No official decision on replacements – Morka

The National Publicity Secretary of the All-Progressives Congress, Felix Morka, says no official decision has been made by the party to fill the vacant seats of the National Chairman and the National Secretary of the party.

Morka made this known during an interview on Channels Televison’s Politics Today on Thursday evening.

According to him, reports that former Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, and Senator Ajibola Basiru, had been tipped as replacements for the positions of National Chairman and National Secretary, of the party were merely speculations, adding that the party would not verify information that had not been approved by its authorities.

“We do not have an official decision on that important question, we do not yet. But as I said, we hope that NEC will deal with the issue of succession to those offices and will hopefully give further direction on that. We are not in the business of speculating until it is official, we do not certify it; we do not come out to verify information that has not been discussed and approved by official authorities of the party”.

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Asked when the party would officially announce replacements for the positions, the National Publicity Secretary responded, “My hope is that that will be done very soon. We expect that the issue of vacancies in the NWC, along with other issues, will play up during that (NEC) meeting”.

Morka also faulted allegations by the former National Vice Chairman of the Party, Salihu Lukman, who also resigned his position yesterday, July 26, 2023, that the party was acting in violation of Article 31.5, Section (i) of the APC Constitution, which deals with how officials of the party are replaced, describing Lukman’s position as “premature” as the party was yet to follow any procedures to replace the outgone officials of the National Working Committee.

The article reads that “In the case of a National Zonal Officer, the State Executive Committee shall propose a replacement to the State Congress and Zonal Executive Committee for endorsement. Thereafter, the name shall be forwarded to the National Working Committee, which shall forward same, to the National Executive Committee for approval”.

“No that is not true. First of all, let me say that that position is actually premature. Nobody has followed any procedure to replace anybody, that has not happened. It is completely incorrect. So, I think it is really jumping the gun to begin to discuss a matter that has yet to happen. As I said, the party has yet to follow any particular procedure to replace the outgone National Chairman. So, for anyone to be overheating on that question that has not been done, and calling it an illegality, that’s completely speculative”.

Meanwhile, Morka described the Ministerial nominees’ list presented by the President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to the Senate, through his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, earlier today, as a “strong list” and “a pretty diverse list”, in reference to its composition.