The of the All Progressives Congress, APC, on Wednesday, said that President Muhammadu Buhari’s choice of candidate for the chairmanship of the party in the upcoming election may not be binding as he cannot foreclose the possibility of others contesting the position.
According to the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Bolaji Abdullahi, the president is only entitled to his choice of candidacy ahead of the elective national convention slated for May 14 in Abuja.
However, Mr Abdullahi said that even though Mr Buhari had voiced out his choice of candidate to some select governors, it is not binding on the party to accept such choice.
He said: “What we were told at the meeting was that the President had a meeting with some governors and they asked to know who he wanted to support and I think that he told them his preference. But that has nothing to do with the meeting we had today.”
On whether the NWC will stand with the president, he said: “I don’t think that is a fair question to ask me because you will be asking me for my personal opinion and I am not here to give you my personal opinion.
“What I can tell you is that Chief Oyegun will make his position known within the next couple of days whether he is going to contest the chairmanship or not.
“The President is a party member and has the right to have his preferences and I don’t get the feeling that he told anyone this is the person you must support. He met with some of the governors who went to ask him and they were actually four governors.
“I don’t think that the governors that met him on Wednesday to say he told them this was up to five or six.
“So, maybe they probably asked him and because of the relationship he has with them, he told them what his preferences are and they felt that it was important for them to make this available to the public. I don’t get the feeling that President Buhari called the governors and told them that this is the way you must go.
“Don’t forget that it was this same office that we came to the NEC meeting on the 27th of March and the president said NEC has taken this decision regarding the tenure of party executives across the country and that he has been advised that the position was not consistent with the position of the law and asked the party to take a second look at it.
“He did not say he has taken a position, so there should be no more conversation.
“The opportunity he gave the party has made us better because that is how we arrived at the position we are discussing now.
“The consultation he had with these governors was a private conversation. He did not address a press conference to say this is the person I want.
“So, if those individuals he confided in felt it was necessary for them to make the position public, I don’t think it is fair for us to hold the president responsible for this. I don’t think he has foreclosed anything or that he has said this is the way everyone must go.”
The APC spokesman who insisted that the issue of who will contest the party positions was not discussed with the governors said in view of observations made by some of the governors on the timetable prepared by the party for congresses and the national convention, there was the possibility of a review of the dates.
“So the meeting was to emphasise to go the governors that we want congresses in a very transparent manner and ensure that the processes are free and fair.
“One of the major concerns of the party at the beginning was that we should do everything possible to avoid rancor that could be generated as a result of the congresses.
“It was agreed that one of the major ways of avoiding that rancour is to ensure that the congresses are transparent to the majority of the people.
“As you know, the governors are interested in the committee’s that will come to their states to conduct the congresses and we made it clear to them that this is a constitutional matter and the constitution of the APC impose the composition of the committees on the NWC only and that by Friday this week, the list of the congress committee members will be ready.
Collaborating the party position, Kano state governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje said apart from from the issue of the timetable for convention and congresses, the meeting agreed that the zoning will be maintained for the party officers “but the only clause is that they should go and discuss with those governors in charge of the zones where the officers should come from.
“For example, the chairman of the party will have to come from the South-south, the secretary from the northeast and all other positions like that. We have resolved all issues amicably. The NWC will have to get back to us in a week’s time.”
