Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari’s attempt to forge a truce in the rumpus that has engulfed the House of Representatives may have ended up deadlocked. All Progressives Congress (APC) members emerged from the meeting still singing different tunes, still divided like before.
The meeting, which was held behind closed doors, lasted for less than 30 minutes. Indeed some who kept a watch said it lasted 20 minutes, during which Buhari simply told the members to toe the party line and not to throw away hard-won victory in the last election to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party.
But emerging from the meeting, members were still speaking like they belonged to the feuding camps.
A former Minority Leader, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, said the meeting dwelt on party supremacy.
“We are still talking and this is the first time that the two camps will be sitting together as one family in an atmosphere of camaraderie,” he said.
The Speaker, Mr. Yakubu Dogara, said he had always remained on the side of the party.
Addressing State House correspondents after the meeting, the APC Chairman, Mr John Odigie-Oyegun, said a lot was achieved during the brief meeting.
He said that the crisis would be finally put to rest by Tuesday as the party and all affected members had agreed to meet again later on Monday.
He dismissed the insinuation that the meeting with the President was coming too late, saying the party would come out with good news for the nation by Tuesday.
Also commenting on the outcome of the meeting, the Speaker, House of Representatives, Mr Yakubu Dogara, said consultations were ongoing for final resolution of the leadership dispute in the House.
According to him, he will continue to obey and abide by the party’s position and decisions on matters concerning the National Assembly.
“I will always be by the party. There has never been a time that I never stood firmly by the party.
“So, like my chairman has explained, we are going to do it in consultation with the party and I’m sure that sooner than later we will have good news for Nigerians,’’ he said.
Femi Gbajabiamila, a member of the House of Representatives who also participated in the meeting, expressed optimism that the dispute would be resolved by Tuesday.
He described the meeting as fruitful as all contending groups in the House of Representatives came together for the first time in a cordial atmosphere.
