APC Convention: Party plans to pick Chairman from North East, may shift date by two week

Barring last minute changes, the leadership of the All Progressives Congress, APC may have chosen the North East as the zone to produce the next chairman of the party.

The party may have also agreed to shift the convention to second week in May having not concluded the processes of the exercise as expected.

The party had fixed February 26, to elect its new national executives to manage its affairs but the inability of the Governor Buni-led Caretaker Committee to achieve a consensus is making the date unrealistic.

A source who disclosed the development to our reporters said the presidency had requested for the names of four aspirants in the race from the North East zone.

Though, the governors from the North Central states are kicking against zoning arrangement, the source said opinion moulders in the zone had differed with the governors position arguing that the North West which had produced two presidents, should consider the North Central for the next highest executive position, either the President or Vice-President.

To them, the zone deserved better positions than the party’s national chairmanship, haven led political parties to electoral victory since the inception of democracy in the country.

They had also argued that those in the race for the APC national chairmanship position from the zone, lacked the required experience and pedigree to attract appointments and meaningful development to the region.

The source said among the 11 aspirants in the race for the APC national chairmanship position, the party’s leadership had submitted the names of four of them to the presidency following a request to that effect.

“Unfortunaly, the names of frontline aspirants from the North Central were not on the list of aspirants submitted to the presidency.

“Of all the high profile aspirants, only Sen. Ali-Modu Sheriff and Sen. Sani Musa made the list.

“Gov. Mai Mala Buni of Yobe who currently heads the APC Caretaker and Extra-ordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) and the Borno governor had insisted that the party’s national chairmanship be left in the North East as had been the party’s tradition,’’ the source said.

It recalled that when Chief John Odigie-Oyegun from the South South was dropped as the APC national chairman, the party went to the zone to elect Adams Oshiomole, a former governor of Edo under a concensus arrangement.

The source stressed that now that Buni who heads the APC CECPC is from the North East, it would not be out of place if the party’s next national chairman comes from the zone.

It said what was however not clear, was whether Buni wants to contest the position or he wants the party’s national convention to hold same day with its presidential primary.

“However, consultations had continued among the party’s top echelon to ensure the buying in of all its stakeholders, but from all indications, the North East will retain the position,” the source maintained.

It said for now, it was only Gov. Nasir El’Rufai of Kaduna State that was opposed to zoning the party’s national chairmanship to the North East because he was promoting a 2023 presidential aspirant.

It added that the party`s top echelon had suggested that its national convention be postponed by two weeks.

This it said was especially because the Buni-led CECPC had failed to keep to schedule of activities for the national convention as it was expected to had commenced sales of forms to aspirants on Feb. 14 which didn’t happen.

Aspirants in the race to contest the APC top position, include former governors and Senators, among whom are Sen. Ali-Modu Sheriff, a two-term former governor of Borno who had been trailing others in proactive agenda setting, Danjuma Goje also a former governor of Gombe and Mr Sylvester Monidafe all from the the North East.

Alhaji Abdulaziz Yari, a former governor of Zamfara and a former Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) is also in the race.

From the North Central, we have a former Deputy National Chairman of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), Malam Saliu Mustapha, a former governor of Nasarawa State, Sen. Tanko Al Makura, Sen. Mohammed Sani-Musa and the Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs, Dr George Akume among others.

There is however, a purported zoning list making the rounds with the chairmanship position zoned to the North East and the National Organising Secretary zoned to the North West which had not been confirmed or refuted by the party`s leadership.