The leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and delegates have been urged to pick Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, as its 2023 presidential candidate to douse tension and brighten the party’s chances in the 2023 elections.
The Coordinator, Movement for Better Nigeria (MBN), Dr. Paul Dowells, made the call on Saturday in Abuja at a media conference, ahead of the APC presidential convention at Eagle Square, in Abuja.
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The organisation also threatened to mobilize Nigerians against the party, if Vice President Yemi Osinbajo who he said has garnered enough experience over the last seven years and having more prospects to deliver more dividends of democracy to Nigerians loses out in the forthcoming primary election.
According to him, there would not be a better pay-back opportunity for President Buhari than to rally behind Osinbajo to square up with Atiku Abubakar in the 2023 general elections.
“We all know that the succession plan of every administration is as important as the administration itself, therefore as a group, poised to see a better Nigeria and ensure the sustainability of the giant strides of President Buhari led administration, we call on Mr President not to yield to pressure from some quarters to choose a candidate who does not have the capacity to lead the nation to its desired destination or choose out of sentiments.
“As a group we want Mr. President to ensure that whichever way the party chooses to nominate its candidate either through consensus or direct primaries; nobody should be allowed to use money and resources to mesmerize the delegates which abet the corruption that his administration is known to fight against.
“The primaries should be free, fair and credible. The president should consider the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo as his successor following his leadership qualities, loyalty and love to the present administration as exemplified during his temporary stay as the Acting President of Nigeria,” Dowells said.
He also said that Vice President Osinbajo within some period when he stood in fot President Buhari constituted the Presidential Task Force on Food Security mandated to reduce prices of food items in the country.
He said that others include the award of N126bn road projects spread across Kano, Bauchi, Adamawa, Kwara, Gombe, Enugu and Kaduna states among others.
He said, “We are confident of the president’s sagacity and sense of judgement because Prof. Osinbajo as Nigeria’s Acting President has gained some good popularity among the Nigerian people and for the APC to sustain its power, it must field a credible and refined candidate who will be able to contend with the opposition PDP and ensure that victory is gotten.
“But, then, that can only be achieved if our brothers and sisters from the northern part of the country support him because one good turn deserves another and this is the turn of right choice which is Vice president Osinbajo.”
Also, another member of the organisation, Hon. Yagana Abba, said Osinbajo has a blueprint to end insecurity currently plaguing Nigeria and only requires a genuine platform to implement those ideas.
She said Osinbajo enjoys the support of the northerners and would do well as a President because he knows the immediate needs of Nigerians.
