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The executive committee of the party in Plateau State, led by Rufus Bature, has been given seven days by the North-Central All Progressives Congress, or APC, Forum to form a reconciliation committee and permit members of other political parties to join the APC in the state.

The directive came after the North-Central APC Forum’s adoption of the Green Cap Movement for the state’s 2027 gubernatorial election was opposed by the Plateau APC exco.

Ahead of the 2027 gubernatorial election, the Forum said in Jos on Friday that it had embraced the Green Cap Movement in Plateau State.

Caleb Mutfwang, the governor of Plateau State, is linked to the Green Cap Movement.

Before the 2027 election, Mutfwang had been urged by the North-Central APC Forum to leave the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and join the APC.

The North-Central APC Forum’s chairman, Alhaji Saleh Zazzaga, revealed that the Forum reiterated its previous support for President Bola Tinubu for a second term during an enlarged stakeholder meeting on Thursday night, where the decision to embrace the Green Cap Movement was made.

“We have decided to adopt the Green Cap Movement in Plateau because we believe that the time is now.

“Though Mutfwang is of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), we believe that he is doing well and we must support him to excel. We are also endorsing our President, Bola Tinubu, for 2027 because he is doing extremely well,” Zazzaga, a member of the APC campaign council for the 2023 election had stated in Jos on Friday.

Nonetheless, the Plateau APC’s Bature-led state working committee denounced the North-Central APC Forum’s embrace of the Green Cap Movement in a statement also issued on Friday.

In a statement, Shittu Bamaiyi, the APC’s acting publicity secretary for Plateau State, issued a warning that “the party will be taking stringent measures” against supporters of the Green Cap Movement.

In response to the development, the North-Central APC Forum released a statement on Saturday in which it demanded that the Bature-led Plateau State APC exco make sincere attempts to include all party members, particularly elders and other stakeholders.

The Forum demanded that a reconciliation committee be established to deal with the matter, accusing the Bature-led exco of acting in the interests of a select few.

“We are giving the Rufus Bature-led exco seven days to set up a committee to reconcile aggrieved members of the party, particularly elders and others who are not being carried along.

“Also, they should allow members of other political parties who are interested to come to the APC to join. The party does not belong to a few individuals, it belongs to everybody and there should be a level playing field for all,” the statement said.

The Forum also called for the Plateau APC exco’s announcement regarding the Green Cap Movement’s adoption to be withdrawn.

If the ultimatum is disregarded, it threatened to mobilize in order to seek sanctions against the Bature-led Plateau exco for failing to contribute to the party’s growth in the state.

Similarly, the Forum said it would not join the fight against the Bature-led Plateau APC exco, which it claimed failed to deliver for President Bola Tinubu in the 2023 election, due to false allegations and misinformation in the statement issued by Bamaiyi.

It did, however, refute the assertion made by the Plateau APC spokesman that the Forum is not registered and, as a result, is unknown to the party. Zazzaga pointed out that the North-Central APC Forum, which consists of North-Central area stakeholders, is a registered and officially recognized entity within the party.

“We will not join issues with people who could not even deliver their polling units and wards for the party and Mr. President during the 2023 election.

“Some of them did not even support the party’s presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu. We know for certain that they supported Peter Obi, which is why they delivered Peter Obi in their polling units and wards.

“Our members in the North-Central APC Forum, especially the leaders, delivered our polling units and wards. This shows that we are committed party stakeholders, unlike some people who are only interested in occupying positions.

“These people don’t want anybody to come into the party, even when such is for the good of the party. They don’t want anything that will affect their position as party executives, that is why they are not comfortable that we adopted the Green Cap Movement for 2027.

“It is on the record that we are asking Governor Caleb Mutfwang to join the APC. We are still urging the governor to join our great party and align with President Bola Tinubu, which we believe is in the best interest of Plateau State,” the statement said.

The Forum pointed out that, contrary to what the Plateau State APC excos have said, the Green Cap Movement is not affiliated with any one political party.

The statement added, “The attempt to portray the the Green Cap as a PDP emblem is both shallow and historically dishonest. Also, the slogan attached to the Green Cap Movement, ‘The Time is Now’, is not a PDP slogan. It is a universal call for urgency, reform and accountable leadership – everything the APC in Plateau State has failed to embody. The green cap represents a mindset, not a party; a people, not a platform.”

The Forum added that the Plateau APC officials had previously backed the agitations it sponsored because they served their interests.

“They were silent when we demanded that the ministerial slot of Plateau State that was vacant after Senator Simon Lalong went to the Senate should be filled so that Plateau will be given adequate representation in the Federal Executive Council; they were silent when we agitated for North-Central to produce the APC national chairman because they were interested in the position; they were there when we were agitating for North-Central Development Commission, they never said we are not recognized or that we working for the opposition. They are reacting now because they feel threatened that we are trying to woo the governor of Plateau State to join the party,” the statement said.

In order to further the interests of the APC in the North-Central and work toward the advancement and development of the region, the Forum pledged that no amount of blackmail or coercion could stop it.

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