It is not yet peace time for the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the official flag off of its campaign for the 2023 general election, as the meeting called to resolve gray areas around the now controversial list of the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) ended in a deadlock.
The frosty disposition could be gleaned from the faces of the actors, who met for over three hours on Wednesday at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja.
It was also learnt that the governors differed with the party’s leadership with regards to the actual take off date of the APC presidential campaign.
While the governors believe the campaign has started in earnest, the party insists it would decide on the matter at the appropriate time.
The crucial meeting summoned by Senator Abdullahi Adamu-led National Working Committee (NWC) had seven governors in attendance and some leaders of the PCC, including Simon Lalong, Plateau State governor and Director-General of the Tinubu-Shettima Campaign and Adams Oshiomhole, Deputy DG. Also in attendance were Governors Abdullahi Umar Ganduje (Kano), Mohammed Badaru (Jigawa), Mohammed Bello Matawalle (Zamfara), Sani Bello (Niger) and Borno State deputy governor, who represented Umaru Zulum.
Addressing anxious journalists after the crucial meeting, Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State and Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) admitted that the release of the PCC list outside the party leadership was a great mistake but added quickly that the issues were being discussed and sorted out.
While he expressed delight with the activities of the PCC, the Kebbi State governor noted that the party should have been the proper organ to release the list, adding that issues are being sorted out.
Nevertheless, he maintained that the NWC is solidly behind the party’s presidential candidate to succeed on the ballot in 2023.
Speaking on the outcome of the meeting, he said: “What I will say is governors of the APC, members of the Presidential Campaign Council visited the chairman and the NWC members to strategise and discuss on campaign and the chairman briefed us about the party and we appreciate how well our party has been doing in the polity.
“Governors are very proud of our party, we are very proud of our party leader, President Muhammadu Buhari, we are very proud of the conventions that produced both our national chairman and our presidential candidate in the person of Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and the vice presidential candidate in the person of Kashim Shettima, we are very proud of the actions of the national chairman and the NWC, we are very proud of the actions of the Presidential Campaign Council.
“We are happy that we are discussing even though there were lists that were unfortunate, that the campaign (council list) which the party would have announced …a mistake but I am happy that the party is solidly behind our candidate and whatever lists that have come out erroneously, we believe it will be sorted out”.
On his part, the APC national chairman, Abdullahi Adamu, insisted that the party remains supreme and is working towards attaining its objective to win the 2023 presidential election.
“We are very comfortable, we have established machinery for resolving anything… we are together with the governors forum and NWC. I believe this meeting we had is more than useful to us. For us nothing short of victory and that is the spirit of this meeting”, he said.
Asked to give definite date for the flag off of the APC campaign, Adamu chided reporters, saying: “Don’t be faster than your shadow. Whatever you want to have, so much in a hurry you may…. (lose it). The fact of the matter is, we as a party, as APC we will determine when we will do what, as long as it is within the framework of INEC’s guidelines”.
However, inside sources said the campaign will officially flag off on October 10. It appears the absence of the party’s candidate is adding to the confusion.
