urges APC to drastically prune 13 aspirants
The Chairman of the All Progressives Congress’ screening committee, John Odigie-Oyegun, says except for one unnamed aspirant, 22 presidential hopefuls pledged to support the party if it embraces consensus ahead of the primary.
Odigie-Oyegun made the revelation during the submission of his report to the APC National Chairman, Abdullahi Adamu, on Friday.
He had told the party to further trim down the list of 13 successful presidential aspirants drastically.
According to him, the screening committee engaged every aspirant on the issue of consensus.
“It is a pleasant surprise that 98 to 99 per cent agreed that the party is supreme and that whatever the party finally decides through proper consultations, they will likely to accept.
“We have only one exemption, who said that he will accept consensus so long as it is bid on me. I think it is a point that needs to be made and emphasised.
“That gives you leeway in the hours ahead to trim down even more drastically. Finally, we should not be afraid to contest the primary if anybody insists on the contest,” he said.
Although he did not mention the aspirant who did not assent to the idea of consensus, many political buffs believed that it could be the embattled National Leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, whose camp had not been in support of consensus talks.
Tinubu had raised dust on Thursday when he claimed that without him, the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), would not have become the president in 2015.
He also narrated the circumstances that led to the emergence of Prof. Yemi Osinbajo as the vice president, saying that Buhari had offered him a running mate ticket, but some blocs rose against it.
The former governor of Lagos State made the statement at the Presidential Lodge in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, when he was addressing the APC delegates ahead of the party’s primary. (Punch)
