Olalekan Adetayo and Leke Baiyewu
President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo and President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, on Thursday, met behind closed doors inside the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Some state governors elected on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress also joined the meeting held inside the President’s office.
The governors included Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari; Zamfara State Governor, Abdulaziz Yari; Kebbi State Governor, Atiku Bagudu; and Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun.
Ekiti State Governor-elect, Kayode Fayemi, also attended.
The agenda of the meeting was not made public.
Saraki declined to comment when State House correspondents approached him after the meeting that lasted about 30 minutes.
The Presidency has yet to issue a press statement on the meeting as of the time of filing this report.
Fayemi, however, gave an indication that those who attended the meeting were in the Presidential Villa to rejoice with the President on the party’s victory in the July 14 Ekiti State governorship election.
The elated governor-elect boasted that the ruling party would repeat the Ekiti feat in Osun State.
The governorship election in Osun State will hold in September.
A source at the Presidential Villa who was privy to the discussions at the meeting informed one of our correspondents that Buhari expressed his readiness to meet with the aggrieved APC leaders as part of the reconciliatory efforts to prevent the imminent exodus of members from the party.
The source disclosed that several governors and leaders of the party had been meeting with Saraki since Monday.
“On Wednesday night, close to midnight, some APC governors met with Saraki at his Abuja home. The governors included Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State and Abubakar Bagudu of Kebbi State. Meanwhile, (the National Chairman of the APC, Adams) Oshiomhole was at his home on Monday. The governors who met with him on Wednesday night listened to his grievances and were shocked with the revelations, forcing them to go to the President to brief him on their findings. They urged him that very urgently and importantly, he needed to meet Saraki. That was why today’s (Thursday) meeting was called.”
Asked what was the conclusion reached at the meeting, the source said, “There was no conclusion other than the fact that the President called for more meetings and engagements; that the President will also meet with (Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu) Dogara; that the governors will meet with other aggrieved leaders individually. The President urged the governors to continue to brief him on the outcome of every of such meetings, to let him know at what point they need him to intervene. There will still be meetings, there is no conclusion yet.”
The source added, “Recall that some of those close to the President told journalists that he would not meet with aggrieved APC leaders; that those who wanted to leave the party should go. Now the President has been forced to hold meetings with them.”
Punch
