An All Progressives Congress (APC) northern media youth group, the APC Media and Mobilisation Group for Tinubu/Shettima, (BATIMA), has lamented that northern youths are unfairly treated by the parties leadership structure.
The BATIMA DG, Kingsley Omadoye, in an issued press statement yesterday, stated: “We are groups of individuals who have been in the party since its merger stage till date. We are members of the different political parties that made up the APC. (CPC, ANPP, ACN, and APGA).
“We observe that the lingering information about our Northern brothers and fellow compatriots recently arising from marginalisation in the leadership style of the APC National Youth Leader, Dayo Israel, is a very sensitive matter, which must be handled with kid gloves; of course, it is not a welcome development for the party, hence the need to address it urgently.
“Permit me to also unequivocally align with the feelings of our dear brothers from the North who are unfairly treated here by the leadership structure of the youths in our party. Of course, sidelining a strong region that is almost our backbone is a threat to national cohesion and peace in Nigerian politics, hence, symptomatic to impending failure. We must avoid that scenario.
In view of the above, the group called on the party’s Chairman “to advise the National Youth Leader to desist from such act and most importantly, tender unreserved apologies to our beloved Northern youths for tactically side-lining them”.
According to the group, “The chairman should know that he has a duty to unite and not to scatter, as it is the case now. We have the potentials of winning and needs to work harder towards it.
“We know, and the world too knows, that the APC as a party has presented before Nigerians the best presidential candidate every rational party would love to have. Nevertheless, we strongly believe in the ability and capacity of the National Chairman alongside his National Working Committee (NWC) to leading the party to victory come 2023.
“But before then, I will like to draw the attention of Hon. Dayo Israel that the office he is occupying he got it on a platter of gold. When he was outside the country during the formation of the party, we were here building and taking the heat from the oppositions, who were calling us all manners of names. Today, he is here jumping like he knows all. We, as a group and other well-meaning members of our great party, will not condone such act from his office.
The group further said, “The Government is not yet formed, but such is already emanating from the South-West block, is it to segregate other regions? This is not acceptable, and must be dealt with urgently. The signal he is sending is unhealthy for our party in such a time like this.
The group therefore urged the party chairman to use his office “to help at any significant level in correcting this erroneous impression created for the sake of our Party. We remain one and indivisible”.
“We, as a party, must be conscious of the fact that the party’s interest supercedes our personal interest. So, in our daily transactions, we must avoid any iota of segregation, sentiment and/or self-centeredness against our fellow ones. We ought to be treated fairly in all ramifications”, the group stated.
Recall that 36-yr-old Dayo Israel was elected the National Youth Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), during the party’s National Convention which was held early this year ahead of the party’s preparation for the general elections which would be held in 2023.
