By APC Progressives
APC Progressives writes how governors’ ‘greed’ is tearing the ruling party apart — and the three moves that can save it before 2027
The All Progressives Congress is bleeding. And the blood is coming from self-inflicted wounds.
Never in the history of Nigeria’s Fourth Republic has a ruling party handed the keys of its entire structure to state governors and lived to tell the story. Yet that is exactly what the APC allowed during its recent primaries — and the cracks on the wall are now too deep to paint over.
What happened? Some Governors stopped being party leaders and became party owners.
They didn’t just nominate House of Assembly members and LG chairmen. They went further: dislodging National Assembly members, imposing loyalists from LGA and State Assemblies to Senate, and ridiculing those who stood and worked with the President. One man, one state, all tickets. WINNER [GOVERNOR]-TAKES-ALL!
That is not democracy. That is political monopoly. And monopolies collapse — inevitably.
The result is manifesting now: deep, dangerous fractures that have split APC into irreconcilable camps. Angry aspirants. Silenced stakeholders. Mass defection threats waiting for one spark. Some have already defected and we need to bring them back.
If you’ve seen this movie before, you know the ending. It’s called PDP, 2007-2015.
The PDP died the day President Obasanjo decided to impose candidates to chase a third term. Elected National Assembly members who stood against him were edged out. Primaries became coronations. Grievance became permanent.
PDP tried reconciliation “umpteenth times.” It failed every time. Why? Because electoral manipulation leaves scars that never heal. Once a loyal party man is rigged out by his own governor, he never forgets. He waits. And when the chance comes, he burns the house down.
APC is replaying that script verbatim. Governors are playing Obasanjo. Dissenters in NASS are playing the 2007 senators. And the party is acting like it doesn’t see the trap.
Credit must be given where it’s due to tha President, the National Chairman and the NWC of the Party.
The National Chairman’s announcement penultimate week — that only the national office, not governors, will issue Certificates of Return — calmed frayed nerves. It stopped an immediate wave of defections.
But that was a bandage on a bullet wound. Governors’ arrogance over total control of structures and imposition machinery remains untouched. Their greed, vindictiveness, and primitive manipulation will not stop because of one press release. Decisive action must be taken to checkmate the emergence of emperors out of weak manipulators.
If APC continues on this path, 3 things will happen before 2027:
This is how ruling parties die — not from the opposition, but from the greed and wickedness of their own.
APC must act now that it has the opportunity. Not after elections. Here are 3 non-negotiable moves:
MOVE 1: TAKE BACK FEDERAL TICKETS*
Senate and House of Representatives are federal offices. Governors must be stopped from owning them. NWC must enforce a rule: governors coordinate state elections, national office coordinates federal elections. No governor should unilaterally kill a sitting Senator who works with the President.
MOVE 2: KILL THE ARROGANCE AND “WINNER-TAKES-ALL” MENTALITY OF THESE GOVERNORS*
Where no credible primary was held — and it is everywhere — NWC must accommodate the people’s candidate as compromise winner, since the governor has already taken many other positions. If governors knew they could win, they would have organized credible elections. Compromise means every camp gets something to hold on to. One or two “ugly impositions” must be reversed in every state to achieve peace and re-unite the Party. Absolutely better than losing the whole state. Withe the opposition parties concluding their primary elections, many of the APC can be categorically described as VULNERABLE!
MOVE 3: REBALANCE POWER IN THE PARTY*
Bring other stakeholders to the table: the President’s camp, Senators and House of Reps caucuses, former governors, women leaders, youth leaders, founding members who are aggrieved. Give them their rightful place since there were no credible elections in the first place. A party owned by 36 governors is a party owned by 36 kings. A party owned by millions of members is a party that survives.