Oyegun speaks on extension of tenure, APC convention

The National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, has given reason for shift in the party’s convention and extension of his tenure.

Chief Odigie-Oyegun, while speaking with journalists yesterday in his office, said the decision was taken to avoid crisis ahead of the 2019 general elections.

He noted that the decision was not new to the APC in view of similar actions on Ekiti and Osun states in 2014.

Oyegun, speaking on plans of aggrieved members to drag him to court over his extension of tenure, said it was not possible to have unanimity of opinion on the action of the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) to extend the tenure of the APC officials across all levels by one year.

“I don’t want to talk on this sensitive political issue, suffice it to say that whatever is happening naturally will be contrary viewed.

“So, it will be so difficult if you come out with total, 100 per cent unanimity. But I think the reason of not wanting to hold some of these elective congresses this year is very clear.

“We have such a mighty work to do this one year and each one has potential of causing crisis. It has always been anyway that once there is an election, it always creates its own issues.

“We are going to have first set of party elections, second set of elections of governmental aspirants, other Houses of Assembly, House of Representatives, Senate, governorship and so on.”

“So, we just felt we could defer some of these issues or the party felt some of these challenges could be deferred for one year for serious tasks before us, which is the national elections, and people gave the good examples of Ekiti and Osun where because of this same problem, elections were due in those two states, the filling of party offices had to be deferred,” he said.