National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Abdullahi Adamu, has said that the party can’t afford to lose in the coming general election as he assumed office yesterday at the Buhari House of the party’s national secretariat in Abuja.
The former Nasarawa State governor urged the NWC members to collectively work for the success of the APC, saying his leadership would not accept failure.
Adamu spoke yesterday after taking over from the Chairman of the Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) and Yobe State Governor Mai Mala Buni at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja.
The national chairman, who said the task ahead of the party is enormously, urged party leaders and members to brace up for the challenges that will come with the forthcoming general election.
“We will work day and night. We have less than 12 months to face the general election. So, everybody should buckle up. The little I have had about the President is that he has a complete allergy for failure.
So, failure will not be in APC from today under my watch. We must work for success together. If any of you, my colleagues, who are with me, don’t begrudge me; if there is any issue, let me know,” he said.
Adamu threatened to deal decisively with any divisive tendencies among the NWC members. He said: “I promise you, in the spirit of collective leadership, that a team is the only way. I cannot deliver alone. What I am asking for is something called ‘loyalty’.You have to be loyal. You must have one team.
“If you bring divisive tendency, we will deal with it. This country is greater than any one of us. And this party is bigger than any single member of this party. So, that is the spirit I am taking the leadership of this party.”
The APC national chairman thanked God for the party’s successes. He maintained that every elected leader at the just-concluded national convention owed their victory to God.
“It is only through God that we have emerged as the new NWC of our great party. Now, it looks so simple. But it is not our doing but the doing of Almighty God who made all this possible.
“A month ago, I didn’t know I would become the Chairman of APC. Here I am today, receiving the instrument and authority from the outgoing chairman. Only God can do this. It is not my personal wisdom or my charisma. It is not personal doings. There may be elements on the way but all this was made possible by the endorsement of Almighty God,” Adamu stressed.
Buni hailed the President, party leaders and the CECPC members for the successful convention. “By & large, we have succeeded. We can say we have recorded 70 per cent success, a bigger and larger political party, like APC, with over 41 million members. Part of democracy is to agree and disagree at some points,” Buni said.
“But it is all about human management. The ability to manage the situation is what will keep this party together and stronger again, and again,” Buni added.
The handover ceremony was attended by the NWC members, Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule and many party leaders.
