Mama Taraba begs Buhari, APC

africanspotlight.com


Following her outburst on President Muhammadu Buhari and the 2019 presidential election, the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Aisha Jummai Al-Hassan on Thursday apologized to the All Progressives Congress (APC).


Alhassan, who was one time Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General in Taraba and a Senator of the 7th Senate last two weeks went on media to pledge her loyalty to the former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar for 2019 presidential election.

The Minister also alleged that the President, Muhammadu Buhari had promised to serve only one term as President.

She arrived the APC National Secretariat in Abuja in her Mercedes Benz SUV as she was grilled for 2 hours. She arrived at 2 pm and left at 4 pm.

She was escorted to her car by the APC National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, who told journalists that she was invited by the party leadership.

Briefing journalists on the discussion of the party with her, Abdullahi said the party interrogated her what she said and the contest on which she said.

He explained that the minister apologized.

Abdullahi noted that the party did not hold anything against on her views but frowned at the timing.

Speaking on her visit, Abdullahi said, “You will realize that since she made her comment the party has not said anything in spite of what individuals must have told you. We have not responded in anyway because we are also a party that recognize the rights of our members to express their opinions, their express views and all that. So, we want an opportunity to discuss with the Minister before we know how to respond on what she said and in what contest she said it. So, when she came today we asked her to explain to us what truly transpired and in what contest she said what she said and she did offer this explanation.

“Having offered her explanations we acknowledged that as a member of this party she is entitled to her opinion and she is entitle to her choice. However, as a senior member of this party her statement represent an act of indiscretion because occupying the kind of position she occupies especially in the party, she is a party leader in her own right. What she said was not what she supposed to have said at the time that she said it and that she ought to have exercise greater judgment than she did and she acknowledged that yes may be the time was wrong and she apologized that if she had put the party in any difficulty that she was sorry. As far as we are concerned the case is closed.”

Asked if the party was embarrassed with her comment, Abdullahi said: “I want you to take note of the fact that nobody is questioning her right to take the position she has taken. We have not come out to say, ‘why are you saying you are supporting this person? She has a right to her choice and to support whoever she wants to support afterall she is not saying she supports a member of another party but what we are saying is that with the position she occupies, she ought to have exercised greater sense of discretion and better judgment knowing that making that kind of statement would definitely create some other situations for the party, if not for the government.

On whether party asked her to resign Abdullahi said, “No, that did not come up. What we just said was that we understand the context in which she said what she said but it was an act of indiscretion for someone occupying the position she is occupying in the party to make that kind of statement. If this was 2018 and the people have filed their applications to say they are contesting and she now comes out and says she is supporting this person, how can that be an issue? But we are still in 2017. We are still far away. Atiku has not said he is contesting. He has not collected any form. He has not announced to anybody that he is contesting. So, that is what we mean by the timing. It is not that she had no right to say what she had said”.

The outburst of the Minister had attracted attention to the party and the Presidency, with some party members calling for her resignation.

aolawale025:
Apologise yes. But I guess she still stands by her statement