chapters, we should do our best to ensure that we reconcile our people.”

Lawan commended the Buni-led Caretaker Extraordinary Committee for its feat in reconciling aggrieved members of the ruling party, however, the most recent effort ++restored unity among APC factions in Zamfara state.

He said, “Talking about reconciliation, let me commend the Chairman of the Caretaker Committee, my Governor, Mai Mala Buni, who has done tremendous work of reconciling people who have fallen apart in our party. He has done so much, and I believe that Nigerians can bear witness.

“Only a week or so ago, the case of Zamfara was addressed before everybody. But today, we have been able to reconcile APC in Zamfara, credit to the Caretaker Chairman of this party.

“In Yobe, APC is one, and more than ninety-eight percent are members. I want to see a situation where over ninety-eight percent get their registration or revalidation.”

Vanguard News Nigeria

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