Barely three days after Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje stepped down as national chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) bloc within the party has begun pushing to fill the vacancy.
Multiple sources within the bloc told Daily Trust yesterday that the CPC faction is agitating for the chairmanship in the name of fairness and justice.
Ganduje resigned on Friday via a letter submitted to the party’s National Secretary, Senator Ajibola Bashiru, citing ill health. His resignation was formally confirmed in a statement on Saturday by APC National Publicity Secretary, Barrister Felix Morka.
However, credible sources told Daily Trust that a key reason Ganduje resigned was that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had finalised plans for the defection of Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, a former governor of Kano State and longtime rival of Ganduje, into the APC. While serving as governor, Ganduje was known to have virtually barred Kwankwaso from entering Kano.
Since his resignation, the APC has witnessed renewed calls from the North Central, particularly the CPC bloc, for the chairmanship to be zoned to the region.
Daily Trust reports that the APC was formed in 2013 through the merger of legacy parties including the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), a faction of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), and the new Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP).
Recently, some CPC members criticised the APC leadership for allegedly sidelining the bloc. Former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai, a key CPC figure, recently quit the APC in protest and joined the Social Democratic Party (SDP) ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Yesterday, the North Central APC Forum endorsed former Nasarawa State governor, Senator Tanko Al-Makura, the only CPC governor from 2011 to 2019, to succeed Ganduje.
In a statement signed by the forum’s chairman, Alhaji Saleh Zazzaga, the group said its endorsement followed wide consultations among stakeholders in the region. It argued that Al-Makura hails from the same state as former chairman Abdullahi Adamu, who was forced to resign before completing his tenure, and that the CPC bloc remains the only major legacy group yet to produce a national chairman.
The forum also described Al-Makura as a loyal party man who had accepted the consensus candidacy of Adamu during the 2022 APC National Convention without dissent. It said he possesses the clout, loyalty, and experience necessary to lead the party, and enjoys respect among serving and former governors alike.
Zazzaga added that Al-Makura has handled key party assignments in the past, giving him deep insight into the party’s workings nationwide.
Speaking to Daily Trust yesterday, a North East APC chieftain, Barrister Abdullahi Jalo, said the chairmanship should go to the North Central and the CPC bloc, noting that Al-Makura was widely tipped to take over from Ganduje. He described the agitation as “real and legitimate,” adding that “the APC will not make a mistake.”
In a separate interview, elder statesman and former presidential candidate, Chief Chekwas Okorie, also backed the North Central, saying the region had long felt marginalised since Adamu was replaced by Ganduje.
“The North-Central has not been quiet in expressing their alienation from that office. When Ganduje took over, it felt like a sidelining of the region. It’s only fair to return the chairmanship there,” he said.
Similarly, members of the defunct CPC in the 7th National Assembly held a meeting in Abuja, calling on President Tinubu to address what they described as continued marginalisation of their bloc within the APC. At a press conference, former House of Representatives member Aliyu Gebi said the CPC group had been unfairly excluded from party leadership and deserved proper recognition.
“We cannot sit here and pretend marginalisation doesn’t exist,” Gebi said. “We were thrown out of a vehicle that we created.”
Others at the meeting included Senator Ibrahim Musa, Hon. Sanusi Aliyu, Hon. Mohammed Tukur, Senator Ahmed Sani, Hon. Ibrahim Chachangi, Hon. Yusuf Bala, and the APC National Vice Chairman (North West), Hon. Garuba Datti.
Chairmanship: APC legacy blocs and power rotation
Since its formation, the APC has had five national chairmen—Chief Bisi Akande (ACN), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun (ANPP), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole (ACN), Mai Mala Buni (APC caretaker), and Senator Abdullahi Adamu (PDP). Ganduje, who hailed from the PDP fold, became the sixth.
Of the three core legacy parties, only the CPC has not yet produced a substantive national chairman.
Besides Al-Makura, other notable North Central figures believed to be eyeing the top job include former Kogi State governor, Yahaya Bello, former Plateau governor, Joshua Dariye, Senator Sani Musa (Niger East), and Senator Solomon Ewuga.
There were also rumours that Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, was being considered. However, the presidency has dismissed this as false.
Barrister Bashir Maidugu, a member of the APC Constitution Review Committee (2022), told Daily Trust that the chairmanship contest is wide open, as the party’s constitution only calls for zoning balance without prescribing specific methods.
“It can go to the North West, North Central or any zone,” Maidugu said. “The party leadership will decide based on strategy and electoral balance.”
NEC, convention will decide – APC
Meanwhile, the APC’s National Director of Publicity, Alhaji Bala Ibrahim, said only the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) and National Convention—the two highest decision-making organs—can decide which zone produces the next chairman.
Daily Trust gathered that both meetings are likely to be held in the final quarter of 2025.
Ibrahim said, “People are confusing things. The national chairman issue is constitutional. There’s currently no vacuum, so there’s no crisis.
“The NEC and convention will decide whether to retain the slot in the North Central or move it elsewhere. The acting chairman is just holding the fort until that decision is made.”
Sources told Daily Trust that the National Working Committee (NWC), led by acting chairman Ali Dalori, is expected to meet today to deliberate on Ganduje’s resignation and related matters.
Kano APC to host special reception in honour of Ganduje
Meanwhile, the Kano State chapter of the APC has announced plans to organise a grand reception in honour of the immediate past national chairman of the party, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.
The state APC chairman, Abdullahi Abbas, disclosed this in an interview with BBC Hausa on Sunday.
Speaking on the planned event, Abbas said the Kano APC was proud of Ganduje’s accomplishments during his tenure and that the state chapter believed he deserved to be celebrated.
“We at the APC in Kano are proud of Ganduje’s achievements, contrary to what the opposition is saying,” he said.
“Our party was in a critical condition when he was invited to help rescue it. He did a good job and now needs time to take care of himself.”
He further stated that under Ganduje’s leadership, the APC recorded key political gains, including winning gubernatorial elections in Kogi, Imo and Edo states—one of which had not previously been controlled by the party. He also noted the defection of governors from Akwa Ibom and Delta states, in addition to several lawmakers, to the APC.
“To us, he has done his best,” Abbas added.
Responding to criticism from opposition figures over Ganduje’s leadership style, Abbas said the former chairman’s achievements far outweighed any missteps.
“He is human and bound to make mistakes, but everyone is happy with what he has done. We will organise a warm reception in his honour because we are proud of him. He has demonstrated that someone from Kano can lead a party like the APC and lead it to success,” he said.
He, however, did not disclose the date or other details of the planned reception.(Daily trust)
