By Osehobo Victor Ofure
Many have heard of the APC Professionals Forum, but may not be aware that it is a registered support group of the party.
The forum comprises teachers, media practitioners, doctors, nurses, lawyers, academia, clergy engineers and ICT personnel among others as technocrats, intellectuals, experts and professionals across fields, disciplines and areas of human endeavors who are card carrying members of the APC.
Those who initiated the forum agreed that the APC Professionals Forum, APC-PF, and other relevant support groups have vital roles to play if only to strengthen the support base of the party.
They are also convinced that such party faithful and professionals who have worked tirelessly for the party in the past and presently deserve adequate reward in government, to encourage their teeming supporters and other party stalwarts and enhance party loyalty.
But beyond these objectives, some schools of thought argue that the relevance of a Professionals Forum for the ruling party to discuss issues of importance to the party and join other stakeholders to help propel the party to victory for the party in the years ahead has assumed a renewed importance.
They see the professionals forum as one whose experiences the party can tap in cases that deserve critical and vital professional advice.
The reason for this position is clear. The professional forum is an interactive platform and can be a very effective and faster way for the party to engage professionals who are in regular touch with each other, communicating, asking questions and providing answers, and through comments and suggestions articulating ideas that can elevate the party.
The forum can also help the party with ideas to review materials it is ruminating on and by so doing actively engage them in coming up with practical or realistic ideas for probable application or implementation.
It is a safe place for information gathering. It is a forum for resolving thorny issues and can help the party in building communities of trust with time. Lastly, the party can strengthen connections and help build bonds that gives it an edge over its competition.
Of a truth, the acceptability of a political party depends on how it articulates its ideas and programmes. With the APC professionals forum who could network to bring various dimensions to an issue to make it more understandable, the country can surmount more of its challenges without the present aura of overpoliticization.
There are so many issues that are being politicised today in the country, which are actually not political at all. The media, on whom the public depend for information, to carry out their duties with professionalism must help on this score. So are the lawyers and all the other professionals.
In a matter of days, the Inaugural Conference of the All Progressives Congress, APC Professionals Forum will take place at Abuja, Nigeria’s federal capital with Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, APC candidate in the last Edo State governorship elections as Special Guest.
Coming at this time it indicates so much, key of which is that the forum has come of age. The inaugural conference which has as theme, ” The role of professional forum in politics and nation building”, is timely because the party alone cannot not do all and there is the need for professionals to support to move the country to a level that would make it the envy of others.
Many party members like the APC-PF do not believe that everything must be about profit, which would be to the benefit of a few, but that even if there was profit it must be shared equally among the stakeholders. And as Professionals they are not in any race with other politicians.
All that they want is to better the lot of the country by making the people to better understand the ideals of the party, the government as well as the policies. They are saying APC remains the better of all vehicles to move Nigeria forward.#
*Osehobo is Assistant State Publicity Secretary, APC, Edo State*
