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Barring any last minute hurdle, members of the opposition coalition have resolved to approach the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) next week for the registration of their proposed party, All Progressives Congress (APC).
CODEWIT gathered that as part of the fall-out of the resumed meeting of the merging parties Tuesday in Abuja, the coalition had proposed an APC interim national executive with its chairman to be nominated by Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) while Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) are to fill the National Secretary and Deputy National chairmanship slots respectively.
The meeting also considered all the requirements for the registration of the new platform and the readiness of the merging parties to comply with the relevant electoral laws.
A reliable source who revealed the progress being made on the merger arrangement said the parties had accepted to use a house donated by a party chieftain at No 6 Bissau Street in Wuse, Abuja as the temporary national headquarters of the APC.
He said a proposal was earlier circulated to the parties in which ACN was allotted the position of interim national chairman, while the CPC would have national secretary and the ANPP to produce the deputy national chairman for the new party.
However, the source alerted on the brewing disagreement over the sharing of interim party offices. It said leaders of the ANPP were not comfortable with the deputy national chairman slot. According to the source, ANPP's representatives at the merger talks queried the rationale behind the choice of CPC for the position of national secretary which does not reflect the party's electoral strength and spread.
It was learnt that due to the objections trailing the modalities for constituting the APC interim National Executive Committee (NEC), on merger resolved to push the matter to an enlarged meeting of APC governors and top party leaders scheduled for Tuesday next week.
Part of the agenda of the planned meeting of the leaders with governors will be to review all necessary documentations required for the smooth registration of the new party as well as ensure that each of the merging parties appends its signature on the final document to be submitted to INEC.
In addition, the source said the joint meeting intended to consider the legal threat posed by the rival African People's Congress and adopt strategies to overcome the challenge.
Although the meeting ended without any formal communique or briefing on its outcome, the ACN merger committee chairman, Chief Tom Ikimi told journalists that the parties met to review their readiness to commence formal application for the registration of APC.
"We met to review all our documentations to ensure that none contravened the relevant electoral laws guiding political party registration. From every indication, all the documents are okay and I am very pleased that everything is on course.
"All the three merging parties: ACN, ANPP and CPC have since furnished INEC with the reports of their national conventions and the commission also observed their conventions. What is remaining now is for us to send in our applications for registration to INEC with relevant documents, " he said.
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