APC leadership is impotent, lacks discipline —Muiz Banire, National Legal Adviser

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National Legal Adviser of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr Muiz Banire, in this interview by the Saturday Tribune crew, consisting of LANRE ADEWOLE, SEGUN KASALI AND SYLVESTER OKORUWA shoots straight from the hips, speaking on issues affecting the ruling party and governance matters.

Well, the problem is that when you give suggestions and people, for selfish reason and out of mischief at times, decide to cast it aside, the result we are experiencing now is what you get. Those who are experienced in this game will know that there are hardly any ways you can run a congress that will be rancour-free and you do not endanger the goal or the objective of your party when it is close to the general elections. It is never advisable and the good news is that, hiding under the constitutional provision of the APC and also the interpretation already given to it in the case of Senator Ali Modu Sheriff and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), you have a way of protecting yourself strategically. But in the wisdom of some people, they felt this is the way to go and I know that, as at now, they should be happier that they have killed not less than 15 people, apart from other confusion around. If that was their goal and they have achieved it, we thank them, we appreciate and we leave them to God. As an insider, what really happened between the APC NEC where the acting period was granted and the other NEC where President Muhammadu Buhari made a u-turn? My view is that the president was misled by some people, probably out of mischief or ignorance of the law. Those people know themselves and honestly I know that they will be behind it. The president was at the meeting in which we took the decision, in the first instance. So coming back again and, of course, the president did indicate that he was advised by some people and I believe that those people who must have told him must either be ignorant of the position of the law or were acting relatively out of mischief.

What about the Governor Simeon Lalong Committee Report?

The Lalong Committee validated my own legal advisory then. In the first instance, there was nothing like extension of tenure, but out of mischief, those mischief-makers also decided for their own convenience and propaganda to use the word “extend”. Nobody ever extended the tenure by one day. All that was resolved was that a caretaker committee should be set up pending the conclusion of all the general elections. But they twisted it and the same thing they took to Mr President also. So, when the matter was referred to the Technical Committee, consisting of many senior advocates that were not even politicians from outside and Lalong, who happens to be a lawyer, had to chair the committee. They looked at all I did and they decided that the position was unassailable. When asked, what was his position?, he (Lalong) said he advised the party that, given the reality of the devastating effects of having conflict-prone congresses in an election circle, the acting appointment was in order. That was my position: that it was unassailable and the position represents the position of the law. But in order not to make some people look bad, they now said that trial should be given to a congress and if it fails, we will revert back to the caretaker arrangement.