Last minute consultations are still ongoing to reduce the number of aspirants contesting for the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential ticket.
Naija News reports that northern APC governors had asked President Muhammadu Buhari to select one out of five names given to him as the party’s consensus presidential candidate.
The five aspirants are Bola Tinubu, Rotimi Amaechi, David Umahi, Kayode Fayemi and Yemi Osinbajo.
Of the five aspirants, Osinbajo, Tinubu and Fayemi are all from the South-West.
According to Vanguard, South-West leaders including traditional rulers are said to be pressuring Osinbajo to step down for Asiwaju Tinubu.
It was also gathered that there are also moves to get Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State to step down for Osinbajo.
Fayemi, the current chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum, NGF, is said to be banking on the support of his brother governors in the APC to grab the party’s ticket.
However, some governors reportedly eyeing the vice presidential slot have already thrown their weights behind Tinubu and Osinbajo.
Sources said the South-West leaders want one candidate from the zone hence the pressure on Osinbajo and Fayemi to step down for Tinubu.
A top party leader said: “A lot of meetings are going on. If the meetings yield result only two aspirants will remain and the primaries will not take long to conclude.”
Sources close Tinubu said the former Lagos Governor is not ready to step down for any aspirant, including the VP.
“If there is going to be a consensus, he said he is the consensus candidate otherwise let’s go for primaries,” a member of the Tinubu Campaign also disclosed.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has begun the accreditation of delegates for the Special Convention and Presidential primary election.
Naija News reports that the accreditation process is ongoing at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, the nation’s capital.
It was learned that the delegates were driven into the accreditation centre in designated buses to kick start the electioneering process to produce the party’s presidential candidate.
The Accreditation Committee is also ready to begin the screening of delegates across the country who will vote for the party’s standard-bearer in the 2023 general elections.
The major contenders for the APC presidential ticket are Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State, Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State and the immediate past Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi.
Frontline presidential aspirant and former Governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu said the attack on worshippers at the St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State is highly reprehensible.
The presidential hopeful stated that the violent attack on Sunday morning shocked the conscience of the nation and shattered the peace of the ancient town of Owo.
Tinubu said in a statement by his media office in Abuja while reacting to the attack on the Catholic Church, Owa-luwa Street in Owo Local Government Area of the state.
He, however, stated that the attackers cannot break the country’s collective spirit and Nigerians’ will to live in peace and with compassion for all regardless of faith.
The APC national leader commiserated with Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, the families of the victims of the attack and indeed the people of Owo and Ondo State.
He urged the police and security agencies to do all that is within their power to investigate the attack and apprehend the wicked perpetrators and bring them to justice.
The presidential aspirant also urged the people of the state to remain calm, and peaceful and not take laws into their hands.
The statement reads: “Today’s attack on worshippers at the St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State is reprehensible in every sense of the word. There is no place for such hatred and wanton taking of innocent lives in our nation.
“No one can discern the darkness in the mind of those that would kill people who were merely engaged in the harmless practice of their faith. The only thing that can be said for sure is that these perpetrators are evil and that they should be subjected to the full measure of the law and justice.
“This violent attack has shocked the conscience of the nation and shattered the peace of this ancient town. It has saddened our hearts beyond what words can say. However, those who did this have made a terrible mistake. They think they can break our collective spirit and our will to live in peace and with compassion to all regardless of faith.
“What they have done will not pull us apart. We must unite so that together we extinguish this evil from our nation. We owe it to ourselves and to those who lost their lives in this heinous attack.
“Violent extremism and insecurity want to bring us low. We must continue to do all that we can to beat the vile challenge so that Nigeria becomes its better self. The architects of violence shall only seal their own fate but not the fate of this nation or the peace-loving people who inhabit it.
“While this is political season, let us put aside partisan affiliation and politics for the moment. I ask all Nigerians to stand and commiserate with Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN), the families of the victims of the attack and indeed the people of Owo and Ondo State. I too mourn and extend condolences with the pastors and leaders of St. Francis Catholic Church.
“While urging the people of the state to remain calm, and peaceful, we must also urge the police and security agencies to do all that is within their mortal power to do to get to the bottom of this attack, apprehend the wicked perpetrators and bring them to justice.
“May God watch over this republic and the people of Nigeria such that such evil is quickly and forever extinguished from the land!”
The governor of Jigawa state, Abubakar Badaru has withdrawn from the presidential race.
This is coming after the northern governors of the ruling party met to push for a southern Presidential candidate.
Read full Statement below
STATEMENT BY NORTHERN STATES APC GOVERNORS AND POLITICAL LEADERS
APC governors and political leaders from the northern states of Nigeria today met to review the political situation and to further support our Party in providing progressive leadership amidst our national challenges.
During our discussions, we welcomed President Muhammadu Buhari’s invitation to governors and other stakeholders to contribute to the emergence of a strong presidential candidate for the APC.
After careful deliberation, we wish to state our firm conviction that after eight years in office of President Muhammadu Buhari, the presidential candidate of the APC for the 2023 elections should be one of our teeming members from the southern states of Nigeria.
It is a question of honour for the APC, an obligation that is not in anyway affected by the decisions taken by another political party.
We affirm that upholding this principle is in the interest of building a stronger, more united and more progressive country.
We therefore wish to strongly recommend to President Muhammadu Buhari that the search for a successor as the APC’s presidential candidate be limited to our compatriots from the southern states.
We appeal to all aspirants from the northern states to withdraw in the national interest and allow only the aspirants from the south to proceed to the primaries.
We are delighted by the decision of our esteemed colleague, His Excellency, Governor Abubakar Badaru to contribute to this patriotic quest by withdrawing his presidential aspiration.
The APC has a duty to ensure that the 2023 elections offer a nation-building moment, reaffirming that a democratic pathway to power exists for all who value cooperation and build national platforms.
This moment calls for the most sober and inclusive approach to selecting our party’s candidate, and we call on all APC leaders to fulfil their responsibility in this regard.
Signed,
4th June 2022:
Aminu Bello Masari Governor of Katsina State
Abubakar Sani Bello Governor of Niger State
Abdullahi A. Sule Governor of Nasarawa State
Prof. B.G. Umara Zulum Governor of Borno State
Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai Governor of Kaduna State
Muhammad Inuwa Yahaya Governor of Gombe State
Bello M. Matawalle Governor of Zamfara State
Simon Bako Lalong Governor of Plateau StateSenator
Aliyu Wamakko Former Governor of Sokoto State
Dr. A.U. Ganduje Governor of Kano StateSenator
Abubakar Atiku Bagudu Governor of Kebbi State
The National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Adamu, on Saturday said no presidential aspirant had been disqualified from contesting at the party’s presidential primary slated for Monday.
Adamu said this while briefing the media at the APC headquarters in Abuja this afternoon.
This newspaper had reported that out of the 23 aspirants screened in two days, the Chairman of the APC presidential screening committee, John Odigie-Oyegun, while submitting his committee’s report to Adamu on Friday, said 10 persons were disqualified.
Those not included in the list are; Rochas Okorocha, Tunde Bakare, Ben Ayade, Sani Yerima, Ken Nnamani, Ikeobasi Mokelu, Dimeji Bankole, Felix Nicholas, Robert Borrofice and Uju Ken Ohanenye.
However, in a fresh twist today, the party leadership seems to have discarded the list.
Bashir El-Rufai, the son of the governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai has warned the All Progressives Congress against denying the national leader of the party, Bola Tinubu the party’s presidential ticket in 2023.
Bashir stated this while reacting to the statement of Tinubu while addressing delegates of the party in Ogun State on Thursday.
Tinubu who sought the support of delegates from the state had claimed that it was the turn of the South-West and for him to take over the presidency in 2023.
The former Governor of Lagos State noted that he is the right candidate to take over from President Muhammadu Buhari at the end of his tenure.
Bashir in his reaction to the statement warned that the ruling party might crash if it fails to give Tinubu its presidential ticket in 2023.
There have been speculations that Tinubu might dump APC for the Social Democratic Party if he fails to win the presidential ticket of APC.
Bashir in a post on his Twitter account on Friday wrote, “If this man doesn’t get this ticket this “party“ as we know it immediately ceases to exist as a single entity.”
Senior members of the Muhammadu Buhari presidency, infamously referred to as the Cabal, have reportedly sold the candidature of Senate President Ahmad Lawan to the president.
This coming a few days to the presidential primary of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
It was gathered President Buhari is expected to present Lawan to the critical stakeholders of the party as his preferred candidate for the party’s ticket.
According to multiple sources, the Aso Villa Cabal has secured the buy-in of the president for Lawan.
One of the sources, a former governor, told Daily Trust that: “Buhari’s nephew, Malam Mamman Daura, a former director-general of the Department of State Services (DSS), Lawal Daura, and the national chairman of the party, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, have succeeded in ramming Lawan down the throat of the president.”
However, the former governor warned that forcing Ahmad Lawan on the party would lead to disaster and implosion.
“Atiku Abubakar will be declared the president-elect by noon on the election day,” he said.
Kashim Shettima, a former governor of Borno State, on Friday evening said Vice-President Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, who is aspiring for the presidency in 2023, “should be selling ice-cream” because he is “a good and nice man”.
He said this while featuring on a programme on Channels TV, monitored by POLITICS NIGERIA.
“Osinbajo is a good and nice man, but nice men don’t make good leaders. Nice men should be selling ice cream,” Shettima, a supporter of Bola Tinubu, National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), said.
Backing his candidate’s boasts about him helping Muhammadu Buhari to be president in 2015, Shettima said nobody can dispute Tinubu’s claims.
“He played a very crucial role in the ascendancy of President Buhari. I was a founding member of the APC; I can confirm this.”
The Special Convention that’ll produce the presidential flagbearer of the APC is scheduled for June 6-8.
Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir David Lawal has described as ‘bulshit’, the statement credited to a presidential aspirant and national leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
Tinubu while addressing the Ogun State APC delegates at the Presidential Lodge, Abeokuta, Thursday stated that he brought President Muhammdu Buhari out of political retirement and assisted him to emerge Nigeria’s President in 2015.
His words: “If not me that led the war front, Buhari would not have emerged. He contested first, second and third times, but lost. He even said on television that he would not contest again.
“But I went to his home in Katsina, I told him you would contest and win, but ‘you would not joke with Yoruba matters.
“Since he has emerged, I have not been appointed minister. I didn’t get a contract.
“This time, it’s the Yoruba’s turn and in Yorubaland, it’s my tenure.”
Reacting to his statement, Lawan argued that Tinubu was not the only person that made the difference, saying there were many others who supported Buhari and never bragged about it.
Disclosing this in a statement made known to Vanguard, Lawan said: “Sometimes it is very difficult to support a Yoruba person in national politics if you are not one.
“They have a way of making you regret your support because they eventually make you seem like a traitor to your own people. Now all these comments about Bola’s Yoruba presidency and his support of Buhari without which Buhari would not have been president is bulshit.
“He wasn’t the only one whose support made a difference. There were many others from all around the country and they are not bragging about it.
“You may wish to know that all of us Buhari supporters are shocked and pissed off by Bola’s speech on this occasion. It is unlike him.
“And this speech is massively trending in the North and being given a negative connotation as you can well imagine. I first read it this morning on an Adamawa group platform and the anger is palpable and all round.
Will Tinubu win Monday’s APC primaries without Northern support?
“You would think Yorubas will resist the temptation of joining in the northerners-bashing game at this very critical time – the primary election is only three days away. It is unfortunate that Bola himself chose to join in this bashing game – choosing to speak in the Yoruba language and in Yoruba land in a manner that seems to denigrate Buhari. I could vividly imagine the discomfort of all the northerners sitting beside him on that podium.
“This appears to be the Abiola saga being replayed. Abiola won the election with majority Northern votes but they took the brunt of the post-election protests that followed.
“Just survey all the people that are doing more meaningful practical things to enthroned Bola as president and you will find that almost all are northerners while his kinsmen engage themselves social media activism and Northern bashing.
“When Yorubas vilify the North like this, our sense of fear and insecurity under a Yoruba presidency gets heightened and in the end, pushes us to rethink our support for not only Bola but any Yoruba as president for that matter.
“Please, do not join our opponents to destroy our chances of clinching Monday’s primary elections.”
A leading presidential aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Governor of Ekiti state, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has debunked insinuations in some quarters that he may be asked to step down for a particular aspirant.
The governor said he is favourably positioned and have backing of the real stakeholders in the party ahead of the presidential primary election to clinch the APC ticket.
An online media had reported that governor Fayemi and other four governors held a meeting behind a closed door with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, suggesting that the former was been pressured to abandon his presidential ambition.
But in a statement released Friday in Abuja, signed by Head of Media and spokesman of Dr. Kayode Fayemi Presidential Campaign Organisation, Femi Ige, described such rumour as “absolute rubbish. No meeting took place between us and any aspirant about stepping down.
“We are undoubtedly among the leading aspirants for the position and one to watch in the race. Our candidate has deep trust and respect among political leaders in the party and also from colleague Governors who form a critical mass in the decision making process.”
The statement asked Fayemi’s supporters to remain calm, focus and not losing faith because of the lies fabricated by political detractors, saying no amount of late night demarketing will work against the Kayode Fayemi Presidential project
