APC Presidential Ticket: Clash Of Egos As Buhari Insists On Osinbajo, Tinubu Sticks With Open Contest

Party’s NWC In A Fix

APC Must Reward Past Contributions To Win In 2023, Oyegun Cautions

By Akombo Aondona, Abuja

 The presidential primary of the All Progressives Congress (APC) appears to be shaping up to be a clash of two big egos – those of President Muhammadu Buhari that of the ‘National Leader’ of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.  

 Reason: The Dream Daily Newspaper has learnt that President Buhari is insisting that he should be allowed to pick his successor in the person of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

  However, sources have told The Dream Daily Newspaper that the ‘National Leader’ of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has told the party’s presidential screening committee that if there must be a consensus candidate at the presidential primary, that candidate should be himself, or else the APC should throw open the 6 June, 2022 presidential primary to all 23 contestants screened by the Chief John Oyegun-led committee.

 In a remark that appeared to be a nod to Tinubu’s candidature, Chief Oyegun, a former national chairman of the APC, had advised that the APC presidential candidate should be someone who contributed immensely to nation building and the growth of APC among the screened presidential candidates of the party.

Oyegun stated this on Friday, 2 June 2022 while addressing journalists shortly after submitting the report of his screening committee to the National Chairman, APC, Sen. Abdullahi Adamu, at the APC National secretariat, Abuja.

  Oyegun revealed that his committee engaged “every aspirant on the issue of consensus and it was a pleasant surprise that 99 percent agreed that the party is supreme and whatever the party finally decides with proper consultation they are likely to accept. 

 “There is only one person that said I will accept consensus as long as it is based on me. So, I think it is a point I need to emphasize.”

  Sources said Tinubu was the exceptional aspirant of the 23 who insisted on either being the consensus candidate or the APC should throw the contest open fairly and equitably.

  The development, sources said, has put the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC in a fix over possible implosion and mass exodus of aggrieved aspirants if they allow President Buhari to have his way with his choice of Osinbajo.  

 Oyegun said the job of the Nigerian President was not an easy task and required someone with good credentials to fly the party’s flag in the 2023 presidential election.

  As the party leader who deployed his political structure to back Buhari in 2015 to ensure victory for the President after three failed attempts, Tinubu is also being backed by a number of APC governors who, like Oyegun, are saying he deserves to be the party’s consensus candidate over the 2015 feat, as well as Buhari’s re-election in 2019.

  Tinubu himself has been quite vocal in insisting on these as bases for his candidature.

   Investigation by The Dream Daily Newspaper revealed that though the President is backing the presidential aspiration Osinbajo, the party and the president are however mindful of the vast contributions of party stalwarts like Tinubu who are in the presidential contest for the party’s presidential ticket.

 According to sources, the President and the party’s NWC are taking their time to arrive at the right consensus candidate in such a way as not to jeopardise the APC losing members, especially the vast supporters some of the presidential aspirants command in the party.

Chief Oyegun’s full speech at the report submission event reads:  

“I thank you for the assignment that you gave us as members of the Screening committee of presidential aspirants. I know how short time has been, I know the environment in which we do cover. so, we were quite happy to also do as much as we could to make the work of the party lighter. We had the privilege to being inaugurated by you on the 30th of May. 

“First, we had 23 members Aspirants that we interacted with and my first comment is that indeed we are very lucky party. Those 23 that presented themselves were prominent Nigerians both within the country and outside the country that applied. But for whatever reasons some could not proceed with their applications. 

“Our report is basically simple. We don’t want to beat around the bush. There were two aspects to it: The basic constitutional qualifications for you to aspire to be President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which was simple and straightforward.

“And on that basis every single member or aspirant that presented himself qualified because it was basis and simple. But we are the governing party and we are keen on continuing the process of replacing at proper times our president with another member of the party with the ability to lead. Your background, your experience your understanding of the Nigerian situation, your ideas as to how issues, difficulties and the rest can be addressed and how the country can move forward are critical considerations.

” It is on that basis we made our final shortlist. I don’t want to read the names; I think would leave that to you (Chairman) but we have a shortlist which brought the number severely down to 13.

” We could have cut it a little shorter but we wanted, deliberately, the younger elements to surface for them to be seen, for them to be noticed and no noise. We would hand them over to the party and it is for the party to decide.

“One thing I have to emphasise is this: We engage every aspirant on the issue of consensus and it was a pleasant surprise that 99 percent agreed that the party is supreme and whatever the party finally decides with proper consultation they are likely to accept. 

“There is only one person that said I will accept consensus as long as it is based on me. So, I think it is a point I need to emphasize. That gives you a way in the hours ahead to trim down even more drastically.”