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By Emmanuel Adeleke
The All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman, Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, has sworn in six governors that will coordinate the party’s affairs in their various geo-political zones.
The six governors were inaugurated at the APC national secretariat in Abuja, on Wednesday.
They are Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos), Hope Uzodimma (Imo), Bassey Otu (Cross River), AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq (Kwara), Uba Sani (Kaduna) and Mai Mala Buni (Yobe).
Speaking, Ganduje said the governors have the mandate to interface periodically with other members of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) within their zones and the leadership of the party.
According to the APC National Chairman, Sanwo-Olu will coordinate the party’s activities in the South West zone while Uzodimma would be in charge in the South East.
Otu will take charge of South South while the trio of AbdulRazaq, Sani and Buni will coordinate the affairs of North Central, North West and North East regions.
“We are here to mobilise the people and to form an agenda for the party and government. We also need to disseminate information on what the government is doing down to the people.
“To do that, we have narrowed down our activities to geo-political zones. So, in all this, there must be a governor that will oversee, motivate, and encourage all within that zone. That is the only way that we can move forward quickly.
“Therefore, we need you to mobilise other governors of the zones to effectively and physically participate in party activities within and outside the zone. Also, consult with the governors on issues that will further enhance the progress and unity of the party and assist the APC on resource mobilisation in the zones,” he said.
Responding on behalf of the governors, Uzodimma promised that they would not fail the party in the assignment given to them.
“On behalf of the coordinators of the six geopolitical zones, I stand up here to thank you for finding us worthy to do this assignment. In doing this assignment, we are almost certain the expectations will be met. We are very delighted that the party in its wisdom introduced this new policy of properly coordinating the party. As you are aware, we at the PGF have a membership of 20 governors, which means 20 states are currently being governed by APC.
“We have to start from there to ensure an inclusive participation of all members of our party and to take this participation to the grassroots. I think that’s the wisdom behind this inauguration. In a partisan democracy, the party is supreme, and the government is controlled and managed by the party. That’s why the president of the country is the leader of our great party.
“We will do our best as Progressive Governors Forum to support the government, to ensure that it is functional and effective, to encourage all-inclusive programmes in the government and to strengthen the reward system of the party in government,” he said.