The Colloquium—now in its 11th year—brings
together experts in the private and public sectors to
discuss creative
solutions to some of Nigeria’s nagging problems.
Organised annually to coincide with the
birthday of APC godfather, Bola Tinubu (who turned 67 this year), BATC
also brings party and government chieftains under one roof and is one of
the most eagerly anticipated political events on the calendar.
President Buhari is named as Chairman
of the occasion, but he is nowhere near the venue of the event. The
president is being represented by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
Buhari was present last year though
Buhari flew all the way to Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital, last year to attend the 10th BATC which held at the Eko Convention Center, as he set out his stall for an energy sapping re-election campaign.
Buhari was also Chairman of the 10th BATC which held on March 29, 2018.
At the time, the event provided the president and APC chieftains the opportunity to reel out achievements of the APC administration and make cases for why they deserved another term in office.
Tinubu and Buhari had just mended fences when
the 10th BATC came around, and it was speculated at the time that the
Nigerian president honoured the Southwest godfather’s invitation because
he badly needed votes from the region to win a second term in office.
Buhari defeated opposition candidate Atiku Abubakar to win the February 23, 2019 presidential election.
The presidency is yet to say why Buhari is missing at the 11th BATC.
This year’s Colloquium is themed: ‘Next Level—Work for People’, a nod to the APC’s 2019 campaign slogan.
No comments:
Post a Comment