Uneasy calm has pervaded the All Progressives Congress (APC) over the consensus option presented by President Muhammadu Buhari before governors on the party’s platform ahead of the party’s presidential primary slated for next Monday.
The governors are strongly opposed to the idea of the president picking his successor singlehandedly, insisting that one of them, preferably a northern governor, should succeed Buhari.
This is even as Vice President Yemi Osinbajo yesterday met with APC national chairman, Abdullahi Adamu, and five governors of the party at the presidential villa.
The meeting may not be unconnected with the presidential primary of the party slated for next Monday.
President Buhari had met with the governors on Tuesday before travelling to Spain.
Buhari who has been in Spain on a state visit at the invitation of that country’s president, Pedro Sanchez, the first by the Nigerian leader, is billed to return this weekend.
The president is also expected to meet with the APC governors tomorrow to arrive at a consensus for the presidential primary.
It was gathered that the governors had splintered into smaller groups and have been meeting in what seemed to be last minute consultations and horse trading to arrive at a position ahead of President Buhari’s arrival from Spain.
A reliable source told our correspondent last night that the APC governors were to meet under the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) platform, but could not meet “probably because they are still consulting.
“It is not unusual that the governors are consulting, especially when the president has told them what he wants and threw it back at them to return the same gesture of allowing him choose his successor the way they did in their respective states. There may be disagreement here and there, especially when it has to taking a major decision, but I believe they would come out strong with one voice,” the source close to one of the governor said in confidence.
The governors opposed to the president’s consensus option who are said to have the support of some northern power brokers are worried that the governing APC might lose at the presidential poll if the selection of its presidential flag bearer is not done in a transparent manner the way it was witnessed in the presidential primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP).
“They also faulted moves by Buhari to limit his search for a successor to the North, with only the President of the Senate, Dr. Ahmad Lawan and Governor Yahaya Bello from the North-East and North-Central respectively. They wanted the party to allow more fresh aspirants to participate in the presidential primaries of the party” another source close to the PGF said.
On the other hand, southern presidential aspirants have rejected moves by the northern governors to reopen nomination after screening has been done, saying it may deepen the split in the ranks of the APC governors.
Our source further said, “As the President intensifies consultations on his successor, he has an uphill task ahead. Some of the APC governors, especially those on second term, do not subscribe to the imposition of APC presidential candidate.
“They are forming a group to advise the President to drop the idea because it will erode voters’ confidence in APC and its anointed candidate.
“They also claimed that APC will be setting a bad precedent for the nation’s democracy. Their greatest challenge is how to convince Buhari to buy in their view.”
Some of the governors are also said to be wooing the national chairman of the APC, Adamu, to reopen nomination for presidential primaries.
“Some of these governors have also been privy to the fact that Buhari might have zeroed in on two or three candidates , including a few Northern aspirants that they don’t want adopted.
“I think there must be more to this reopening of nomination agenda. We don’t know the mindset of our national chairman on this,” our source hinted.
Credit to Leadership