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AD may reconcile today with another convention
By Habib Aruna
Assistant Politics Editor
and Tolu Olarewaju
Production Editor (Lagos)
A fractured Alliance for Democracy (AD) hopes to piece itself together
today with another national convention billed for the historic Onikan Stadium,
Lagos.
It is one of the party�s desperate moves to resolve its leadership
logjam in view of the October 31 deadline given it by the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) to put its house in order.
It was at the same venue in December last year that former Osun State
Governor Bisi Akande emerged as National Chairman of what is now known as the
Lagos faction.
Tagged� Reunification Convention�, today�s gathering aims to resolve the
10-month old leadership feud that has torn the once vibrant AD into two
factions.
Those expected include elder statesman Anthony Enahoro, Chairman of the
Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) Balarabe Musa, and National
Chairman of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) Chekwas Okorie.
On Monday in Ibadan, acting AD National Chairman Michael Koleoso allayed
fears over the authenticity of the meeting, saying the INEC has given the party
the go-ahead to hold the convention as a way out of the stalemate.
�INEC was duly notified about the convention and we have their consent
to go ahead. To the best of my knowledge, as acting National Chairman, INEC has
not raised any objection,� he said.
Koleosho explained that he has held separate meetings with the key
members of the two factions and that he is sure they would participate in the
convention.
The convention also has the support of the all-Yoruba group, Afenifere,
which has directed all its members to fully participate in it. Afenifere was
one of the founding groups of AD.
Rising from a Central Working Committee (CWC) at its national
headquarters on Monday, the group, after an exhaustive deliberation on recent
happenings, decided to participate so as �to restore peace and progress to our
great party once and for all�.
The endorsement is a shift in the position of the organisation which had
thrown its weight behind the Mojisoluwa Akinfenwa faction. That stance
infuriated many who accused the Afenifere leadership of acting beyond
its mandate of reconciling the two main factions.
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