Crisis has hit the All Progressives Congress (APC) following the announcement of Senate President Ahmed Lawan as consensus presidential aspirant by the national chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu.
Adamu made the announcement at the meeting of National Working Committee (NWC) on Monday in Abuja.
According to the statement, other aspirants including Asiwaju Bola Tinubu; Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; Dr. Kayode Fayemi and David Umahi, among others will however be allowed to contest the primary at the convention holding tomorrow at the Eagle Square, Abuja.
However, in a quick rebuttal, the northern governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have insisted that they would back a southerner to emerge as the presidential candidate of the ruling party in the 2023 general elections.
Chairman of the Northern Governors Forum and Governor of Plateau State, Simon Lalong, stated this on Monday while briefing State House correspondents in Abuja.
The governors, 13 of them, made their position known following their meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Governor Lalong, in his briefing, clarified that the leaked memo that went viral last Saturday was the true position of the northern governors and they came to officially consult with the President.
According to the governor, President Buhari has not anointed any of the 23 aspirants expected to participate in the party’s primary as the flagbearer of the APC.
Rather, he explained that the President asked the governors to have a meeting with the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party to resolve the issue of a consensus candidate through democratic means.
Governor Lalong stated that the decision of the governors to return power to the South was to ensure equity, peace, and unity in the country.