There are strong pointers that the All Progressives Congress (APC) may go the way of consensus in picking its presidential candidate for the 2023 election.
The move is not unconnected to the growing number of aspirants jostling for the party’s presidential ticket despite the outrageous fee of its expression of interest and nomination forms.
The party had billed its primary poll for May 30, 31 and June 1, 2022.
Sources within the party said that APC bigwigs were persuading some presidential aspirants to step down to allow room for consensus.
According to Daily Trust, a reliable source at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja confirmed the development, forwarded a copy of the party’s “Form 18” to be filled by aspirants withdrawing from the race as evidence.
The party ordered the aspirants to fill the Form 18 and submit same to the APC National Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, together with their nomination forms.
The party also instructed that the filling of the Form 18 must be done in the presence of a commissioner for oaths.
The source said the signing of the withdrawal letter in the presence of a commissioner for oaths and submission of the letter alongside the nomination form to the party’s helmsman was to ensure that the aspirants had no legal backing in the event that they later changed their minds and decided to go to court.
A member of the APC National Caucus, Chief Sam Nkire, said consensus was also a constitutional mode of nominating candidates for election and should be respected if the party decided to adopt it.
He added that, “Some of the presidential aspirants will voluntarily withdraw from the race when the going gets tough.” he told Daily Trust.
The presidential aspirants who have picked their N100m forms are Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; National Leader of the APC, Bola Ahmed Tinubu; Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello; a former Governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha; Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi; Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi; a former Governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole; Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige; and Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba.
Others are Jigawa State Governor, Abubakar Badaru; a former Senate President, Ken Nnamani; Overseer of Citadel Global Community Church, Nigeria, Tunde Bakare; Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi and a female aspirant, Uju Kennedy.
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