The All Progressives Congress APC has completed its arrangements for its National Convention scheduled for Friday and Saturday, with 8,453 delegates expected to gather in the Federal Capital Territory FCT to elect a new National Working Committee (NWC).
The announcement was made in Abuja on Thursday during a press conference held by Aminu Bello Masari, Chairman of the National Convention Central Coordination Committee, and Mohammed Idris, the minister of information.
The representatives spoke on critical issues regarding the party’s budget, security for travelling delegates, and the controversial use of consensus and zoning to appoint party leaders.
Defending the party’s decision to restrict certain offices to specific geopolitical areas, Masari described the move as a “strategic necessity” to ensure national balance and party stability.
He cautioned that anyone trying to purchase forms for offices not zoned to their regions were likely “agents of confusion".
“APC is a responsible party. In line with federal character, all offices are zoned. If you are contesting for an office that is not zoned to your zone, how can you say you are being democratic? We suspect these kinds of people are interested in destroying our party, which we will not agree to," he stated.
Reacting to rumours of potential lawsuits over the zoning formula, the former Katsina governor clarified that the party had not been served any court documents. “If we are served, we will take notice of that. You can only hold something that you have,” he added.
Mohammed Idris detailed the attendee numbers, confirming that the 8,453 delegates would represent all 36 states of the Federation and the FCT.
In response to questions regarding the convention’s total cost, Idris noted that the party is employing a "self-adjusting" budget strategy to ensure efficient resource management.
He dismissed concerns about the budget for the convention, noting the party was still working on an adjustable budget.
The minister said, “Our budget has a self-adjusting mechanism to accommodate what we have. Nobody is being owed as far as this convention is concerned, and we don’t intend to owe anybody after the convention.”
Addressing concerns over the safety of delegates travelling from across the country, Idris reaffirmed that the administration of President Bola Tinubu remains committed to revamping national infrastructure and ensuring the secure movement of all citizens.
“Members of the committee have travelled thus far, and we have not recorded any incidents. By God’s grace, we will not record any throughout this convention and beyond," he said.
