Buhari woos APC governors over choice of successor

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday dropped a bombshell when he told the governors of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to allow him to make a choice for his successor.

The president met the governors ahead of the presidential primary election fixed for June 6, 7 and 8.

Credible sources privy to a meeting held between the president and the governors said the president took most of the governors by surprise considering that they wanted him to allow them to choose one among them as the next president.

Some of the sources said the president was also bowing to pressure from some powerful forces around him who want to remain relevant in the next administration.

One source privy to details of the meeting however said the president’s silence about who his choice was disappointed those who orchestrated the meeting who had envisaged the president’s clear endorsement.

“With his speech, the president took many stakeholders by surprise,” one of the sources said.

“Even though the president is keen on leaving behind a legacy of success stories at the end of his tenure in 2023 for the future generation to see, he was not particularly interested in circumventing democratic norms or having a direct influence on who succeeds him in order to cover any wrongdoing.

“It is some people around him and an entrenched so-called establishment who would like to be direct beneficiaries of anointing someone that are working hard to see that the president raise the hands of someone,” he said.

The governors of the APC were led into the meeting by Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State, who is the chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF).

“In keeping with the established internal policies of the party and as we approach the convention in a few days, therefore, I wish to solicit the reciprocity and support of the governors and other stakeholders in picking my successor, who would fly the flag of our party for election into the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2023,” he said.

National Chairman of the party, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, Chief of Staff to the President, Professor Ibrahim Gambari, and all the APC governors with exception of Kaduna who was represented by his deputy, Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe, attended the meeting, which held at the Council Chambers of the State House, Abuja.

It was learnt that the governors later met at Adamu’s house at the Three Arms Zone where they continued with deliberations on the way forward in the aftermath of what the president said.

Daily Trust reports that this is the first time the president would be seeking the backing of the governors in picking his successor whose identity he refused to disclose despite speaking about the qualities the person must possess.

Early this year, Buhari said any attempt to reveal the identity of his preferred candidate for the 2023 presidential election might put the person’s life at risk of elimination.

The president had also in the past said the next president should be someone with a strong backing of his local base.

Tuesday’s meeting

The president, while speaking, charged the governors to ensure that the forthcoming convention to pick a presidential candidate reflects all the values and virtues of the party.

He assured that the consultation process will continue to ensure that all aspirants and stakeholders would be brought on board right through to the convention.

Buhari said that the consultation would also ensure that any anxiety occasioned by different factors was “effectively” brought under control, “and that our party emerges stronger.”

The president promised to provide the stronger leadership to the party to ensure that the party not only remained strong and united but also retained power at the centre, held the great majority in various legislative chambers and gained additional number of states.

He said: “The processes for the 2023 general elections have commenced in earnest and I note that the most successful political parties globally have always relied on their internal cohesion and a strong leadership brand to achieve bigger electoral fortunes. Our party, the APC, shall not be any different, more so as we are still implementing the blueprint for a more prosperous nation.

“As I begin the final year of my second term as president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and leader of the party, I recognize the compelling need for me to provide stronger leadership to the party under this transition process and to ensure that it happens in an orderly manner.

“Such leadership is required so that the party remains strong and united. It is also needed to improve our electoral fortunes by ensuring that it retains power at the centre, holds the great majority in various legislative chambers and also gains additional number of states.

“In pursuit of the foregoing objectives, the party has successfully established internal policies that promote continuity and smooth succession plans even at the state and local government levels. For example, first term governors who have served credibly well have been encouraged to stand for re-election. Similarly, second term governors have been accorded the privilege of promoting successors that are capable of driving their visions as well as the ideals of the party.

“In a few days, the party will be holding its convention during which primaries would take place to pick the presidential flag bearer for the 2023 General Elections. This is a very significant process and its outcome should prove to the world, the positive quality of the APC regarding democratic principles, culture as well as leadership.

“As we approach the Convention, I appeal to all of you to allow our interests to converge, our focus to remain on the changing dynamics of our environment, the expectations of our citizens and the global community. Our objective must be the victory of our party and our choice of candidate must be someone who would give the Nigerian masses a sense of victory and confidence even before the elections,” he said.

Governor Bagudu, while speaking at the event said the party must build on the successes of its recent elective convention and the primaries conducted so far “And come up with a candidate who will walk in the footsteps of patriotism and love for the country, which Mr President has shown.

“We will support Mr President to have a very successful convention,” he promised in a statement issued by the presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina.

Daily Trust learnt that the president advised that the number of the presidential aspirants be pruned to manageable numbers ahead of the convention.

The party chairman was said to have promised to look into the advice.

However, reactions yesterday trailed the declaration by the president from members of the party and pro-democracy campaigners.

In an apparent reaction from his Twitter handle, a former Senior Special Assistant to Buhari on Special Intervention Programme, Barr Ismael Ahmed, said the party’s candidate should emerge through the ballot.

“Serious candidates went round the states and campaigned. We all saw them. I saw at least seven of them in Kano. They saw delegates and spoke to them. They pitched their messages. So let’s conclude this democratically at the convention floor abeg.”

In an earlier tweet, Ahmed, who was a member of the Buni-led caretaker committee of the party, wrote “One thing I know for sure is that we must have a primary. There will be a genuine contest. The ticket of APC is too big to be given. It has to be won.”

Why he allows many contenders to compete – Yarima

Even though some pundits said it was too late for Buhari to think of choosing a successor himself, one of the presidential aspirants and former Governor of Zamfara State, Ahmed Sani Yarima, said there was a reason.

“Mr President cannot just sit in the Villa and say you, Mr A, go and buy form and contest. First of all, he wanted to see who and who are interested in that position, which means you have to wait to see how many people indicate interest.

“How do you indicate interest? It is by buying the expression of interest form and you have to buy the form to be able to contest. It is only then when he had seen the number of people who are contesting; not only that you have to also present yourself for screening. He doesn’t know the biodata of everybody and he cannot just sit down and say this is my candidate.”

Yarima said in arriving at a decision the president “has to listen to a lot of opinions” including from “The security circle and politics circle”.

Yarima said he was sure the president would pick his successor from among those who purchased the form and screened.

President can’t force own choice on Nigerians – CSOs

Speaking on the matter, the Executive Director, Yiaga Africa, Mr Samson Itodo, said that although President Buhari has a right to identify a worthy successor, but he does not have a right to compel acceptance of his successor.

“Candidates should be selected through democratic primaries not based on the whims and caprice of one individual,” Itodo, who is also a lawyer, said.

Also, the Chairman Transition Monitoring Group (TMG) and Executive Director, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Mallam Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, said that President Muhammadu Buhari has not provided the needed statesmanship and leadership regarding the choice of his successor in the APC.

“If the president has been very proactive long ago the recruitment process of his possible successor would have been addressed to avoid the ongoing crisis in the party. The president should have engaged those who expressed interest for political dialogue and build a better understanding among all the contestants who have expressed interest.

“But he gave the impression that he has no interest and after allowing them to start antagonizing each other. He now wants to select one and the governors to support his preferred person.

“The president appears not to understand the chaos his earlier position created within his party. The governors are done with Buhari especially those who will be finishing their second term in 2023 he can no longer control them like before.

“There is no democratic governance in the party again if it is only what the president wants is granted without democratic and popular collective decision by the party structures,” Rafsanjani said.

On his part, the Executive Director, Resource Centre for Human Rights and Civic Education (CHRICED), Dr. Ibrahim Zikirullahi, said that going by the primaries of the political parties, nothing has been done to say that they are engaging in anything democratic.

“All this that they are talking about either statutory delegates or not are just to convince the people so that people would think they are following due process. And at the end of the day, few individuals would just come together and impose candidates on the people.”

“With all the millions APC raked in through nomination forms and the rest, at the end of the day, only President Buhari would choose and once he does that, everyone would succumb. This is autocratic, impunity of the highest order to say that in a country of over 200 million, only one man would choose for the people,” Zikirullahi said.

By Muideen Olaniyi, Abbas Jimoh & Dalhatu Liman