President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday met a delegation led by newly appointed caretaker chairman of All Progressives Congress, Mr Mala Buni.

Buni, also Yobe State governor and a former national secretary of APC, was on Thursday appointed acting chairman of the ruling APC after the dissolution of National Working Committee (NWC) of the party.

Kebbi State Governor, Mr Abubakar Bagudu, who addressed State House correspondents on behalf of the delegation, said the meeting was convened to introduce the interim chairman to the president.

Bagudu said the president was enthusiastic that the party has “one less distraction” because he is “conscious of the mandate given to him by Nigerians.”

The resolution of the party, upon the urging of president, to dissolve Adams Oshiomhole-led leadership of the party, has been threatened by legal action by members of the ousted leadership.

Mr Buhari is making moves to break the ranks of sacked members who have rejected his action.

Asked about the aggrieved members’ warning that they may go to court, Bagudu brushed the threat aside, saying due process was followed in naming a new chairman.

“Mr President is very clear that he received due legal advice and remember, before the 2019 primaries. Mr President demonstrated to everyone in this country that he will never sacrifice due process for expediency,” Bagudu told reporters.

“Even when it was convenient to extend tenure of the then executive so that we don’t have a convention and primary at the same time. Mr President said no, no matter how tough it is, we are going to do the correct legal thing.

“So Mr President will never do anything which the constitutional provisions of party, talk less of the country, does not allow him to do,” he said.

Also part of the delegation were the chairman of Nigerian Governors’ Forum, representative of  north-central APC caretaker and extraordinary national convention committee, Mr Abubakar Bello, and Kogi State governor, Yahaya Bello.

APC was thrown into a fresh leadership crisis when the Court of Appeal a few days ago upheld the suspension of Mr Adams Oshiomhole as the party’s national chairman.

The crisis in APC is mainly about who controls the party structure ahead of the 2023 presidential election.

The new caretaker committee has the mandate to conduct a national convention to elect new leadership for APC within six months.

PT