Nigerians React To APC Registeration

The registration of APC by INEC has drawn reactions from several Nigerians.The Arewa Consultative Forum,  a former Lagos State Governor, Bola Tinubu, and  the presidential candidate of the former ACN in the 2011 presidential election,Mallam Nuhu Ribadu all made their views known.

While the APC described  the development as victory for Nigerians, the PDP said it would not lose sleep over it.

 The  APC, in a statement   by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said with its registration,  Nigerians now had an alternative to  the  ruling  PDP,   which it said had  taken  them “ for a bad ride in the past 14 years.”

It  added that its  registration   would  propel  the country to the league of top democratic nations with two major political parties.

 The statement reads, “The journey has been long and tortuous. All sorts of obstacles were thrown onto  our path by anti-democratic forces, but we were painstaking, determined and unrelenting in our quest for a formidable platform that will allow our country, Nigeria, to achieve her full potential and join the league of respectable nations.

“With the approval of our merger by  the INEC and the emergence of the  APC, today (Wednesday) marks the beginning of a new dawn for our country and her long-suffering people. We thank Nigerians both here and in the Diaspora for standing by us.

 “We thank the media for their fairness and we commend  the INEC for doing the right thing and for not succumbing to pressure from phantom political associations that sought to force it to circumvent the law.

 “We promise not to disappoint Nigerians who have reposed much confidence in us. We say that contrary to the lies being peddled by the naysayers, we are not seeking political power for the sake of getting it, but in order to use it to empower our people and allow their long-nursed hopes and dreams to become a reality.

“And to those who have vowed to change their names if APC survives for a year, we hope they will live up to their words.’’

The party promised to unveil, in the days ahead, its membership registration plans to give all Nigerians, especially those disenchanted with the way things were  going on in the country, the much-awaited opportunity to be a part of the country’s democratic process in the true sense of the word.

‘’We will also be unveiling our plans to turn today’s hopelessness into a time of great opportunities, to reverse the downward slide in our socio-economic development, and to ensure that every Nigerian benefits from the commonwealth, instead of the present situation in which a few fat cats are milking the system dry at the expense of the citizenry,’’ it said.

One of the  founders of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, said the registration by INEC signalled  “the commencement of a new phase in the struggle to bring true democratic change to Nigeria.”

Describing the coming together of the ACN, CPC and ANPP as not just a merger, he said  “this is    the first   ever merger in the history of Nigeria and it represents a paradigm shift in our  politics.”

 Tinubu, who congratulated the ACN, CPC and ANPP governors as well as  other leaders of the APC for making the registration possible, however,  challenged all progressive politicians    to “ rise up to answer the call of history to liberate our people.”

He also  hailed  “millions of Nigerians who stood by us during the long process to form the  APC,”  and the leadership of INEC “for this positive pronouncement.”

“Nigerians must give INEC a pat on the back for complying with the law of the land. What INEC has done is to follow the constitution and the electoral act to the letter. We hope INEC will continue in this spirit of independence and respect for the rule of law in all its future operations, “ Tinubu said in a statement by his media aide, Sunday Dare.

A co-founder   of the  APC and the presidential candidate  for the CPC  in the last presidential poll , Maj-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, said he would not react now on the registration  because  the National Chairman of the  new party, Chief Bisi Akande,  had yet to brief him.

“ The general cannot react to the registration now because he is yet to be briefed by our  national chairman , Chief  Akande. So until  the general hears from the national hierarchy of the party, he will not comment on the registration of the party. He will talk to the press as soon as he is well informed from the national level,” said  Buhari’s  spokesman, Yau Darazo.

Ribadu also welcomed the registration   and charged members of the APC to strive hard  for the ultimate goal of dislodging the PDP.

 In  a statement in Abuja, he congratulated key players in the ACN, CPC and ANPP  “for  setting  their personal interests aside  in order to allow for  the mutation of a pan-Nigerian party that can provide a credible alternative to the ruling party”.

The statement by his  media aide, Abdulaziz Abdulaziz,  quoted him as  saying, “Like millions of Nigerians from all over the country, I am immensely delighted over the successful registration of the All Progressives Congress by INEC.”

According to him, the registration of the party by the electoral body “is not the end but the beginning of the end of misrule and cluelessness” by the PDP.

The  former CPC also threw its weight behind the INEC  decision, saying it had  given Nigerians a choice between “good and evil.”

 “Today(Wednesday) Nigerians now have a choice between good and evil. Now that the APC has been registered, genuine choice has been put before Nigerians.For the very first time, Nigeria and Nigerians have now been put at the driver’s seat of their destiny, it said through its  ex-National Publicity Secretary, Rotimi Fashakin.

On its part, the ACF  said  the registration of  APC  would enhance the growth of democracy in the country.

Its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Anthony Sani,   told one   of our correspondents that   any democracy without a viable opposition was as good as a fraud.

 “The registration of  the APC as a political party is a healthy development needed for the growth of democracy, especially when regard is paid to the fact that any democracy without a viable alternative platform is a sham,” it said.