Some loyalists of the immediate past National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Ganduje, have decried his resignation, saying it will not augur well for the party.
This is just as a group in the North Central demanded that the party chairmanship be zoned to the region.
Saturday PUNCH had reported that Ganduje resigned his position on Friday.
The spokesperson for the APC, Felix Morka, in a statement, noted that the ex-governor resigned on health grounds.
However, Sunday PUNCH gathered that Ganduge resigned amid reports of the planned defection of his political rival, Rabiu Kwankwaso, to the APC.
Insiders at the party secretariat revealed that President Bola Tinubu had concluded discussions with Kwankwaso about joining the party.
While the party has appointed its Deputy National Chairman (North), Bukar Dalori, as the acting National Chairman, the APC has also started shopping for a substantive leader for the party.
Sources told our correspondents that the National Working Committee of the party would hold a special meeting on Monday (tomorrow) to discuss Ganduje’s replacement.
According to a source, President Tinubu and some APC stakeholders are “strongly” considering the North-Central region to produce the new national chairman.
“The NWC will have a special meeting on Monday to discuss the matter, among other political calculations that will shape the 2027 presidential election. Monday’s meeting will give way to a National Executive Council meeting where the final decision will be taken,” he said.
The North-Central, which comprises Benue, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, and Plateau, gave Tinubu a total of 1,760,993 votes, Peter Obi of the Labour Party 1,415,557, and Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party 1,025,178 in the 2023 presidential election.
Ganduje became the national chairman of the APC in August 2023, following the resignation of Senator Abdullahi Adamu.
Ganduje’s loyalists kick
Some supporters of the former national chairman in Kano have, however, described the situation that led to his resignation as disappointing.
According to them, Ganduje’s decision to quit the position is risky for the APC ahead of the 2027 general elections.
One of the loyalists, Sulaiman Ibrahim, said, “Ganduje’s exit as APC National Chairman is disappointing, especially given the progress he made in attracting opposition members back to the party. Overall, it feels like a setback for the APC.
“It isn’t a betrayal but a result of pressure on President Tinubu, since the position was originally meant for the North-Central and only given to Ganduje as a favour.”
Another supporter, Usman Garba, said he was disappointed by Ganduje’s exit.
“I feel disappointed after the news of Ganduje’s resignation, but if this decision will strengthen the APC and provide a better new appointment for him, it is understandable. Politics is a game of interest, and I can’t call it betrayal because it’s a matter of zoning, reshaping, and balancing,” he stated.
Garba ruled out any protest in Kano over the development.
He, however, cautioned against trusting Kwankwaso, whose reported plan to join the APC had caused tension among members in the state.
“Kwankwaso should never be trusted again because history repeats itself. He betrayed former President Goodluck Jonathan and did the same to former President Muhammadu Buhari. It is very risky to build your party around Kwankwaso, only for him to defect when you need him the most,” he warned.
Another loyalist, Umar Idris, said he was not pleased with the development.
A member of the APC in the state, Gaddafi Shafi’u, said Ganduje’s resignation might be part of a political arrangement to position the party for victory in 2027.
“It may be a plan to replace Kashim Shettima with Kwankwaso, as part of a political strategy. They were sacrificed to promote the APC,” he said.
Also, a former Senior Adviser to Ganduje, Faizu Alfindiki, described the resignation as “both historic and deeply personal.”
North-Central demands position
Meanwhile, the North-Central APC Forum has urged Tinubu and other party stakeholders to allow the region to produce the next national chairman, citing “fairness, justice, and equity” as key considerations.
In a statement in Abuja on Saturday, the Forum’s Chairman, Saleh Zazzaga, stressed the importance of the party “doing the right thing” by picking the next chairman from the region.
The forum further called on Tinubu to instruct Dalori to promptly convene a NEC meeting to ensure the emergence of a substantive national chairman.
The statement read partly, “It is on record that the North-Central APC Forum has long advocated the party to honour the principles of the existing zoning arrangement, which allocated the position of National Chairman to the North-Central. We have argued that the region should be allowed to complete the tenure of former National Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, even going to court to press our case.
“However, after the ratification of Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje’s appointment as National Chairman by the NEC in the overall interest of the party, we decided to suspend our agitation. This decision was influenced by the progress we observed in the party under Ganduje’s leadership, demonstrated by high-profile defections to the APC, including governors and members of the National Assembly.
“Now that Ganduje has decided to step aside, it is only fair and just for the party to finally allow the North-Central to produce the national chairman, ensuring fairness, justice, and equity.”
The Al-Makura factor
Sunday PUNCH gathered that one of the APC leaders being considered for the national chairmanship position is a former governor of Nasarawa State, Senator Tanko Al-Makura.
Al-Makura is a stakeholder in the Congress for Progressive Change bloc of the APC.
There were reports that President Tinubu agreed to consider the CPC bloc for the chairmanship position after their earlier plan to defect from the party.
However, a credible source said the President might not be willing to hand over the party structure to Al-Makura because of a “distant relationship.”
He said, “It is true that the President is considering the CPC bloc for the chairmanship, but there is a hurdle for Tanko Al-Makura. The President is not close to him, and they hardly have any relationship. The Tinubu we know will not hand over the party structure to anyone he doesn’t trust.”
But a political group in Gombe State, the Coalition of Progressive Movement, declared support for Al-Makura.
The National Coordinator of the coalition, Umar Kumo, led the call at a meeting of APC members in the state on Friday.
He urged party leaders to support Al-Makura’s candidacy based on his record of loyalty, political competence, and broad-based appeal.
“This endorsement goes beyond party politics; it is a call for credible and unifying leadership. Al-Makura is a tested and trusted figure whose loyalty to the APC and its ideals is unwavering.
“We believe he is the right leader to consolidate our gains, strengthen party structures, and steer the APC to continued national relevance,” he stated.
Sunday PUNCH gathered that other members of the APC had also shown interest in the chairmanship position.
APC govs back Ganduje’s resignation
In a related development, the Progressive Governors Forum has said Ganduje’s resignation is in line with the party’s continued evolution.
The governors, in a communiqué issued at the close of a two-day meeting in Benin, Edo State, said, “The resignation of the National Chairman of the party, Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, is acknowledged as being in tandem with the party’s continued evolution.”
The Chairman of the PGF and Governor of Imo State, Hope Uzodimma, read the communiqué.
Regarding leadership cohesion and party renewal, the PGF recognised the recent influx of governors, National Assembly members, and other key stakeholders into the APC as affirmation of public confidence in the APC’s leadership model. (Punch)
