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By Myke Agunwa, Abuja
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has congratulated Professor Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda on his recent appointment as the fourth Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in two years, urging him to introduce new ideas that will enable the party to respect electoral norms and play less of propaganda and exclusion politics.
The party, in a statement by its Acting National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi on Friday, added that his emergence presents another opportunity for the ruling party to embrace the core values of participatory democracy.
The ADC expressed cautious optimism that the new APC leadership might come with a shift in both substance and style, especially regarding how the ruling party conducts its affairs and engages with the opposition.
“We at the African Democratic Congress (ADC) extend our congratulations to Professor Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda on his appointment as the new Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC). While we understand that leadership transitions are routine, we are hopeful that this particular appointment might trigger a shift in tone, temperament, and trajectory for a party that has too often equated governance with propaganda and power with impunity.
“We expect that under the stewardship of the new Chairman, the APC and the federal government it controls will start to show greater tolerance for opposition voices and alternative viewpoints with the understanding that in a democracy, disagreement is not sabotage, and criticism is not subversion.
“We hope Professor Yilwatda will channel his high education and experience towards improving the democratic credentials of his party and its government, which, so far, has been marked by intolerance and what has often appeared like a deliberate plan to eliminate all opposition parties and foist a one-party rule on the country, ” the statement read in part.
The party said it is an aberration for the ruling party to use the banquet hall, funded by taxpayers’s money, to conduct its National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting.
“We must register our dismay that the very National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting that brought Professor Yilwatda into office was held within the confines of the State House, a public institution funded by the Nigerian people, not a party office or private residence. The decision of the ruling party to host its party meeting at the seat of government is an aberration that underlines how far this government has strayed from the foundational norms of democratic accountability. We urge the new chairman to guide his party towards respecting the line, now dangerously blurred, between party and state, ” it added.
ADC cautioned the new APC boss not to take advantage of his former position in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to compromise the integrity of the electoral process.
“We take note of Professor Yilwatda’s previous role as a Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC). This is no small credential. It comes with a deep understanding of electoral ethics, neutrality, and public trust. We sincerely hope he will draw on this experience to promote the sanctity of our electoral processes, rather than using insider knowledge to game the system in favour of his party, as has often been the case under the APC’s watch, “the statement further read.
The party prayed that the tenure of Professor Yilwatda will be more honourable and longer than those of his predecessors.