No More Excuses, APC Now Fully In Charge - Oshiomhole

Adams Oshiomhole, national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), says the ruling party has no reason not to deliver on its electoral promises.

Oshiomhole was speaking on Tuesday following the emergence of the party’s preferred candidates as winners of the national assembly leadership poll.

The candidates anointed by the party and President Muhammadu Buhari swept the polls which held on June 11, at the national assembly.

Ahmad Lawan, erstwhile majority leader, emerged senate president, after polling 79 votes to defeat Ali Ndume, who got 28 votes — both men are from the APC.

For the deputy senate president position, Ovie Omo-Agege, Delta-central senator, polled 68 votes to defeat Ike Ekweremadu of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and immediate past occupier of the position, who had 37 votes.

In the house of representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila beat Umaru Bago, both of the APC, to emerge speaker while Idris Wase of the ruling party was elected deputy speaker of the house — unopposed.

The APC had wanted Lawan as the third citizen in 2015 but ex-Senate President Bukola Saraki manoeuvered his way and emerged as senate president.

Like Lawan, Gbajabiamila was the preferred candidate of the APC in 2015 but Yakubu Dogara, who was then of the APC, had teamed up with the PDP to defeat him.

The executive and legislative arms had a severed relationship in the 8th assembly with the presidency blaming the legislature for some of its failures.

Speaking after the polls, Oshiomhole said the party will now have no excuse not to deliver on its three cardinal promises — security, anti-corruption and improved economy.

According to him, now, “we can’t say we are being blocked by the parliament”.

He said it was the “mischief” of 2015 the party was trying to correct, “and I am happy that it has been settled.”

“Nigerians with their eyes open gave the APC the executive, they also gave us overwhelming majority in the two arms of the National Assembly,” Oshiomhole said.

“And I think in doing that they also expect that this time around, APC would have no excuse not to deliver.

“We can’t say we are being blocked by the parliament; parliament is ours and those who don’t believe in change cannot be entrusted with the challenge of managing the change.

“And that is why I said we must give the position of responsibility to those who believe in our change agenda. So today, that has been translated.

“We now have no excuse not to deliver on security, not to deliver on the economy and not to deliver on prosperity because that is what the ordinary man voted for and they are our constituents.

“You can just imagine how I feel like a mother who has been carry babies and now, we are on the verge of delivering twins in the two chambers of National Assembly.

“So we must exercise our rights with a sense of responsibility and the ultimate objective must be to what extent does these actions impact on the welfare of the Nigerian people.”