President Bola Tinubu is presiding over the National Caucus meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC), marking the first of such gathering since he assumed office on May 29, 2023.

The high-level meeting is holding at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja with key party leaders in attendance.

The Caucus meeting is preceding the party’s National Executive Council (NEC) scheduled to hold at the party secretariat at Wuse 2, Abuja, tomorrow.

The meeting commenced by 07:20pm with the arrival of the President, who is the leader of the ruling party.

Among those in attendance are Vice President Kashim Shettima; Senate President Godswill Akpabio; Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, and APC National Chairman Abdullahi Ganduje.

Ganduje was accompanied by nine other members of the National Working Committee (NWC), including the deputy national chairmen (North and South), national secretary, legal adviser, treasurer, organizing secretary, women leader, youth leader, and leader of persons living with disabilities.

Also present are APC Governors, Imo’s Hope Uzodinma, who serves as Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum.

Among the key issues on the agenda is the scheduling of a non-elective convention, in line with the party’s constitution.

The caucus is also expected to deliberate on the formation of party standing committees, a presentation on the establishment of The Progressive Institute (TPI), and the implementation of a membership e-registration exercise.

Additionally, the meeting will review a report from the national legal adviser concerning ongoing litigations involving the party in various courts.

Other attendees at the meeting include members of the Nigeria Governors Forum led by Governor of Lagos State,

Other Governors in attendance are Babajide Sanwoolu (Lagos); Dapo Abiodun (Ogun); Babagana Zulum (Borno);  Uba Sani (Kaduna);  Ahmad Aliyu Sokoto (Sokoto) and  Hyacinth Alia (Benue) among others.

Also present are South-South leaders of the ruling party, led by Former Governor of Bayelsa State, Timipre Silva.

Notable leaders of the governing party from the northern present at the meeting include Senator Abdulaziz Yari, Former Governor of Nasarawa State, Tanko Al Makura and Senator Aliyu Wammako

Founding National Chairman of the party, Chief Bisi Akande; Chief Iyiola Omisore, Chief Olusegun Osoba, Senator Lola Ashiru and few others from South-West are also present.

Also at the maiden caucus meeting are the former Speaker of the House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara; former Cross River Governor Ben Ayade and Senator Anyim Pius Anyim.

A former member of the House of Representatives from Delta State, Hon. Dr. Ossai Nicholas Ossai, has dumped the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Ossai, who represented the Ndokwa/Ukwuani Federal Constituency of Delta State for three consecutive terms from 2011 to 2023, cited the need to align with a party he believes is better positioned to serve his constituents, Delta State, and Nigeria as a whole.

During his tenure in the National Assembly, Ossai held key leadership positions, including Chairman of the House Committee on Ethics and Privileges in the 8th Assembly and Chairman of the House Committee on Treaties, Protocols, and Agreements in the 9th Assembly.

However, his political career faced a major setback when he was blocked from securing a return ticket in the 2022 PDP primary elections—an outcome he attributes to internal party politics allegedly driven by former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa and other influential stakeholders.

In his resignation statement, Ossai expressed deep dissatisfaction with the direction of the PDP, describing it as “rudderless, cantankerous, envious, and lacking vision.”

He stated: “After deep reflection and wide consultations with my family, political leaders, supporters, and associates, I have decided to resign from the PDP and heed the patriotic call to join the largest progressive family in Africa, the APC.”

Ossai emphasised that his move was driven by a commitment to good governance and national development.

The re-elected Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) South-South Zonal Vice Chairman, Chief Dan Orbih, has described the ongoing crisis within the party as self-inflicted.

He noted that the party’s constitution had been disregarded in favour of personal interests by a few members.

Speaking at the South-South Zonal Congress of the PDP in Calabar on Saturday, Orbih urged party faithful to make the necessary sacrifices to revive and strengthen the party.

He called for the election of officers who would uphold the party’s constitution in the zone, emphasising that such individuals must also have the fear of God.

Orbih said: “We must follow the party’s guidelines if we are to revive it. These guidelines are subject to the constitution.

“The power to elect new officers of the party is not subject to anything but the constitution.

“We must start rebuilding the party from here. The party cannot dictate who an individual should associate with, nor determine their friends or enemies.”

Similarly, Minister of the FCT, Mr Nyesom Wike, noted that, by all indications, the party remained strong in the zone.

He commended Orbih and his re-elected executive members for maintaining the party’s stability in spite of its challenges.

He, however, urged the party’s leadership to speak truth to power if it truly sought to regain its lost glory.

Wike added that the zonal congress held in Calabar would be the last to elect the Zonal Working Committee.

“Presently, we have leaders who can’t speak the truth and are full of betrayal.

“No part of the constitution says that congress should not be held when some persons are indisposed. No any other congress will hold after this.

“This is our job. This is our terrain. We are not new to this. The constitution didn’t say national working commitee shall conduct the zonal congress.

“This is the final congress in the South South. We don’t need quantity but quality,” he said.

In his address, former Governor of Cross River, Mr Donald Duke, urged PDP members in the zone to remain focused and fully committed to the party.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Orbih and all the immediate past zonal officers, who were elected four years ago in Port Harcourt, were re-elected during the congress in Calabar.

They were all returned unopposed, but an election was conducted to reaffirm their positions.

The zonal executive consists of 10 members, in addition to six ex-officio members.

The congress was attended by former governors, former and serving members of the National Assembly, among others.

GWG.ng however, reports that the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Debo Ologunagba, in a statement on Saturday in Abuja, said the outcome of the Calabar purported congress was null and void.

Ologunagba said that the party NWC’s attention was drawn to a reported social gathering in Calabar, Cross River where the organisers falsely claimed same to be the PDP South South zonal congress .

He recalled that the NWC at its meeting on Thursday, in exercise of its powers under Section 29 (2)(b), pursuant to Section 31 (2) (c) and (j) of the Constitution of the PDP (as amended in 2017) postponed the conduct of the South South zonal congress from the earlier scheduled date of Feb. 22.

Ologunagba said that the postponement was to allow for further consultation on critical issues relating to the smooth conduct of the congress in the Zone.

He had earlier been tackled by Orbih who claimed that the NWC of which he is a member never met to give directives on the zonal congress.