The Governors who are members of the new All Progressive Congress (APC) party have said that they will position and pride themselves as social democrats, with free education as their leading programme.
The 10 governors, who come from the former All Progressive Grand Alliance, the Action Congress of Nigeria, All Nigeria Peoples Party and the Congress for Progressive Change, met in Abuja on Tuesday where they rolled out their programmes under the yet-to-be registered APC.
There are 11 opposition governors in Nigeria and all of them, except the Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, were present.
Those present at the meeting were: Adams Oshiomhole (Edo), (Rochas Okorocha (Imo), Abiola Ajimobi (Oyo), Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Babatunde Fashola (Lagos), Rauf Aregbesola (Osun), Tanko Almakura (Nasarawa), Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun), Ibrahim Geidam (Yobe) and Abdulaziz Yari (Zamfara).
Mr Almakura, who spoke on behalf of his colleagues, said that the programme priorities in the new party will be agricultural development, jobs creation, free education, affordable healthcare, infrastructural development, adequate power supply, eradication of poverty and war against corruption, and rapid technological advancement and industrialisation.
“We shall pride ourselves as social democrats that are committed to organise our society based on the values of justice for all and individual freedom where everyone’s basic needs are fulfilled,” he said.
He also announced the formation of Zonal Contact and Mobilisation Committees, which are headed by six of their members.
Mr Almakura himself will head that of North-Central; Mr Fayemi, South-West; Mr Yari, North-West; Mr Okorocha, South-East; Mr Geidam, North-East; and Mr Oshiomhole, South-South.
Speaking with journalists at the end of the meeting, Mr Oshiomhole underlined his commitment to the merger. “I am fully convinced about the need for this merger,” he declared. “There is no question about my conviction and my commitment to the merger.”
Mr Okorocha also insisted that although there are problems in his party, APGA, the party was committed to the merger.
“Let me say that APGA is in the merger talks. We have our little challenges and we are just trying to sort out about who are the APGA-APGA and who are the APGA-PDP.
“But I can tell you that the APGA-APGA (the real APGA) is already in the merger talks.”