Dogara, Reps Leadership Shun APC Meeting

Indication that all is not well with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) emerged yesterday, as the leadership of the House of Representatives led by Speaker Yakubu Dogara, shunned the party’s consultative meeting of the National Working Committee (NWC) held in Abuja.
The meeting, sixth in the series and chaired by the National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun had in attendance the Governors of Kaduna, Nasir el-Rufai, Bauchi, Mohammed Abubakar, Kebbi, Atiku Bagudu, Plateau, Simon Lalong, Imo, Rochas Okorocha, Edo, Godwin Obaseki and Adamawa State, Abdullahi Jibrilla Bindo.
The Governors of Ondo, Kano, Kogi and Nasarawa States were represented by their deputies.
While Senate President, Bukola Saraki was not in the meeting owing to his trip to Russia, no reason was given for Dogara’s absence.
While declaring the meeting open, Oyegun had said: “I welcome you to the sixth of the series of our consultative meetings, which has proved to be extremely useful not only in stabilising the party but also contributing immensely towards handling various challenges that have appeared before us as a nation and as a people.
“The meeting became so productive that we decided at last meeting to bring in our National Assembly leaders to join us in the deliberations, which I have said earlier, have been found to be very productive and useful, indeed.
“I understand that the Senate President has travelled to Russia and we are still expecting, of course, the representatives of the leaders of the House of Representatives. I thank you for coming to this first meeting since the return of our dear President from his medical leave,” Oyegun said.
But the session ended without the Reps leadership. Neither was there a message stating why they were conspicuously absent.