APC Governors meet, discuss way forward
There were indications on Wednesday that the immediate past Governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Ganduje, might be considered as replacement for the erstwhile National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Adamu
Consequently, sources within the party said Ganduje’s name might have been dropped from President Bola Tinubu’s list of ministerial nominees.
It was gathered that Ganduje was nominated as a minister, but it appeared his name had been withdrawn after Adamu’s resignation.
The former Kano State governor was, however, said to be more interested in becoming a minister than a party man.
The move to replace the key officials is coming barely 48 hours after Abubakar Kyari and Festus Fuanter took over as acting national chairman and acting secretary of the party, respectively.
In a move many see as courting the support of stakeholders, the National Working Committee of the APC reportedly met with members of the Progressive Governors’ Forum on Wednesday in Abuja.
Ganduje has been a front-line supporter and mobiliser of President Tinubu from day one. He was one of the earliest governors to support Tinubu’s presidential bid.
Sources also claimed that President Tinubu is comfortable with Ganduje as the Chairman of the party.
A party source said Ganduje had to be lobbied by the president and other party bigwigs to accept the party’s chairmanship position.
“Ganduje had to be lobbied. This is what is delaying the announcement of the ministerial nominees in the Senate Chamber, even though the president had already sent the list on Tuesday,” a source who pleaded for anonymity said.
It was learnt that after he accepted the offer, President Tinubu asked him to bring his replacement from Kano State and other five people for appointments among which is the party’s flag bearer in Kano State, Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna and Baffa Babba Dan-agundi, a former Managing Director of Kano Roads and Traffic Agency.
However, another APC chieftain told The Point on Wednesday that the candidature of Ganduje as a substantive chairman of the party might be a difficult task to achieve since the National Chairmanship of the APC would still be retained in the North Central.
Ganduje is from the North West geo-political zone.
The source added that the APC might still retain the position in Nasarawa State because it was targeting the former Governor of the State, Tanko Al-Makura.
On the likely successor to Iyiola Omisore who was swept away alongside Adamu as National Secretary, the APC chieftain said in the interest of fairness, a new party scribe must be of South East extraction.
“If we want to be fair to all sections of the country, the next National Secretary should come from the South East. The President is from the South West, the secretary of the party is not supposed to come from the South West.
“We did our convention before the elections, but I think this is an opportunity to bring a sense of balance in the power equation of the party. The secretary should come from the South East,” he added.
Some APC governors were also said to have met on Wednesday to discuss the state of affairs of the party.
Some of those at the meeting, which was held at the Imo State Governor’s Lodge in Asokoro Abuja, were the host governor and Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, Hope Uzodinma of Imo State; Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State; Umar Bago (Niger State); Francis Nwifuru (Ebonyi State); Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq (Kwara State); Acting Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa; Fr. Hyacinth Alia (Benue State), Uba Sani (Kaduna State); Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos State); Mai Mala Buni (Yobe State); and Dikko Radda (Katsina State).