The suspended Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Mr. Timi Frank, has cautioned the party against repeating the same mistakes made by the former ruling party, the Peoples Democratic Party.
He said the APC should avoid displaying the kind of arrogance which led to the rejection of the PDP by the Nigerian people during the 2015 general elections.
Frank said this in Abuja on Wednesday while reacting to an interview granted by the party’s National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, in Benin on Tuesday.
The party’s National Chairman was quoted as saying the party was not threatened by the proposed mega party and that members of the APC, who were considering joining the party, were free to go.
Frank said such “arrogant” comments, coming from the party’s national chairman about a yet-to-be-formed political group was capable of inciting the Nigerian public against the APC.
Frank recalled that similar dismissive comments by a former PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, during the merger, which led to the formation of the APC, won over several Nigerians to the side of the APC.
He noted that what Odigie-Oyegun should concentrate on at the moment was to reconcile aggrieved members of the party, some of whom he claimed contributed immensely to the party instead of creating further division in the party.
Frank said, “I can say this emphatically that my national chairman has not met with any of the aggrieved national leaders of the APC.
“I think as a party, we should not undermine the strength of this much-talked-about mega party, whether it is a rumour or not. I think we should do everything possible to defeat the move through genuine reconciliation within us.
“We must remember that this is how the PDP took the APC for granted during the formation stage, and the likes of Bamanga Tukur were busy saying ‘no vacancy in Villa’, ‘PDP will rule for 60 years’; but where are they today?
“So, our national chairman should learn to reconcile aggrieved members instead of offending them the more. It has shown today that even ruling party could lose election; so, we should stop talking arrogantly because we are in power.”