Lagos APC disbands Justice Forum, Mandate Group, says groups factionalising party

The Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress yesterday wielded the big stick against political groups and associations within its fold, which has created factions within the party like Justice Forum and Mandate Group by dissolving them.

At a meeting by the Governors’ Advisory Council (GAC), held at State House Marina Tuesday afternoon and attended among others by the APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Governor Babajide Sanwo-olu, the GAC warned any member engaging in factional groupings within the party to be ready to face sanctions.

At the meeting which was attended by virtually all the 27 GAC members and held with strict observance of the social distancing protocol of the government, the GAC noted that the objective fore setting up those groups may be abused if they are allowed to continue and the unity they seek to achive in the party may become elusive.

“However, we cannot allow such groups to become permanent identifications that rival what should be the primary identification as a party member. If we allow factionalism such sway, we not only weaken the party, soon those who should see each other as brothers and sisters in the same party will view each other with increasing enmity as rivals instead of members of the same political family.” 

In a communique at the end of the meeting, the council traced the origin of the Justice Forum and Mandate Group, pointing out that such groups were not an end in themselves but a means to an end.

They noted that the Justice Forum was birthed during the heady days of the annulment of June 12. It was put in place to canvass revalidation of the election.

Mandate Group on its part was started by Asiwaju Tinubu in the build-up to the 1999 governorship race to advance his interest in the defunct Alliance for Democracy race, which he won and eventually rose to the governorship.

“We provided this background in order to explain the circumstances that led to the births of both the Justice Forum and Mandate Group and to properly situate their places in our political evolution. These two groups were formed to achieve important but temporary goals. The groups were not ends in themselves.

 “We have watched with some disappointment the stubbornness with which some people cling to these two informal affiliations as if the contest between the two is the most important matter. Due to this unhealthy and excessive competition, many have lost sight of the true objective of the party – that of bringing democratic good governance and progressive reform to the people.

 “If you are preoccupied with factional infighting, you will have little time for the hard work of progressive governance. In fact, you will eschew this work which is the true essence of our existence. You would have turned us into just another political party. However, we did not suffer through the dangers and pain of the pro-democracy movement for our party to disintegrate in such a manner. Too many of us sacrificed too much for empty factionalism to taint the fate of the party.”

The call for disbandment according the group has nothing to do with any particular gladiator in the state. The groupings had polarised the party into members of JF and MD

The GAC members were unanimous in their resolve to ban factional groups and strengthen the APC, maintaining that the party is a united party, a united family.