The All Progressive Congress (APC) has yesterday hinted that the party has set June 2023 as a timeline to decide which part of the country would produce its presidential candidate for the 2023 General election. An inside source revealed that if the North get the slot for the National party chair during the convention of the party, then the south would produce the presidential candidate and vice versa.
Accordingly, yesterday, an emergency virtual National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting held has extended the stay of the Governor Buni-led 13-member Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CEPC) for another six months.
The House has agreed to reconvene on June 30th, 2021 as against December 25th which was supposed to be the expiration date in office for the (CECPC) committee.
Although a source revealed that the extension of the committee term of office was to resolve brewing tension within the party, the party said the extension of the committee time was to round up its membership revalidation and registration of new members.
Meanwhile, another source said, “This is partly why President Muhammadu Buhari in his remarks at the NEC meeting harped on healing wounds, mending fences and respecting the free-merger agreement reached by those behind the formation of the APC,”
More so, he said the moves and politicking that would produce the party's next flag bearer was threatening the existence of the party considering the fact that Buhari tenure is gradually winding down.
As some political analyst believes that the north can decide to perpetuate itself in power considering their numerical strength, others are of the opinion that it has gone against the gentleman agreement that was entered into during the formation of the party with their southern counterpart in 2014.
The source explained that “And even if the North agrees to hands-off, we have to agree on which part of the South should have the presidential candidate.
“There are those who believe it should go to the South West.
“There are those who believe it should go to the South East, and some people are saying the South-South should be given a chance, but it all depends on the disposition of the Villa,”
Why the pre-2015 agreement remains at stake
During the meeting President Buhari urged party members that he was confident on the Governor Buni-led caretaker committee for rekindling the hope within the party, he enjoined members to put the party interest above everything.
Buhari told party faithful, “Healthy debates are now taking place and the potential for organs of the party to affirm the majority positions as the decision of the party is now possible,”
He continued, “What is required now is for all of us as leaders of the party to maintain discipline and ensure that this new momentum is protected, sustained and the decisions of party organs are respected by every member.
“May I use this opportunity to remind all of us of the need to recreate our negotiation the secret of 2012, 2013 under our legacy parties, what guided our success to achieve the merger that produced the APC was the respect we were able to have for each other.
“In those times, decisions reached both formal and informal consultations were respected.
The president further explained, “We trusted initiatives taken and believed that they were required to produce the needed political platform that could guarantee electoral victory.
“Every one of us as leaders ensured that those decisions were respected,” the president said.
Shortly after the meeting, Governor Nasiru El-Rufa’i of Kaduna state and his Ondo and Imo state counterpart, Akeredolu, and Uzodinma respectively in the company of the caretaker secretary, James Akpanudoedehe disclosed that the national convention would hold only after the revalidation and registration exercise which will soon start.
Mr. James disclosed, “Since we undertook our last membership registration in 2015, about 25 million have reached the age of 18 and may want to join the party.
“So, we want to capture those (people), and then after we complete the registration, we will have congresses at various levels, leading up to the national convention before the 30th of June 2021 by the grace of God.”
