The opposition PDP has been able to maintain it's dominance of the FCT politics for over two decades and this jinx might not be broken in the nearest future, no thanks to cracks in the APC which is the governing party in the country and the major opposition party in the state.
Of course PDP in the FCT is not absent crises on it's own but the party has a leadership at state level that settles all disputes and apparently it's members have confidence in that leadership in the sense that whatever judgement it passes is permanent, supreme and has no appeal. The same cannot be said of the APC where one can only be a leader in his own block.
Ordinarily the FCT minister should have been the statutory leader of the party but unfortunately we have a minister who prides himself as not been a politician even though he occupies a political position for eight good years. Since I intend to write extensively on this topic I will tone down on the subject so as not to preempt the outcome of the later article.
But the point here is in APC we have no clear leader of the FCT not even a team of leaders to settle dispute, to make matters worst old rivalries from the days of the legacy parties still lingers and there are still imaginary lines even within the same political party.
The inter and intra party politics dates back from 2007 where the then opposition ANPP was able to give the PDP a run for it's money and won the two major positions in the state. Senator Jibrin Wowo won the FCT Senate while Honorable Nasiru Mohammed of the same party won the Amac/Bwari House of Representative sit.
But this victory seem surreal thus wasn't sustained as skirmishes between the party's two major rivals in the House of Reps primaries Amanda Pam Vs Hon. Nasiru led the end of that victory less than a year before into the tenure.
Records has it that Amanda Pam felt short changed in the primaries and promised to get revenge, she therefore sponsored the labor party candidate who's party logo was missing in the elections to go to Court and challenge the elections.
This was happening when PDP was licking it's wounds due to the unexpected outcome of the election. Pam used all the resources at her disposal to make sure that the election was canceled and a new date was fixed for a rerun. Trust PDP they never repeat the same mistake twice when power is involved most especially in the FCT which is the sit of power. That was how the opposition lost the elections bringing Hon. Zephaniah and Senator Philip Adudu both of the PDP as winners of the subsequent elections.
That was the closes any opposing party has being to victory in the FCT, since then the PDP has stayed glued to every major position in the state with all sense of seriousness until recently in 2016 when Honorable Abdullahi Adamu Candido pulled another joker on them thus taking the Abuja Municipal Area Council for the APC.
Things being equal the APC should have capitalised on the victory and at least retain the victory if not for another crises which can even be said to be worst than initial conflicts put together.
I will blame the then leadership of the APC for this failure even though the powers that be are trying in vain to change the narrative but history is a cruel teacher and those who refuse to learn from history will be humbled by its mighty grip.
A primary election was conducted with Alhassan Gwagwa ( supported by Candido) emerging as the undisputed winner in front of the media, the inec and party leadership at all level and announcement was made even the losers have congratulated the winner . There was jubilation in all quarters of the FCT until someone somewhere deem it fit to alter the figures from the comfort of his office, make adjustments reduce some votes from the winner and add same to the second runner up thus making him the winner.
All this happened in the cover of the night while unsuspecting party members are going around their normal businesses, campaigns have even started with the elected candidate going round to make speeches and visitations, then all of a sudden out of the blues when inec released the names of candidates for the elections Murtala Karshi was on the list rather than Alhassan Gwagwa who won the elections in front of everyone.
The stage is once again set for another major crises, appeals were made by parties involved but no positive response, that was when the explanation was made that the party at the national level has validated some invalid votes and added same to Murtala thus making him the winner.
One will expect the party leadership at all levels to take necessary actions or even call both parties to oder but nothing of such happened instead the elite in the party the FCT minister, Senator Almakura, the then acting national chairman of the party all took side, they sided with the oppressor against the oppressed. With no option Gwagwa, Candido and his team heads to court. After series of litigations the godfathers used the instruments of state at their disposal to declear that the party was right to validate invalid votes after declaration of results and add same to the anointed, even though I'm yet to see the judgement but that was the popular believe and the point of narrations that went viral after the court judgement.
Less than 48 hours to the elections proper another coup detate has been pulled, a winner has become a loser and vise versa. The progressives in AMAC where demoralized. The party has been polarised withing different lines. So we went to an elections with a divided house, one will expect the leaders at the top to immediately rush into some damage control, but nothing like that happened. The result was a catastrophic outcome and we lost the elections woefully.
The fact remains the godfathers can twist the arms of the law and get away with it, but in a free and fair elections under the watch of President Buhari the masses have the last say. So APC lost to a protest votes in one hand and nemesis or Karma on the other hand.
Faith and providence has proven that the party and it's elite cannot deliver what A.A Candido delivered twice in Amac and it is my firm believe that APC will never make any headway in the FCT except the right peg is put in the right hole. Yes APC, FCT needs a touch of Candido in 2023 otherwise all efforts will be in vain.
Mohammed Bello Doka is the Chairman and CEO Abuja Network News.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are those of the author and not of the ANN.